Barcelona vs Valencia.

Here we are, Barcelona and Valencia, in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal.

Whoever wins this leg will go on to the final and face either Athletic Bilbao or Mirandes (Bilbao won the first of their legs by a score of 2-1) and succeed Real Madrid as Spanish tournament champions.

After beating Real Madrid in the first leg of the semifinal, La Blaugrana essentially squeaked into this leg, coming within a goal of being ousted by their rivals.



In a bitterly contested game, they saw a number of key players go down to injuries including forward Alexis Sanchez and midfielder Andres Iniesta.

After that game they went back into league competition and drew 0-0 with Villarreal, at that time the second-to-last-placed team in La Liga and a prime candidate for relegation.

The game against Valencia won’t necessarily give Barcelona the redemption they’re looking for, but if they win it could put them a step closer to winning the one title that eluded them in the 2011 season.

That Valencia is the third-best team in La Liga ought to be a good sign for the league champions: Barcelona has consistently performed well against difficult opponents and struggled against lesser ones, Villarreal being only the latest example.

Valencia could nevertheless prove a challenge for Barcelona. They have a 6-2-2 record at the Mestalla this season, which will serve as the venue for tonight’s game. As a team they don’t score many goals but by league standards they’ve done a good job defending, allowing a total of 22 goals, tied with Sevilla for fourth-least in the league. Roberto Soldado is the team’s top scorer with 12 goals on the season, fifth in the league.

Valencia also, perhaps, has more momentum in the Copa del Rey tournament than Barcelona after thrashing Levante 7-1 on aggregate in the last round. They have allowed the fewest goals in the tournament while Barcelona has scored the most.

NBA: Miami Heat vs Chicago Bulls

After sweeping the season series vs. the Miami Heat in 2010-2011 but falling to them in five games in the Eastern Conference Finals,


the Chicago Bulls know that the regular season match ups between the two East titans don't mean much. But, that's not to say that a road victory over the Heat on Sunday afternoon wouldn't signal to the rest of the NBA that the Heat aren't going to just roll over the Bulls on their way to a second straight NBA Finals appearance.

Unfortunately for the Bulls, they're likely to be shorthanded in today's game. Though he's still being deemed as a "game time decision," it's unlikely that SF Luol Deng will take to the court in South Beach. In an interview before Friday night's game vs. the Milwaukee Bucks, Deng said that he is a "week away" from being able to play, though it's of course possible that that was an intentional smokescreen. The Bulls may also be without starting SG Richard Hamilton, who sat out on Friday night with a right thigh bruise.

The Heat meanwhile are now just up to full strength, with superstar SG Dwyane Wade back in the line up after recovering from a high ankle sprain, and sharpshooting bench mainstay Mike Miller fully healthy for the first time this season. The Bulls will still have advantages in the frontcourt, and of course no Heat point guard can match up with Derrick Rose, but it remains to be seen if that will be enough to overcome the Heat.

FC Barcelona vs Villareal Fc.

Despite Barca’s clear superiority heading into this Barcelona vs Villarreal match, Pep Guardiola is not taking this match lightly,


knowing very well that a slip-up at this stage of the season and standing 5 points behind Real Madrid, could spell real trouble to their hopes of securing another La Liga title.

After going 10 matches straight without a win, Villarreal found themselves in the relegation zone and out of European competition. They just recently broke that bad stretch by winning 3-0 against Sporting Gijon and climbing one step above the relegation zone. Jose Catala and Giuseppe Rossi remain out, but Marchena, Camunas, and Musacchio are expected to feature in this highly anticipated match for fans at the El Madrigal.

If you’d like to bet on Villarreal v Barcelona, odds deem the hosts as 9/1 underdogs while the draw is priced at 5/1. Our Barcelona vs Villarreal prediction sees Barca getting the much needed three points following their triump over Real Madrid. Watch here

La LIGA: Real Madrid vs Zaragoza

The leaders enter the weekend with a five-point advantage over rivals Barcelona, but after losing out to Pep Guardiola's men in yet another competition -


Madrid was eliminated by Barcelona in Copa del Rey on Wednesday - Real will be focused on preserving its first-place position to edge the Catalans in the title race.

Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka is wary of the threat that last- place Zaragoza can pose and insists that his side is focused on rebounding from its King's Cup exit in the proper manner.

"The squad is thinking about the match against Zaragoza, which will surely be difficult," said Karanka. "Despite the shape they're in, they managed to cause an upset against us last year. The squad only thinks about winning and giving another good performance."

Real Madrid's last La Liga loss came at the hands of Barcelona on Dec. 10 as the Catalans earned a 3-1 win at the Bernabeu. Since then, Madrid has won four-straight league games by a combined score of 17-5.

Zaragoza, which sits bottom of the table with just 12 points on the season, has drawn two-straight league games and is winless in its last 12 La Liga matches. It has not won since Oct. 16, a 2-0 defeat of Real Sociedad.

Barcelona looks to close the gap on Real Madrid as the reigning European champions head to El Madrigal to face lowly Villarreal.

The Catalans have lost just once in La Liga this season, a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Getafe on Nov. 26. That result sparked a six-game unbeaten run that saw Barcelona take 15 points from a possible 18 and outscore opponents 21-5.

Villarreal, meanwhile, sits fourth from bottom on just 19 points. The Yellow Submarines defeated Sporting Gijon, 3-0, on Monday to snap a six-game winless run.

In Saturday's other two La Liga contests, Espanyol looks to extend its unbeaten run to six games when it hosts Mallorca at the Estadi Cornella-El Prat, and Athletic Bilbao looks to build upon its 1-0 win over Mallorca in Copa del Rey on Wednesday when it travels to the Teresa Rivero to face Rayo Vallecano

Liverpool vs Manchester United.

Midfielder Jay Spearing could be recalled to Liverpool's squad after missing three matches with a hamstring injury.

Manager Kenny Dalglish has to assess the fitness of his players after their Carling Cup exploits against Manchester City in midweek, with forward Craig Bellamy seemingly the most unlikely to play three games in a week. Striker Luis Suarez, suspended for racially abusing Patrice Evra in the two club's league encounter in October, serves the seventh game of his eight-match ban.

Sir Alex Ferguson will take a late check on his squad before finalising his line-up . Wayne Rooney and Phil Jones (both ankle) and Rio Ferdinand (back) are amongst those who are thought to be causing concern. Nani (foot) is expected to miss out, although there has been no official update on the winger's fitness since he limped out of last Sunday's win at Arsenal. Evra will play despite being assured of a hot reception from the Anfield crowd.

Copa Del Rey: Barcelona vs Real Madrid

Barcelona will be without Seydou Keita, who is away on African Cup of Nations duty with Mali. Pep Guardiola's side also have three players who have long-term injuries; Ibrahim Afellay and Andreu Fontas are both out with ligament injuries, while David Villa is sidelined for the foreseeable future with a broken leg.

Pedro returned from injury to feature in the 4-1 victory over Malaga at the weekend, but it is unlikely the Spaniard will oust Cesc Fabregas, Lionel Messi, or Alexis Sanchez from Guardiola's preferred front three.

Jose Mourinho's visitors go into the match with a 2-1 deficit from the first leg but the Real Madrid coach could opt for the same formation, with three midfielders and three attackers, albeit with a more positive gameplan than in the first match.

Pepe was left out of the squad for the victory over Athletic Bilbao because of a suspected calf injury and did not train on Monday so it is unlikely that the Portugal international will be fit. There are suspicions that Mourinho may be removing the defender from the limelight for a short period, after the outcry against his cynical stamp on Messi in Wednesday's first leg.

Lassana Diarra and Esteban Granero did not train on Monday either, but it is likely the former will be fit enough to come into the three-man midfield. Sergio Ramos also missed the session, but this was due to personal reasons and he is expected to play. Sami Khedira is unavailable, though, after being ruled out for a month with an ankle injury.

Liverpool vs Man City

Liverpool fell to 7th place in the Premier League this past weekend after a humiliating 3-1 defeat to Bolton.


Kenny Dalglish’s hopes of securing a Champions League spot are diminishing by the second but at the very least his team has a good shot to add a trophy to their collection for the first time in over half a decade. This is as good a chance as any for them to take on a side of Man City’s caliber, and with a 1-0 advantage anything but a ticket to Wembley will be a colosal failure on Dalglish’s resume. Gerrard’s penalty had determined the scoreline in the last Liverpool v Manchester City League Cup encounter earlier in the month, and we should another slow paced encounter today as was the case when the sides met at Anfield late in 2011 which ended in a draw.
Manchester City are coming off a close victory over Tottenham, but the sacrificial lamb ended up being Mario Balotelli who received a four match ban for his violent actions in that match against David Silva. The Sky Blues are already missing Vincent Kompany through suspension, and are also without the Toure brothers who are on international duty for the Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations. Still, they showed plenty of ability to score with Silva, Aguero and Dzeko last weekend.

Copa Match: Real Madrid vs Barcelona

Just before two teams that have already scored 203 competitive goals between them this season do battle once again, it might seem strange to talk about defense rather than glory in their extravagant attacking power.


But that's the groove I'm in right now.

The Copa del Rey has paired holder Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona again, this time in the quarterfinals, just as it did for an epic, bruising and ultimately deeply significant final in April. Los Blancos won that night at the Mestalla, and I, for one, was hugely pleased for one of football's all-time greats, Iker Casillas, after he finally lifted the trophy that had eluded him for so long.
Now we can enjoy two more Clasicos over the next eight days with all the operatic drama they unerringly present. The first one is Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu, and the return leg is Jan. 25 at Camp Nou.

Although I have never been afraid to admit that some of the ill will between the sides is important to make the dish nice and spicy, there are limits -- limits that I believe Jose Mourinho, Pepe and Marcelo ignored last season. So it's healthy to report that the buildup to these games has been significantly less provocative, angry and accusatory.

What caught my attention was when Xavi addressed the media Sunday in the aftermath of Barca making hard work of beating a bold and inventive Real Betis side 4-2 in one of the best matches of the season. As the little Catalan maestro turned to face yet another Madrid episode in his extraordinary career, he said: "We will go to the Bernabeu and try to be the main protagonists in the match. We will try to dominate possession -- keeping the ball is the best defense which exists."

Obviously, Xavi means that sincerely. It's the credo he has been taught since before he was a teenager during thousands of training hours in futbol base (youth football) at FC Barcelona -- and which, to be fair, is something that has come naturally to him while playing football as a kid in Placa del Progres, Terrassa.

For Barcelona, there have been many times, particularly under Pep Guardiola, when that ethos has soaringly, shiningly proven its efficacy. In Rome against Manchester United, Barca made good on Sir Alex Ferguson's prophecy that they can "kill you with their passing" while winning the 2009 Champions League. Ditto Wembley 2011. At the Bernabeu last month, Guardiola's team used its default style to first blunt and then destroy Real Madrid after falling behind to the fastest goal in Clasico history.watch here

Patriots vs Broncos.

The New England Patriots and Denver Broncos will take the field at Gillette Stadium in just a few short hours for their AFC Divisional Playoff Game to decide who will move on to the AFC Championship Game next Sunday.



Many fans are expecting that Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow will be the one to decide the outcome of this game. He's led multiple late game comebacks and made some incredible plays to help seal victories for his team. Perhaps none was more spectacular though than the game last week in the AFC Wildcard Round against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Tebow hit receiver Demariyus Thomas on the very first play of overtime for an 80 yard touchdown pass. The win marked the first time since 2006 that the Broncos had won a playoff game.

What was lost in that game was the defensive stand that the Broncos defense made late in the fourth quarter to allow the game to reach overtime. With the Steelers at the Denver 45 yard line with less than 90 seconds to play, Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil jarred the ball loose as he sacked quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers would recover the ball, but not before losing 10 yards on the play.

It wasn't the first time that the Broncos defense had provided the opportunity to their star quarterback. There were six occasions during the final 11 weeks of the season that the defense was able to hold their opponents to 15 points or less. During those six games the Broncos went 5-1, only a 7-3 loss in the season finale to Kansas City in which Tebow played his worst game of the season prevented that record from being perfect.

Comparatively, when the defense has struggled, the Broncos have struggled mightily. Four times during that same 11 game span the Broncos defense surrendered 30 points or more, including the first meeting between the Patriots and Broncos, and only once did Tim Tebow manage to bail out his defense (against the Minnesota Vikings in the first week of December).

The lesson being that if you're relying on Tim Tebow to win football games for you, the chances are high that you'll be disappointed. The Broncos defense is the backbone of the team and is what allows them to be competitive at a high level. I don't mean to minimize the fireworks that Tebow has provided in many fourth quarters and overtimes this season, but the reality is that while Tebow has certainly made strides this year, he isn't yet good enough to put a team on his back for 60 minutes.watch here

Manchestr United vs Bolton

With reporters around the grounds, we can bring the Premier League afternoon to life on your computer - from whether Tottenham and Manchester United can join City on 48 points at the top of the table, to how Chelsea and Liverpool fare as they continue to challenge for a place in the top four.





Seven matches get under way at 15:00, including Tottenham's clash with Wolves, Manchester United's match against Bolton Wanderers and Sunderland's trip to Chelsea.

Elsewhere, Liverpool host Stoke City, Everton travel to Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers take on Fulham at Ewood Park and West Brom face Norwich City.

With reaction coming in from around the country, Goal.com will bring you the best of what every manager and star player has to say on the games within moments of the final whistle.

No matter who you support, you'll get all the news and views you need right here throughout the afternoon.

Newcastle vs Manchester United.

Sports Direct Arena will play host to Newcastle v Manchester United tonight, a match-up that provided a nailbiting stalemate the last time the two storied clubs met in late November.

 Both teams will be looking to bounce back from disappointing results and it should be a hard fought affair with the start of the second half of the season bringing with it a sense of urgency for teams with concrete goals atop the EPL table.After a sublime start to the season, Newcastle have fallen mightily in recent weeks – winning just one of their last 8 games. The eradication of St James’ Park might have something to do with it, but more likely is the fact that the Magpies just haven’t been able to keep their defense tight as they did to start the season, and have seen a plethora of goals in the back of their own net. Taylor, Marveaux, Guthrie, Lovenkrands all remain out for Alan Pardew but he can count on the return of Gabriel Obertan.Man United suffered their first league defeat since their 1-6 trashing at the hands of their noisy neighbors, and while the loss wasn’t as emphatic, it was just as equally surprising given the state in which Blackburn entered the match. Alex Ferguson’s 70th birthday was spoiled beyond reconciliation with the Scottish manager now ready to have Rooney back in the starting lineup after the English international’s lack of proffesionalism following Boxing Day celebrations. United still has numerous injuries to contend with but the likes of Smalling and Ferdinand could return for Man U, who’s defense has looked susceptible in their abscence.
source: sportsopinions.com

LIVE: Manchester City vs Liverpool

It’ll be the best offense in the English Premier League against the best defense when league leaders Manchester City host sixth-place place Liverpool at Etihad Stadium on Jan. 3rd. 

City has scored 53 league goals so far this season while Liverpool has only allowed 15 goals against. However, City has allowed just one more than Liverpool at 16.

City blew a huge chance to pull three points ahead of co-leaders Manchester United on Jan 1st when they were beaten 1-0 in Sunderland by a goal in the dying seconds. United had also blown a chance at three points the day before when they were beaten at home at Old Trafford 3-2 by Blackburn Rovers. Liverpool won their last game, 3-1 which was against Newcastle at home on Friday.

Liverpool should have striker Luis Suarez back in the lineup after he sat out the Newcastle game due to suspension. Captain and midfield maestro Steven Gerrard could also start the game after playing the last two as a substitute and scoring against Newcastle. However, Lucas Leiva is still injured while Fabio Aurelio and Jack Robinson will be game-time decisions.

City has a healthy squad to choose from even if they did play just 48 hours earlier. The quick turnaround in the modern game means manager Roberto Mancini will likely sit some of his pampered stars and make several changes to the team that lost in Sunderland. Players who sat out that game include Mario Balotelli, James Milner, and Gael Clichy while others such as David Silva and Micah Richards were used as subs. As usual, striker Carlos Tevez and defender Wayne Bridge won’t be dressed.

These two teams met at Anfield back in November and played tom a 1-1 draw. Liverpool plays the style of football that can frustrate City and you could see this happen again. City is now winless in their last two EPL games after drawing 0-0 against West Brom last week and hasn’t scored a goal in just over two games. In their last five games overall, City has two wins, two draws and a loss while
Liverpool has three wins and two draws. In their last five meetings against each other there have been three draws with each team winning a game 3-0 at home. In fact, City has beaten Liverpool just once in their last 13 meetings. They’ve won all nine of their matches at home this season though.