THE SOCCER REPORT

Dynamo tie LA Galaxy in sold out opener; Real Madrid take El Clasico and La Liga lead

Dynamo tie LA Galaxy in sold out opener; Real Madrid take El Clasico and La Liga lead
Mauro Manotas' goal earned the Dynamo their first point of the season. Photo: Manuel Gonzalez / Deporte Total USA

MLS is back with its 25th season and the opening weekend had plenty of big goals and special moments. Over in Europe, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona met in the sport's most talked about rivalry worldwide.

Here is a recap of last week's top action:

International Club competitions

UEFA Champions League

Round of 16 - First Leg

  • Chelsea 0-3 Bayern Munich
  • Napoli 1-1 FC Barcelona
  • Lyon 1-0 Juventus
  • Real Madrid 1-2 Manchester City
Concacaf Champions League

Round of 16 - Second Leg

  • Atlanta United 3-0 Motagua (ATL advances 4-1)
  • Cruz Azul 4-0 Portmore United (CAZ advances 6-1)
  • New York City FC 1-0 AD San Carlos (NYC advances 6-3)
  • Montreal Impact 0-0 Saprissa (MTL advances, 2-2 agg, on away goals)
  • Tigres UANL 4-2 Alianza FC (TIG advances 5-4)
  • Club America 1-1 Comunicaciones (2-2 agg., AME advances 5-3 on pens.)
  • Seattle Sounders FC 2-2 Olimpia (4-4 agg., OLI advances 4-2 on pens.)
  • LAFC 3-0 Club Leon (LAFC advances 3-2)
Quarterfinals take place March 10-18

English Premier League

Liverpool FC's bid for an undefeated season ended at the hands of Watford, who jump out of the relegation zone with a 3-0 victory.

Top six: 1. Liverpool (79), 2. Man City (57), 3. Leicester City (50), 4. Chelsea (45), 5. Manchester United (42), 6. Wolves (42)

Bottom three (relegation): 18. Bournemouth (27), 19. Aston Villa (25), 20. Norwich City (21)

Scoring leader: 17 - Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) / Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)

Assists leader: 16 - Kevin De Bruyne (Man City)

Spanish La Liga

With goals from Vinicius and Mariano, Real Madrid took a 2-0 win in El Clasico and the lead at the top of the table in La Liga.

Top six: 1. Real Madrid (56), 2. FC Barcelona (55), 3. Sevilla (46), 4. Getafe (45), 5. Atletico Madrid (44), 6. Real Sociedad (43)

Bottom three: 18. Mallorca (22), 19. Leganes (20), 20. Espanyol (20)

Scoring leader: 18 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)

Assists leader: 12 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)

German Bundesliga

Top six: 1. Bayern Munich (52), 2. RB Leipzig (49), 3. Dortmund (48), 4. Monchengladbach (46), 5. Bayer Leverkusen (44), 6. Schalke 04 (36)

Bottom three: 16. Fortuna (21), 17. Werder Bremen (17), 18. Paderborn (16)

Scoring leader: 25 - Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

Assists leader: 16 - Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)

Italian Serie A

Top six: 1. Lazio (62), 2. Juventus (60), 3. Inter Milan (54), 4. Atalanta (48), 5. Roma (45), 6. Napoli (39)

Bottom three: 18. Genoa (22), 19. Brescia (16), 20. SPAL (15)

Scoring leader: 27 - Ciro Immobile (Lazio)

Assists leader: 12 - Luis Alberto (Lazio)

French Ligue 1

Top four: 1. PSG (68), 2. Marseille (55), 3. Rennes (47), 4. Lille (46)

Bottom three: 18. Nimes (27), 19. Amiens (22), 20. Toulouse (13)

Scoring leader: 18 - Kylian Mbappe (PSG)

Assists leader: 14 - Angel Di Maria (PSG)

Major League Soccer

The 25th season of MLS got underway with a soccer game with American football lines... just like the good old days (thanks to XFL at D.C. United's Audi Field).

The Houston Dynamo hosted LA Galaxy and the signing of the offseason in Mexican superstar Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez. The former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward stole the spotlight but it would be the South American goalscorers who would get on the scoresheet. Cristian Pavon opened the scoring for LA while Mauro Manotas earned the point for the Dynamo - match ended in a 1-1 tie. Alberth Elis and offseason signing Darwin Quintero were among the players who missed the sold out home opener due to injury.

Over 59,000 packed Nissan Stadium in Nashville for the expansion side's opening match against Atlanta United, with the visitors taking a 2-1 victory. David Beckham's Inter Miami, the other expansion team this year, lost 1-0 at LAFC on Sunday.

Liga MX

Clausura 2020

Top eight: 1. Cruz Azul (16), 2. Club America (16), 3. Leon (15), 4. Juarez (14), 5. Pumas UNAM (14), 6. Santos Laguna (14), 7. Queretaro (13), 8. CD Guadalajara (12)

Scoring leader: 7 - Jonathan Rodriguez (Cruz Azul) / Andre-Pierre Gignac (Tigres UANL)

Assists leader: 5 - Pablo Barrera (Pumas)

TV listings (All Times CT):

For full info on soccer TV listings and streaming services in the United States, visit worldsoccertalk.com

Tuesday, March 3

1:45 p.m. - [English FA Cup] Chelsea vs. Liverpool (ESPN+)

1:45 p.m. - [German Cup] Schalke 04 vs. Bayern Munich (ESPNU, ESPN Deportes)

4:15 p.m. - [Copa Libertadores] Defensa y Justicia vs. Santos (beIN Sports)

6:30 p.m. - [Copa Libertadores] America de Cali vs. Gremio (beIN Sports Connect)

Wednesday, March 4

1:45 p.m. - [English FA Cup] Sheffield Wednesday vs. Man City (ESPN+)

1:45 p.m. - [English FA Cup] Spurs vs. Norwich (ESPN+)

Thursday, March 5

1:45 p.m. - [English FA Cup] Derby vs. Man United (ESPN+)

6:00 p.m. - [SheBelieves Cup] USWNT vs. England (ESPN2, TUDN)

Friday, March 6

8:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Pumas UNAM vs. Club América (TUDN)

Saturday, March 7

6:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Liverpool vs. Bournemouth (NBC Sports)

8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Wolfsburg vs. RB Leipzig (FS1, FOX Deportes)

9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Arsenal vs. West Ham (NBC Sports)

9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Wolves vs. Brighton (CNBC)

9:00 a.m. - [La Liga] Atletico Madrid vs. Sevilla (beIN Sports)

11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Burnley vs. Spurs (NBC Sports)

11:30 a.m. - [La Liga] FC Barcelona vs. Real Sociedad (beIN Sports)

7:30 p.m. - [MLS] Houston Dynamo at Sporting KC (KUBE57)

9:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Atlas vs. Chivas (Univision)

Sunday, March 8

9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Chelsea vs. Everton(NBC Sports)

11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Man United vs. Man City (NBC)

3:00 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Betis vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)

Monday, March 9

3:00 p.m. - [Premier League] Leicester City vs. Aston Villa (NBC Sports)

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Texas hosts Clemson on Dec. 21. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

No. 4 Texas will be competing for a return trip to Atlanta when it plays at home against No. 13 Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff.

The winner of the Clemson-Texas first-round game on Dec. 21 will play No. 10 Arizona State in the Jan. 1 Peach Bowl in Atlanta in the CFP quarterfinals.

For Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, who is from Austin, Texas, the game will be a homecoming.

“We recruited him hard," Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Sunday, calling Klubnik “a winner. He will do whatever it takes to put his team in position to be successful.”

Added Sarkisian: “When he made the decision to go to Clemson, honestly I wasn’t surprised. Both his parents went to (Texas) A&M.”

Klubnik applauded the announcement of the game at Texas for Clemson's seventh CFP appearance.

“For him to be going to his first playoff in Austin, Texas, where he grew up, you can’t make that up,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “Pretty cool opportunity for him and his family to go compete against Texas there in Austin.”

Swinney said his only visit to the Texas stadium was to watch Klubnik play in a high school playoff game.

“We’ve never played Texas or played in that stadium,” Swinney said. “... It’s going to be amazing. It’s one of the best venues in college football.”

The Longhorns (11-2) were seeded No. 5 in the CFP following their 22-19 overtime loss to Georgia on Saturday night in the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.

Sarkisian said his players were “really excited” to see Texas land the No. 5 seed and have the opportunity to play in the Longhorns' first game against Clemson.

Texas safety Andrew Mukuba is a Clemson transfer. Sarkisian said players already were calling the matchup the “Mukuba Bowl.”

Swinney said: “I love Mukuba. I just love his spirit and love his heart. He was a really neat kid.

“I certainly wish he had been able to finish here. He did everything that was asked of him at Clemson. Made a bunch of big plays.”

Clemson (10-3) beat SMU 34-31 in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game Saturday night to land an automatic CFP berth. The Tigers are ranked No. 16 in the CFP but were given the 12th and lowest seed. As the fifth-highest ranked league champion, the Tigers do not get a bye and instead must visit Texas.

Arizona State (11-2) earned a bye by rolling over Iowa State 45-19 in the Big 12 championship game Saturday. The Sun Devils were led by running back Cam Skattebo's 170 rushing yards in their impressive win to cap their first season in the Big 12.

Peach Bowl president Gary Stokan noted the Sun Devils were picked to finish last in the Big 12.

“You proved them all wrong,” Stokan told Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham.

Arizona State players celebrated the announcement of their No. 4 seed.

Dillingham said he hopes the conference championship and berth in the CFP helps him recruit and continue to build the program.

“Hopefully this stage will help get our branding out there, and show people that we can be one of the newer brands in college football," Dillingham said. "Every 10-15 years a new brand shows up, and a new brand becomes a national brand.”No. 4 Texas will be competing for a return trip to Atlanta when it plays at home against No. 13 Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff.

The winner of the Clemson-Texas first-round game on Dec. 21 will play No. 10 Arizona State in the Jan. 1 Peach Bowl in Atlanta in the CFP quarterfinals.

For Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, who is from Austin, Texas, the game will be a homecoming.

“We recruited him hard," Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Sunday, calling Klubnik “a winner. He will do whatever it takes to put his team in position to be successful.”

Added Sarkisian: “When he made the decision to go to Clemson, honestly I wasn’t surprised. Both his parents went to (Texas) A&M.”

Klubnik applauded the announcement of the game at Texas for Clemson's seventh CFP appearance.

“For him to be going to his first playoff in Austin, Texas, where he grew up, you can’t make that up,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “Pretty cool opportunity for him and his family to go compete against Texas there in Austin.”

Swinney said his only visit to the Texas stadium was to watch Klubnik play in a high school playoff game.

“We’ve never played Texas or played in that stadium,” Swinney said. “... It’s going to be amazing. It’s one of the best venues in college football.”

The Longhorns (11-2) were seeded No. 5 in the CFP following their 22-19 overtime loss to Georgia on Saturday night in the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta.

Sarkisian said his players were “really excited” to see Texas land the No. 5 seed and have the opportunity to play in the Longhorns' first game against Clemson.

Texas safety Andrew Mukuba is a Clemson transfer. Sarkisian said players already were calling the matchup the “Mukuba Bowl.”

Swinney said: “I love Mukuba. I just love his spirit and love his heart. He was a really neat kid.

“I certainly wish he had been able to finish here. He did everything that was asked of him at Clemson. Made a bunch of big plays.”

Clemson (10-3) beat SMU 34-31 in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game Saturday night to land an automatic CFP berth. The Tigers are ranked No. 16 in the CFP but were given the 12th and lowest seed. As the fifth-highest ranked league champion, the Tigers do not get a bye and instead must visit Texas.

Arizona State (11-2) earned a bye by rolling over Iowa State 45-19 in the Big 12 championship game Saturday. The Sun Devils were led by running back Cam Skattebo's 170 rushing yards in their impressive win to cap their first season in the Big 12.

Peach Bowl president Gary Stokan noted the Sun Devils were picked to finish last in the Big 12.

“You proved them all wrong,” Stokan told Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham.

Arizona State players celebrated the announcement of their No. 4 seed.

Dillingham said he hopes the conference championship and berth in the CFP helps him recruit and continue to build the program.

“Hopefully this stage will help get our branding out there, and show people that we can be one of the newer brands in college football," Dillingham said. "Every 10-15 years a new brand shows up, and a new brand becomes a national brand.”

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