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* Editor's note: This has changed from a Sunday football thread to a weekly on. Feel free to discuss Gareth Bale's Monday ridiculousness at West Ham, Tuesday's El Clasico (this is the one that actually matters this week), Wednesday's German Cup clash between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, Friday's Serie A encounter between Juventus and Napoli, etc.
There are a handful of high-profile football matches around Europe today this week. My guess is that many of you will be watching some, if not many of these clashes. If you fancy an open thread for them, here you go. Here's a briefing of some of the bigger games:
* Manchester City vs Chelsea | English Premier League | 1:30pm GMT, 8:30am EST -- Roberto Mancini's side are fighting to stay alive in the title race. Any more points dropped would be detrimental to City's hopes of lifting the Premier League trophy for a second consecutive season. Chelsea sit third in the table and their main league aim is to secure a top 4 spot. Too bad this game isn't played at Stamford Bridge -- it's always fun watching the fat Spanish waiter get booed.
* Bradford City vs Swansea City | League Cup final | 4:00pm GMT, 11:00am EST -- No matter which club it is that emerges victorious at Wembley, it will be hard not to be happy for them. Bradford are the first side from English football's 4th tier to reach a major final while Swansea have been a model club this past decade as they've surged up the football pyramid. This is maybe the grandest occasion in both club's histories.
* Inter vs Milan | Serie A | 7:45pm GMT, 2:45pm EST -- Both clubs have faded in recent years. Nonetheless, the Milan derby -- or Derby della Madonnina if you prefer -- is still one of world football's prominent clashes. Milan currently sit third in the table (top 3 in Serie A qualify for Champions League) and they're coming off a famous European win over FC Barcelona from the past midweek. Inter are only a point behind their rivals. Since arriving from City, Milan's Mario Balotelli has scored 4 goals in 3 matches.
* Paris Saint-Germain vs Olympique de Marseille | Ligue 1 | 8:00pm GMT, 3:00pm EST -- 'Le Classique' is the biggest match on the French football calendar. There's a bit more intrigue to this particular match as it could be David Beckham's debut for PSG. Then there's the Zlatan. Oh, and Joey Barton.
