Hello! This week is jam-packed with impactful games on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, so there’s much to discuss. I’m Pardeep Cattry with the latest.
📺 Footy fix
All times U.S./Eastern
Wednesday, Feb. 26
🏴 EPL: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester City, 2:30 p.m. ➡️ Peacock
🇮🇹 Coppa Italia: Juventus vs. Empoli, 3 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network
🇪🇺 Women’s Nations League: England vs. Spain, 3 p.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Network
🇪🇸 Copa del Rey: Real Sociedad vs. Real Madrid, 3:30 p.m. ➡️ ESPN+
🌎 CCC: FC Cincinnati vs. Motagua, 6:30 p.m. ➡️ FS2
🏆 SheBelieves Cup: USWNT vs. Japan, 10:30 p.m. ➡️ TBS
Thursday, Feb. 27
🇮🇹 Serie A: Bologna vs. AC Milan, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+
🏴 EPL: West Ham vs. Leicester City, 3 p.m. ➡️ USA Network
🌎 CCC: Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Saprissa, 10 p.m. ➡️ FS1
⚽ The Forward Line
🇺🇸 USA, Japan clash in SheBelieves Cup finale
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The U.S. women’s national team wrap up the SheBelieves Cup in San Diego on Wednesday, taking on Japan in the first must-win game for a new-look group.
Head coach Emma Hayes has used this edition of the tournament to introduce new players and fresh ideas, a strategy that has paid off in a big way so far. Between a 2-0 win over Colombia and a 2-1 win over Australia, every single member of the squad has played at least 50 minutes and all but one player started at least one game. Several players also began to make a case for themselves to have a place on the team for the long term, including midfielders Lily Yohannes and Claire Hutton and attackers Ally Sentnor and Michelle Cooper. It led Hayes to, in some way, already declare the last week of work a success.
- Hayes: “Did we do everything we set out to do in terms of simulating a tournament setting? Yes, we’ve done that. Did we increase the players’ learning around our blueprint, our way of playing? Yes. Tick, we did that one. Did we deepen the pool and the playing opportunities under pressure for many of our players? Tick, we did that one. They were our three objectives.”
The big question at Snapdragon Stadium, though, is what Hayes’ approach will look like against Japan. The 2011 Women’s World Cup winners have been the class of the SheBelieves Cup, outscoring the opposition 8-1 in two games so far and need only a draw on Wednesday to lift the trophy. The situation presents the first high-stakes game for an inexperienced group, 17 of whom currently have 30 caps or fewer. Regardless of the outcome, the game – be it through team selection or tactical approach – will offer plenty of food for thought as Hayes begins mapping out the road to the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
Just do not expect it to look like the 1-0 win the USWNT notched over Japan in the quarterfinals of the Olympics last summer. The visitors have changed things since that meeting and are especially gifted on the ball, even if the players have more experience together than the U.S.’ current group does. This game is hard to predict, making it easily one of the more intriguing games on the USWNT’s schedule at the early stages of a new four-year cycle.
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🔗 Midfield Link Play
🏴 Man City target redemption at Spurs
The Premier League continues to keep busy with a fascinating slate of matches on Wednesday, headlined by Manchester City’s trip to Tottenham Hotspur.
Spurs have been a bogey team of sorts for Pep Guardiola’s side, with the manager registering nine defeats to the team over the course of his career. It makes for a challenging game in the most normal of circumstances, though this has not been an ordinary season for either side. City’s struggles have been well-documented, making a game against a team eight places and 11 points below them a surprisingly challenging one. They continue to limp across the finish line in each game, most recently in Sunday’s 2-0 loss to Liverpool, which only reaffirmed the idea that the City rebuild could not come soon enough.
How City will stack up against Spurs is a fascinating thing from the hosts’ angle, too. Ange Postecoglou’s side has not had it particularly easy this season, either – injuries have doomed them to a spot in the lower half of the table, but the question facing them right now: Have they finally weathered the storm? A handful of key players have recently returned from injuries, including goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and attackers James Maddison and Brennan Johnson, the latter of whom scored a brace in their 4-1 win at Ipswich on Saturday. Paltry as a three-game run might be, Spurs also have the Premier League’s longest active winning streak and might be as well-positioned as they have been in recent months to collect a meaningful victory. They will have recent experience to call upon, too – they beat City twice in the champions’ seven-game winless run in the fall which was the first true sign of trouble, most notably in a 4-0 win in Manchester. Spurs will have most of the attacking personnel who excelled that day available to them, which sets up for an intriguing encounter.
🔗 Top Stories
🏆 USWNT at SheBelieves: Here’s what you need to know as the USWNT wrap up their SheBelieves Cup campaign.
🔴 Salah’s record-breaking season: Ahead of Liverpool’s clash with Newcastle United on Wednesday, it’s time to ask: Is Mohamed Salah having the greatest season in Premier League history?
🇹🇷 Racism in Turkey: Galatasaray accused Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho of making racist comments and intend to initiate criminal proceedings.
🇪🇸 Eight-goal thriller: Barcelona and Atletico Madrid played to a 4-4 draw in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals, setting up for a fascinating second leg in the first week of April.
🌴 Inter Miami advance: Lionel Messi scored again in Inter Miami’s 3-1 win over Sporting Kansas City, helping to send them through to the round of 16 in the Concacaf Champions Cup.
📰 USMNT’s preliminary roster: Mauricio Pochettino named a list of 60 players to his preliminary roster for next month’s Concacaf Nations League games and will trim the list down to 23 before the camp begins.
❌ United’s cost-cutting measures: Manchester United will cut up to 200 jobs as part of the latest cost-cutting measure from minority investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
💰 The Back Line
💵 Best bets
- Copa del Rey: Real Sociedad vs. Real Madrid, Wednesday, 3:30 p.m.
💰 THE PICK: Vinicius Junior to score (+195) – Real Madrid are the oddsmakers’ choice to win the first leg of this semifinal tie, so if everything goes according to plan, the questions will focus on who puts the ball in the back of the net. They famously have several contenders, including Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian talisman has just one goal in his last seven games, making Wednesday’s game a perfect opportunity to add to his goal count and bolster his reputation of delivering in big moments for Los Blancos. - Serie A: Bologna vs. AC Milan, Thursday, 2:45 p.m.
💰 THE PICK: AC Milan to win 1-0 (+850) – AC Milan’s season of inconsistency shows no signs of quitting, and they will face a tough test on Thursday against a Bologna side that’s equal with them on points at this stage in the season. Considering the attacking talent available to the visitors, though, expect the game to break in their favor, even if the margin is narrow and the entertainment factor might be limited for anyone watching.
For more picks, predictions, expert tips and the latest betting news, don’t miss out on CBSSports.com’s betting home page.
📺 What’s on CBS Sports Golazo Network
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☀️ Morning Footy (Weekdays 8-10 a.m.): Join Golazo Network as it help fans get their day started on the right foot on the network’s flagship morning show with highlights, interviews and the biggest soccer storylines. Morning Footy is also available in podcast form, so you’ll never have to miss an episode.
3️⃣ Attacking Third (Monday, Thursday): The leading women’s soccer podcast and social brand is now a live studio show. The NWSL season is back and our coverage of the women’s game is stronger than ever. Our analysts will be breaking down the USWNT, NWSL and European domestic season all year long. And don’t miss Wednesday live streams on YouTube at 11 a.m. ET.
⚽ Call it What You Want (Monday and Thursday): A weekly podcast where Jimmy Conrad, Charlie Davies and Tony Meola cover all things USMNT and the state of the beautiful game in the United States. You can catch the show streaming live on YouTube every Monday at 1 p.m. ET and Thursday at 6 p.m. ET.
🥅 Scoreline (Daily): Scoreline is the newest place for fans to catch up on all the biggest news and results impacting global football, match highlights from the top soccer competitions and all the can’t-miss goals from the day’s action, starting Thursday and airing seven days a week.
📺 How to watch: CBS Sports Golazo Network is a free 24/7 channel exclusively dedicated to offering unparalleled coverage of all the top soccer competitions worldwide. You can stream for free on the CBS Sports app, Pluto TV and Paramount+.
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