What to watch in international soccer this weekend
There’s a crowded schedule of European soccer on tap this weekend with two dozen games, from Portugal to Turkey, scheduled for network and cable TV. The top teams in both the English and German leagues will be on network TV Saturday although the most compelling matchups will feature some of the teams giving chase. Here’s a look at some of the top TV games:
EPL: Manchester City’s lead in the league race is so big — 16 points — entering the weekend the team long ago shifted its focus to the Champions League quarterfinals, which it opens next week against Liverpool. But City will still be chasing EPL history when it visits Goodison Park to play Everton on Saturday (NBC, 9:30 a.m. PDT). With eight league games left, City is on pace to smash EPL records for wins, goals, points and largest margin of victory. Behind it, Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham are separated by just four points in the battle for second place. Manchester United will play host to Swansea City (NBCSN, 7 a.m.) and Liverpool — with EPL scoring leader Mohamed Salah — visits Crystal Palace (NBCSN 4:30 a.m.) Saturday while Tottenham travels across London to play fifth-place Chelsea on Sunday (NBCSN, Telemundo, 8 a.m.).
Bundesliga: Like City, Bayern Munich has a safe lead — 17 points in the German league table. But it will be tested Saturday when Borussia Dortmund, unbeaten since early December, visits the Allianz Arena (Fox, 9:30 a.m.). A win could lift Christian Pulisic’s team to second in the table if Freiburg upsets Schalke in Saturday’s early game (FS1, 6:30 a.m.).
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