Games to Watch: MLS conference finals, El Clásico, UEFA Champions League
E1. New York Red Bulls at E2. Columbus Crew
5:00 p.m. Sunday
ESPN: Adrian Healey and Taylor Twellman call the game; Mónica González reports from the sideline
ESPN Deportes: Richard Mendez and Giovanni Savarese
After taking a break for last weekend's FIFA international games, Major League Soccer's playoffs return to action with the first legs of the conference finals. The Eastern Conference matchup is highlighted by a pair of players who perhaps should have been with the United States national team for its recent World Cup qualifiers: Columbus playmaker Ethan Finlay and Red Bulls midfield captain Dax McCarty. Each side also has a stalwart of recent U.S. youth national team squads in Crew midfielder Wil Trapp and Red Bulls defender Matt Miazga.
W1. FC Dallas at W3. Portland Timbers
7:30 p.m. Sunday
Fox Sports 1 and TSN5: John Strong and Alexi Lalas call the game; Julie Stewart-Binks reports from the sideline; Rob Stone hosts on-site studio coverage with Brad Friedel
Fox Deportes: John Laguna and Mariano Trujillo call the game; Jaime Motta reportes from the sideline
Timbers playmaker Darlignton Nagbe will be in the spotlight after making his U.S. national team debut a week ago. So will the colorful, passionate fans at Providence Park, Major League Soccer's most raucous theater. But Dallas' squad of freewheeling attackers shouldn't be cast as second fiddle. Head coach Oscar Pareja insists on giving big roles to young players such as Matt Hedges and Kellyn Acosta, and they rewarded him with the Western Conference's best regular-season record.Europe
Barcelona at Real Madrid
12:00 p.m. Saturday (beIN Sports, beIN Sports Español)
How many superlatives can be used to describe this rivalry? The biggest, the most star-studded, the richest, the most glamorous - and oh yes, the most entertaining once the whistle blows too. Lionel Messi is expected to return to Barcelona's lineup after a long injury hiatus, joining Neymar and Luis Suárez in what's arguably the world's most-feared attack. Real counters with Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez and goal-scoring phenomenon (not to mention global heartthrob and subject of a newly-released eponymous biopic movie) Cristiano Ronaldo.
And if that isn't enough, beIN's acclaimed commentary team of Phil Schoen and Ray Hudson get to take a rare trip abroad to call the game from live on site at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
Dinamo Zagreb at Arsenal
2:30 p.m. Tuesday (Fox Sports 1)
Arsenal is on the ropes in the UEFA Champions League. Mesut Özil, Alexis Sánchez and company must win their last two group stage games, starting with this one, and do so with a lot of goals in order to reach the knockout round. Arsenal was upset by Dinamo in Zagreb at the start of the group stage, thanks to a goal from Chilean striker Junior Fernandes. So add revenge to the Gunners list of motivations to get things right this time.
PSV Eindhoven at Manchester United
2:30 p.m. Wednesday (Fox Sports 1, ESPN Deportes)
United's attack took a big blow on Tuesday when rising star striker Anthony Martial injured a foot while playing for France against England. The Red Devils will need a big performance from Wayne Rooney in this Champions League contest against a PSV squad that features Mexican national team stalwarts Andrés Guardado and Héctor Moreno. This game caps off a tripleheader of Champions League games on FS1 that also includes Portugal's Benfica at Kazakhstan's Astana (9:50 a.m.) and Germany's VfL Wolfsburg at Russia's CSKA Moscow (12:00 p.m.).