THE SOCCER REPORT
Chelsea-Bayern, Napoli-Barcelona, Lyon-Juve, Real Madrid-Man City on UCL menu, El Clasico on Sunday
Feb 25, 2020, 7:40 am
Finale Istanbul is the Official Match Ball for the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League knockout stages. Photo: adidas
Plenty of big name clubs will highlight this week's action in the UEFA Champions League, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona face off in the sport's premier rivalry and the 25th season of Major League Soccer gets underway. In the Serie A, matches were postponed over the weekend due to the outbreak of the coronavirus in Italy.
Here is the week in soccer:
International Club competitions
UEFA Champions League
Round of 16 - First Leg
- Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
- Dortmund 2-1 PSG
- Atalanta 4-1 Valencia
- Tottenham 0-1 RB Leipzig
Concacaf Champions League
Round of 16 - First Leg
- Portmore United 1-2 Cruz Azul
- Motagua 1-1 Atlanta United
- Leon 2-0 LAFC
- Deportivo Saprissa 2-2 Montreal Impact
- Alianza 2-1 Tigres UANL
- Communicaciones 1-1 Club America
- AD San Carlos 3-5 NYCFC
- Olimpia 2-2 Seattle Sounders FC
English Premier League
Liverpool set another new #PL record https://t.co/mBlgJ2pUMO— Premier League (@Premier League) 1582600144.0
Top six: 1. Liverpool (79), 2. Man City (57), 3. Leicester City (50), 4. Chelsea (44), 5. Manchester United (41), 6. Tottenham (40)
Bottom three (relegation): 18. West Ham (24), 19. Watford (24), 20. Norwich City (18)
Scoring leader: 17 - Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) / Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)
Assists leader: 16 - Kevin De Bruyne (Man City)
Spanish La Liga
Three goals in one half. Lionel Messi working his magic 🎩 ✨ https://t.co/etl4FY0m1Y— ESPN FC (@ESPN FC) 1582386629.0
Top six: 1. FC Barcelona (55), 2. Real Madrid (53), 3. Atletico Madrid (43), 4. Sevilla (43), 5. Getafe (42), 6. Real Sociedad (40)
Bottom three: 18. Mallorca (22), 19. Leganes (19), 20. Espanyol (19)
Scoring leader: 18 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Assists leader: 12 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
German Bundesliga
Just another weekend for Erling Haaland 🤩 He now has 12 goals in 8 official matches for Dortmund. https://t.co/aXnvAuTJRD— ESPN FC (@ESPN FC) 1582387580.0
Top six: 1. Bayern Munich (49), 2. RB Leipzig (48), 3. Dortmund (45), 4. Monchengladbach (43), 5. Bayer Leverkusen (43), 6. Schalke 04 (36)
Bottom three: 16. Fortuna (20), 17. Werder Bremen (17), 18. Paderborn (16)
Scoring leader: 25 - Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Assists leader: 14 - Jadon Sancho (Dortmund) / Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)
Italian Serie A
Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored in 11 straight matches -- equaling the Serie A record 😤 https://t.co/tcwqrbaccB— ESPN FC (@ESPN FC) 1582393568.0
Top six: 1. Juventus (60), 2. Lazio (59), 3. Inter Milan (54), 4. Atalanta (45), 5. Roma (42), 6. Napoli (36)
Bottom three: 18. Genoa (22), 19. Brescia (16), 20. SPAL (15)
Scoring leader: 27 - Ciro Immobile (Lazio)
Assists leader: 11 - Luis Alberto (Lazio)
French Ligue 1
Top four: 1. PSG (65), 2. Marseille (52), 3. Rennes (44), 4. Lille (43)
Bottom three: 18. Nimes (27), 19. Amiens (22), 20. Toulouse (13)
Scoring leader: 16 - Kylian Mbappe (PSG) / Wissam Ben Yedder (Monaco)
Assists leader: 14 - Angel Di Maria (PSG)
Liga MX
Clausura 2020
Top eight: 1. Club America (16), 2. Leon (15), 3. Pumas UNAM (14), 4. Cruz Azul (13), 5. Queretaro (12), 6. Atletico San Luis (12), 7. Juarez (11), 8. Santos Laguna (11)
Scoring leader: 5 - Angel Mena (Leon) / Ariel Nahuelpan (Queretaro) / Jonathan Rodriguez (Cruz Azul)
TV listings (All Times CT):
For full info on soccer TV listings and streaming services in the United States, visit worldsoccertalk.com
Tuesday, February 25
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Chelsea vs. Bayern Munich (TNT, Galavision)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Napoli vs. FC Barcelona (UniMas / TUDN, B/R Live)
6:30 p.m. - [Copa Sudamericana] River Plate vs. Deportivo Cali (beIN Sports)
7:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Atlanta United vs. Motagua (FS1, TUDN)
9:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Cruz Azul vs. Portmore United (FS2, TUDN)
Wednesday, February 26
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Real Madrid vs. Manchester City (TNT, UniMas, TUDN)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Champions League] Lyon vs. Juventus (Galavision, B/R Live)
5:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] NYCFC vs. AD San Carlos (FS2, TUDN)
7:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Montreal lmpact vs. Deportivo Saprissa (FS2)
7:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Tigres UANL vs. Alianza (TUDN)
Thursday, February 27
12:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Espanyol vs. Wolves (UniMas, B/R Live)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Manchester United vs. Brugge (UniMas, B/R Live)
2:00 p.m. - [UEFA Europa League] Arsenal vs. Olympiakos (TUDN, B/R Live)
9:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] LAFC vs. Club Leon (FS1, TUDN)
9:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Seattle Sounders FC vs. Olimpia (FS2)
Friday, February 28
1:30 p.m. - [Bundesliga] Dusseldorf vs. Hertha Berlin (FS2, FOX Deportes)
2:00 p.m. - [Premier League] Norwich vs. Leicester City (NBC Sports)
2:00 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Sociedad vs. Valladolid (beIN Sports)
9:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Monarcas Morelia vs. Cruz Azul (TUDN)
9:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Club Tijuana vs. Puebla (FOX Deportes)
Saturday, February 29
6:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Brighton vs. Crystal Palace (NBC Sports)
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Hoffenheim vs. Bayern Munich, (FS1, UniMas, TUDN)
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Dortmund vs. Freiburg (FS2, FOX Deportes)
9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Bournemouth vs. Chelsea (NBC Sports)
9:00 a.m. - [La Liga] Valencia vs. Real Betis (beIN Sports)
11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Watford vs. Liverpool (NBC Sports)
2:30 p.m. - [MLS] Houston Dynamo vs. LA Galaxy (Univision)
5:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Pachuca vs. Queretaro (TUDN, ESPN Deportes)
7:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] America vs. Necaxa (Univision)
9:00 p.m. - [Liga MX] Tigres UANL vs. Pumas UNAM (Univision)
Sunday, March 1
8:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Everton vs. Man United(NBC Sports)
8:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Tottenham vs. Wovles (NBC Sports Gold)
10:30 a.m. - [English League Cup Final] Manchester City vs. Aston Villa (NBC Sports)
2:00 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona (beIN Sports)
Sunday night matchups don't get much exciting than this, as the Houston Texans host the Detroit Lions in prime-time at NRG.
The Lions come into this game on a six-game winning streak looking every bit of the best team in football. Houston on the other hand has lost two of their last three games with a struggling offense unable to protect their quarterback.
CJ Stroud has only one passing touchdown over this span, and is clearly having trouble adjusting to life without Stefon Diggs and Nico Collins.
If Houston is going to come away with an upset victory, they will need big performances from Tank Dell and Joe Mixon. After catching 4 passes against the Colts two weeks ago, Mixon not only failed to catch a single pass against the Jets, but he wasn't even targeted.
Considering the Texans' offensive line issues, choosing not to use Mixon as a pass catcher is hard to fathom. Especially since he and Dell are the team's top 2 playmakers.
What's working in the Texans' favor?
They play this game at home, where they are undefeated this season. A lot of the team's protection issues have popped up on the road, so communication should be easier for the offense on their home turf.
Bulls on Parade
We have good news and bad news about the defense this week. On the positive side, Azeez Al-Shaair and Jimmy Ward have returned to practice. If they're able to contribute on Sunday night, that would give the defense a lift.
And now for the bad news. Will Anderson has yet to practice this week after rolling his ankle in the Jets game. If he is unable to practice on Friday, it's hard to imagine he'll be active against Detroit.
X-factors
The Texans have to show some improvement on the offensive line this week.
Houston must lean on Joe Mixon again, as Nico Collins isn't expected to play.
Lions' Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the best receivers in the league, and he does most of his damage from the slot. If the Texans continue to deploy Jalen Pitre against premier receivers in man coverage, St. Brown is going to light up the scoreboard.
What would a win over the Lions mean to Houston?
The Texans are no longer considered a true championship contender because of their losses to the Packers, Vikings, and Jets. In fact, the Bills are the only team with a winning record that the Texans have beaten.
An upset win over the streaking Lions would change that narrative.
What does Vegas think?
The Lions are currently favored by 3.5 and the total is set at 49 points.
Don't miss the full preview of Texans-Lions in the video above!
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