The CONCACAF Champions League is down to the final match as Real Salt Lake hosts Monterrey in the second leg. The match will take place at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah on Wednesday, April 27, 2011. Kickoff is scheduled for 22:00 EST (USA Eastern), 21:00 CST (USA Central), 20:00 MST (USA Mountain), and 19:00 PST (USA Pacific.

Real Salt Lake v Monterrey TV Listings

It will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel (USA), GolTV (Canada), Telefutura (USA), ESPN (Latin America), ESPN (Carribean), and on ESPN (South America).

Real Salt Lake v Monterrey Preview

RSL manager Jason Kreis

“Guys have been loose and relaxed and feeling confident for many, many weeks,” Salt Lake manager Jason Kreis said. “So it’s no surprise to me.”

“I think his work rate is difficult to duplicate,” Kreis said of his captain, “and it’s difficult for you to get all players to work as hard as Kyle Beckerman. You see the level of intensity can sometimes drop because you lose the ground that that person can cover. But we do feel like we’ve got options that are capable of it.”

“We have a good idea of who handles the penalty kicks well and who handles that type of pressure well,” Kreis said. “To be frank, our list is much larger than five and it comes down to who you think is in the moment, who looks fresh out there and who is ready for those extremely high pressure situations.”

RSL player Nat Borchers

“It gives us a lot of confidence actually to know everybody’s got our backs in this competition, everyone wants to see us do well,” RSL defender Nat Borchers said. “It’s a great feeling. We understand who we’re playing for, that we’re not only representing Real Salt Lake and the city of Salt Lake and state of Utah, but we’re also representing the league and, on some level, American soccer.”

“It’s going to be a different game here,” Borchers said. “We don’t sit back. They’re going to have to deal with our altitude, our energy and our fans.”

“I think Suazo is a very dangerous striker,” Borchers said. “He likes to tip-toe that line, not unlike a Jeff Cunningham and he’s pretty lethal in front of goal…We need to do a better job of getting pressure to the ball in this home leg. I think too often we were passive in our pressure [in the first leg].”

“I don’t think it gets much bigger than this,” Borchers added. “We’re up for it, we’re ready and we understand what’s on the line.”

Monterrey manager Victor Manuel Vucetich

“It was a real good game by us,” he said. “We did enough to win the game. We gave the effort. We made the game. We also made a few errors. But nonetheless, it makes me feel good to know how Salt Lake plays.”

Real Salt Lake v Monterrey Prediction

Real Salt Lake wins 2-1 (4-3 on aggregate)

Real Salt Lake v Monterrey Betting Odds

RSL win – 21/20

Draw – 23/10

Monterrey win – 21/20

Real Salt Lake v Monterrey Live Online

The match can be seen at Free Live Sports TV.

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The CONCACAF Champions League final begins with the first leg as Mexican side Monterrey hosts Major League Soccer side Real Salt Lake. The match will take place at the Estadio Tecnologico in Monterrey, Mexico on Wednesday, April 20, 2011. Kickoff is scheduled for 22:00 EST (USA Eastern), 21:00 CST (USA Central), 20:00 MST (USA Mountain), and 19:00 PST (USA Pacific).

Monterrey v Real Salt Lake TV Listings

It will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel (USA), Telefutura (USA), ESPN (Latin America/South America/Carribean), and on GolTV (Canada).

Monterrey v Real Salt Lake Preview

RSL manager Jason Kreis

“To be clear, we’re not going into this match saying, ‘Guys, it’s OK if we lose.’”

“We’re always an aggressive group. We’re always a confident group, and we’ll approach this match the way we have the others, we’re here to win.”

“I’m attempting to ease some of the anxiety and pressure in the match.” .

“It would be massively huge.”

“If there’s one thing that stands out to me about this team, it’s how many firsts we’ve accomplished so far. And so I would absolutely love to be the first MLS team to win in Mexico.”

RSL player Kyle Beckerman

“We are all searching for the answer.”

“These teams know how important these tournaments are, and they are used to this type of tournament. I think they feel a big part of pride over losing to an American team.

“I think we are going to have to keep at it and keep believing that we can get one over on these guys. It’s tough and the atmosphere is great – they really support their home team – it makes it tough, but we just have to give it a go.”

“We were so close down there (5-4 loss at Cruzl Azul in group stage, RSL led by 3-1 in match).”

“We want revenge from that game, even though it’s not Cruz Azul. We want the chance to do better than we did last time.”

“I think everyone would be devastated back home if we came out and got crushed.”

“We have to put on a good performance, but for us we’re thinking of winning. We want to be the first to win, and we want to put our name on that – being the first [MLS] team to win in Mexico.”

RSL player Nick Rimando

“We have seen it first time at Cruz Azul, but I don’t think we are afraid to come in here.”

“We were the underdogs before, and we know what it is like to come into an environment and not expect to win or pull a result out and I think we have the guys who can do that. There is nothing that says we can’t go in there and get a result.”

RSL co-owner Dave Checketts

“We’ve never played a game in our history other than perhaps the MLS Cup that’s as big.”

“This would mean perhaps more than anything that has ever happened to the club to advance.

“This is an opportunity to stamp Real Salt Lake’s presence on the entire world of soccer,” Checketts added. “And I don’t think anyone could have imagined that five years ago, three years ago, two years ago. It’s an incredible opportunity.”

Monterrey manager Victor Manuel Vucetich

“Today we are focused on the final and our objective is to win the cup.”

“I am happy with the team and committed to the team. They will be two touch games. The MLS has worked hard, it has grown.”

“The team of Salt Lake knows how to move the ball, tactically they work well,” Vucetich said. “They have players like (Alvaro) Saborio that plays forward on the Costa Rican national team and has played in Europe. (Fabian) Espindola plays well on the wings, Javi Morales is another good player.”

Monterrey v Real Salt Lake Prediction

1-1 Draw

Monterrey v Real Salt Lake Betting Odds

Monterrey win – 4/6

Draw – 12/5

RSL win – 7/2

Monterrey v Real Salt Lake Live Online

The match can be seen at Free Live Sports TV.

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Below is the schedule and draw for the quarterfinals (and rest of the tournament) for the 2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League. The winner of this competition will go to the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup in December.

2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League Draw

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Finals

Toluca

Monterrey

Cruz Azul

Santos Laguna

Columbus Crew

Real Salt Lake

Saprissa

Olimpia

2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League Schedule

First Leg

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Real Madrid begin their two match tour of the USA with a match against Mexican Primera Division side Club America on Wednesday, August 4, 2010.

Club America 2-3 Real Madrid Video Highlights

The match highlights can be found here at Free Soccer Highlights.

Club America 2-3 Real Madrid Recap

Real Madrid kicked off their USA pre-season tour with a 3-2 win over Club America on Wednesday night at San Francisco.

The match would go back and forth as Real Madrid took a 1-0 lead on a Channels 34th minute goal but America tied it in the 53rd minute with a Esqueda goal. Both teams would score goals in about ten minutes later as Sanchez scored for America but Higuain equalized in the 63rd minute.

With the match tied at 2-2, Cristiano Ronaldo would give Madrid the lead and ultimately the victory.

Real Madrid will now play the LA Galaxy in a friendly match on Saturday, August 7, 2010 while Club America continues their season in the Torneo Apertura.

Club America 2-3 Real Madrid Match Stats

CLUB AMERICA: Guillermo Ochoa, Armando Sanchez, Oscar Rojas (Martinez 85 ‘), Aquivaldo Mosquera (Trevino, 59′), Adolfo Rosinei (Juan Carlos Silva, 64 ‘), Daniel Montenegro (Shah 36′), Enrique Esqueda , Pavel Pardo, Matias Vuoso, Vicente Sanchez (Marquez, 85 ‘), Israel Martinez.

Real Madrid: Dudek (Adam 45), Juanfran (Nacho, 45 ‘; Morata, 84′), Pepe, Garay, Marcelo (Drenthe, 45 ‘), Gago (Diarra, 45), Lass (Tebar, 69 ‘), Channels (Barn, 45′), Pedro Leon (Di Maria 45), Cristiano Ronaldo (Alex Fernandez, 84 ‘), Benzema (Higuain, 45).

SCORING:
0-1, min.34: Channels
1-1, min. 53: Esqueda
2-1, min. 61: Sanchez
2-2, min. 63: Higuain
2-3, min. 80: Ronaldo

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The SuperLiga, a competition between Mexican Primera Division and Major League Soccer, will kick off its 2010 edition this week. It has two groups of four teams with the top teams advancing to the semifinals and eventually a final. The tournament will feature the teams who finish in the middle of the standings for both leagues. The full group stage schedule is below along with TV listings and predictions.

2010 SuperLiga Group Stage Schedule, Predictions, and TV Listings

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It will be televised on Telemundo in the United States and on Televisa in Mexico. You can also find the match at the link on the bottom of this post.

Toluca v Santos Laguna Preview

It all comes down to one match to decide the 2010 Clausura champion in the Mexican Primera Division. The two teams played to a 2-2 draw in the first leg at Santos on Thursday night. The second leg will take place at Toluca where they have lost only one match in the Clausura. Santos have not won a road match since March did earn a draw in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the playoffs.

Toluca are favored to win the match and it would be their 10th Primera Division title in club history. The strength at home is due to their solid defense which allowed only 7 goals in 8 home matches. Santos has decent on the road in the Clausura and are capable of getting a win.

In the end, Toluca looks to be the stronger team and should get a low scoring win to capture the 2010 Clausura title.

Toluca v Santos Laguna Prediction

Toluca will win the match 2-0.

Watch Toluca v Santos Laguna Live Online

You can watch the match at Free Live Sports TV.

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Santos Laguna 2-2 Toluca – Video Highlights

The first leg ended in a 2-2 draw as Toluca now has the advantage with the second leg coming up on the weekend.

The match would go back and forth with Santos taking the lead in the first half and Toluca coming back to lead in the second half. The goals for Santos came from Carlos Darwin Quintero in the 13th minute while Toluca tied the match nine minutes later as Diego Novaretti in the 22nd minute.

The visitors took the lead in the second half with a 67th minute goal from Zinha but the home side leveled it in the 84th minute with a goal from Vicente Vuoso.

The second leg will take place on Sunday, May 23, 2010 at 13:00 EST at Toluca.

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It will be televised on Telefutura in the United States and on Azteca 7 in Mexico. You can also find the match at the link on the bottom of this post.

Santos Laguna v Toluca Preview

Toluca is going for their 10th domestic league championship while Santos is aiming for their 4th. Both teams have won titles in recent years and finished second in their groups during the regular season. Santos advanced to the final after a 7-1 thrashing of Morelia in the second leg of the semifinals while Toluca edged Pachuca 1-0.

Santos will be favored in the first leg but are unlikely to repeat their dominating win over Morelia. Toluca have been one of the best defensive sides in the 2010 Clausura but there should be several goals in the first leg. Toluca will be looking for a draw while Santos needs to get a victory.

Santos have won both matches in the playoffs and should make it three on Thursday evening. Toluca will keep it within one goal and make for an entertaining second leg to decide the Clausura champion.

Santos Laguna v Toluca Prediction

Santos Laguna will win the match 3-2.

Watch Santos Laguna v Toluca Live Online

You can watch the match at Free Live Sports TV.

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It will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel (English)  in the United States, Telefutura (Spanish) in the United States, ESPN Mas Andina in South America, ESPN Latin North in Central America, ESPN in the Carribean, and on Televicentro on Honduras. You can also find the match at the link on the bottom of this post.

Pachuca v Cruz Azul Preview

Cruz Azul has a 2-1 lead after the first leg with Pachuca hosting the second leg on Wednesday night. Once again, the CONCACAF Champions League trophy will be going to a Mexican team this year.

Cruz Azul has been a dominant team in the entire competition but Pachuca was able to keep the first leg close and now have a good shot to win the title. They won 2-1 on the weekend against UANL and have advanced to the playoffs of the 2010 Mexican Primera Division Clausura. Cruz Azul just missed out on the playoffs on goal difference and had the same amount of points at Pachuca.

This is a tough match to call and could go either way. Cruz Azul have been the best team in the Champions League so far but Pachuca just need a 1-0 win to capture the trophy. The leading scorers for each club in the competition are Ulises Mendivil with 9 goals (Pachuca) and Pablo Zeballos (Cruz Azul) with four goals.

It should be a tight match but Cruz Azul should be able to get a draw and avenge their loss in the final to Atlante last season.

Pachuca v Cruz Azul Prediction

The match will end in a 1-1 draw and Cruz Azul will win 3-2 on aggregate.

Watch Pachuca v Cruz Azul Live Online

You can watch the match live and online for free on Free Live Sports TV.

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It will be televised on Fox Soccer Channel and Telefutura in the United States, ESPN Mas Andina in South America, ESPN Latin North in Latin America, Televicentro in Honduras, and on ESPN in the Carribean. You can also watch the match at the link on the bottom of this post.

Cruz Azul v Pachuca Preview

The CONCACAF Champions League will once again go down to a battle of Mexican Primera Division clubs. Both teams have been very strong in the competition with only one loss between them. Cruz Azul has especially been dominant with a 4-0 aggregate win in the quarterfinals over Arabe Unido and 5-1 aggregate win over Pumas in the semifinals.

Pachuca has not won by those margins but still has been consistent in the Champions League. They advanced to the final with a 3-2 aggregate win over Comunicaciones in the quarterfinals and 2-1 aggregate win over Toluca in the semifinals.

Cruz Azul has looked the best team in the competition and should be able to get a lead after the first leg. They have a balanced attack and top scorers in the Champions League are Pablo Zeballos with four goals, Jaime Lozano with three goals, Christian Riveros with three goals, and Javier Antonio Orozco Penuelas with three goals. Pachua is led by Ulises Mendivil who has six goals in the competition followed by Paul Aguilar with four goals.

A win for Cruz Azul is very likely and Pachuca will be aiming to keep it within one goal for the second leg. It’s a hard match to predict because any result wouldn’t be too surprising but the form Cruz Azul has shown in the CONCACAF Champions League has been unmatched by any other club. A two or three goal home win isn’t out of the question.

Cruz Azul v Pachuca Prediction

Cruz Azul will win the match 3-1.

Watch Cruz Azul v Pachuca Live Online

You can watch the match live and online for free on Free Live Sports TV.

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