3 To See – Borussia Dortmund, FC Porto, Racing Club – The Weekend’s Football (26.9.09 – 28.9.09)

On last week’s 3 to See we scoured all of Europe to bring you derby matches in England, Bulgaria and Norway. Manchester United beat city rivals Manchester City 4-3 in a thrilling contest, CSKA Sofia beat Levski Sofia 2-0 and Vålerenga finally ended their 28 year derby jinx against old foes Lyn Oslo by winning 4-1. So what do we have for you in 3 to See this week? All is revealed after the jump…

Borussia Dortmund v Schalke 04 (German Bundesliga) 14.30 GMT, Saturday 26th September 2009

German football’s biggest derby takes place this weekend as old rivals Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04 renew acquaintances at the Westfalenstadion. Known as the Ruhr derby, matches between the two draw intensely passionate crowds as the stadium becomes a vibrant sea of Schalke royal blue and Dortmund black and yellow. The two sides are amongst the best supported teams in the land.

Borussia Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion is arguably the best football stadium in Europe and with a league capacity of 80,552 is certainly one of the most populous. The Südtribüne terrace holds almost 25,000 fans alone and is the largest standing area in European football, creating raucous atmospheres on a regular basis. This ‘Yellow Wall’ of supporters will hope to roar Dortmund to their first league victory over Schalke 04 since 2007. In fact Schalke take a fearsome record with them for the 23 mile trip to Dortmund – in the last 21 derbies they have lost only 2.

Jürgen Klopp’s Dortmund have made an indifferent start to the campaign in Germany this season with just one win in six games. They currently lie 13th in the Bundesliga while Schalke are joint 6th with Eintracht Frankfurt. Felix Magath’s men have amassed 10 points from a possible 16.

FC Porto v Sporting Lisbon (Portuguese Liga Sagres) 19.15 GMT, Saturday 26th September 2009

Sporting Braga’s magnificent 100% start to the season may be grabbing all the headlines in Portugal right now but that has not stopped attentions turning to Oporto this weekend, where two of the league’s big guns go head-to-head on Saturday. 3rd meet 4th at the Estadio da Dragao as reigning champions FC Porto meet old rivals Sporting Lisbon, and both sides will be looking for a result to elevate them closer to frontrunners Braga and Benfica at the top of the table.

FC Porto, champions the last four years running, are reeling after a surprise 1-0 defeat to surprise package and league leaders Sporting Braga. Coach Jesualdo Ferreira publicly denounced the performance of his players in that game, and is looking for a better attitude from them ahead of what will be a tough match against a Sporting side starting to find it’s feet.

Sporting Lisbon were 2-0 down against Olhanense in midweek but came back to win 3-2 (pocketing me a few pounds in the process), stretching their winning streak to 3 league games. Paulo Bento is wary of the threat Sporting face against a higher calibre of opposition however, and has identified the Porto match as a good opportunity to properly measure his side’s qualities. “It’s going to be a difficult match, in a difficult stadium against a team with a lot of quality and it will also serve to gauge our ability,” said the Sporting Lisbon manager.

The rivalry between Sporting and Porto is perhaps not as intense as that between Benfica and Sporting, but with both teams already five points adrift of top spot neither will want to experience a demoralising defeat. It should be an entertaining game between two attacking sides.

Racing Club vs Independiente (Argentine Premier Division) 20.10 GMT, Sunday 27th September 2009

Over in South America, el clásico de Avellaneda takes place in Argentina this weekend as Racing Club take on Independiente. Boca v River aside this is the biggest derby in a country full to the brim with local derbies. Racing and Independiente both poss
ess huge fanbases and boast a plethora of domestic and international honours between them.

In terms of domestic honours won Racing and Independiente are 3rd and 4th behind Boca and River, but internationally it is Independiente who cast a shadow over all them with an incredible 7 Copa Libertadores crowns to their name. That is the highest tally anywhere in South America.

Sadly neither team is particularly prospering in the Argentine Premier Division right now, with Independiente 9th and Racing 14th, but the excitement is to be found in the stands. Just a few hundred metres separate the stadia of these two teams in the Buenos Aires district of Avallaneda, and the city is split down the middle between those who favour Independiente red and Racing light blue. As this video well demonstrates, fanatical displays of support come as standard.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bM_dZIWS_k]

Let us know which games you’ll be watching this weekend, or if you are following these games tell us your thoughts. Comments welcome.

Argentinian Football, Borussia Dortmund, FC Porto, German Bundesliga, Independiente, Portuguese Football, Racing Club, Schalke 04, Sporting Lisbon, Three to See