Midweek Preview: Europa League, Greek Cup, & More

The weekend may have just ended, but don't fret, there's more club games featuring USMNT players over the next two days to help you get through the week.

On Tuesday, Everton will take on Sporting Lisbon at Goodison Park in the first leg of their Europa League Round of 32 match up.  The last two matches against a Portuguese opponent were pretty painful for the Toffees, suffering losses of 5-0 and 2-0 at the hands of Benfica in the group stage.  This time around, though, they will have Landon Donovan, who David Moyes made available for the competition by adjusting his eligible players list.

Both Donovan and Tim Howard will almost certainly start once again, as Everton looks to build off their impressive win over Chelsea.  Their opponent is in the midst of a middling (by their standards) domestic campaign, currently 12 points adrift of a Champions League spot.  Sporting Lisbon are not on the best run of form, taking only 1 point from their last three league matches, including a home loss to Academica de Coimbra, who are just 5 points clear of the relegation zone.  And, since I'm sure some of you are wondering, should Everton advance past this round, Donovan would be available for the first leg of the Round of 16 before heading back to Los Angeles for the MLS season.

The match starts at 12:45 ET.

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Elsewhere in England on Tuesday, there are a pair of Championship games worth keeping an eye on for USMNT fans.  In London, Jay DeMerit will likely make his 11th straight start at centerback in Watford's match against QPR.  It's not the most exciting match up, but it may be just another solid game that flies under the radar for DeMerit, who has made a seamless return to the lineup after recovering from eye surgery. 

Kenny Cooper, meanwhile, will be looking to earn some minutes for loan club Plymouth Argyle in their home match against Swansea City.  Cooper has made two appearances for the Pilgrims thus far, though he did not get off the bench in their last match, a 3-1 victory over Barnsley.

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On Wednesday, you should keep an eye on the lone EPL match of the day, as Bolton travel to Wigan for a 3 PM ET tilt.  Stuart Holden will be looking to make his debut for his new club after earning a spot on the bench for Sunday's 1-1 FA Cup draw with Tottenham.


In Scotland, DaMarcus Beasley will be looking to make his second consecutive start since coming back from a thigh injury, as Rangers take on St. Mirren at Ibrox in a Scottish Cup Fifth Round replay.  Maurice Edu, who was an unused substitute in Rangers' Valentine's Day victory over Hibernian, will be hoping to make his first appearance after a few weeks on the sidelines due to an ankle injury.  Kickoff is at 2:45 ET


In Greece, Freddy Adu and Eddie Johnson will try to guide Aris to the Greek Cup semifinals, as they host Xanthi in a quarterfinal replay.  As I'm sure you know by now based off my last post, Adu is in the midst of a solid run of form, with EJ turning in some good efforts up top, as well.  Quite the turnaround for two guys who didn't see much of the field in 2009.  The match will start at 9 AM ET.

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