NWSL Draft starts Friday with Utah Royals; 2024’s first El Clasico kicks off Sunday with a trophy on the line

Jonathan Johnson here getting you ready for another big weekend in the soccer world with a return to domestic league action after last week’s dalliances with the cups as well as our first Clasico of 2024 and the NWSL draft. Let’s get straight into it.

📺 Footy fix

All times U.S./Eastern

Friday, Jan. 12
🏆 AFC Asian Cup: Qatar vs. Lebanon, 11 a.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Golazo Network
🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayern Munich vs. Hoffenheim, 2:30 p.m. ➡️ ESPN+
🇺🇸 NWSL Draft, 8 p.m. ➡️ ION

Saturday, Jan. 13
🏆 AFC Asian Cup: Australia vs. India, 6:30 a.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Golazo Network
🇮🇹 Serie A: Napoli vs. Salernitana, 9 a.m. ➡️ Paramount+
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 EPL: Newcastle United vs. Manchester City, 12:30 p.m. ➡️ NBC

Sunday, Jan. 14
🏆 AFC Asian Cup: Japan vs. Vietnam, 6:30 a.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Golazo Network
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 EPL: Manchester United vs. Tottenham Hotspur, 11:30 a.m. ➡️ Peacock
🇪🇸 El Clasico: Real Madrid vs. Barcelona, 2 p.m. ➡️ ABC
🇮🇹 Serie A: Milan vs. Roma, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+

⚽ The Forward Line

⏱️ NWSL teams are on the clock

By Pardeep Cattry

All 14 NWSL clubs have the chance to add sought-after collegiate talent to their ranks through tonight’s draft. The event will be of particular use for the Utah Royals and Bay FC, this year’s expansion teams who each have two of the first 10 picks. The Royals are ahead of Bay in terms of squad building, but both sides still have slots to fill, and so they will likely select players who are ready to make the jump from college to the pros.

In her latest mock draft, Sandra Herrer has UNC defender Savy King going to Utah as the No. 1 pick and Stanford midfielder Maya Doms heading to the Bay Area as the No. 2 pick. The expansion teams are hardly the only ones that might land important players through the draft, though. Take for example the Chicago Red Stars, who are in year one of a rebuild under new ownership and have the chance to select a promising talent with the No. 3 pick like Penn State defender/midfielder Cori Dyke.

• Herrera: “After losing two center backs (Tierna Davidson and Kayla Sharples) on the free agency market, they could opt to roll the dice on a top prospect in Maycee Bell (UNC) or new head coach Lorne Donaldson could flex his recruitment muscles and Colorado ties to select Dyke (a Colorado native) as an option for his currently depleted backline.”

It’s not NWSL Draft day without some unexpected deals, though. High draft picks are much-coveted tradable assets and the league has a history of teams realizing just that — look no further than last year, when Gotham sent the No. 2 pick to the Kansas City Current in exchange for Lynn Williams. That dynamic could be at play again tonight, especially for the Royals considering their progress on squad building.

• Herrera: “The expansion side that initially selected priority in the NWSL Draft during the asset selection process nearly has a full roster now, with 16 players acquired through trades and free agency. King is coming off a breakout Freshman season, has ties to USWNT youth national teams, and was a nominee for 2023 Best female U.S. Youth Player of the Year. With nine selections in the draft, and two in the first round, will they keep or trade the No. 1 selection is the real question or will they go and select the top prospect available on the board?”

Sponsored by Paramount+

🔗  Midfield Link Play

🇪🇸 First Clasico of 2024

It is one of the biggest fixtures in the club soccer calendar regardless of its location or the stakes so we are grateful to get an additional Clasico for 2024 with Real Madrid and Barcelona locking horns in Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Supercup this weekend. The two semifinals were unexpectedly eventful given the Derbi Madrileno between Los Blancos and bitter rivals Atletico Madrid which produced an eight-goal thriller with extra time while Barca comparatively eased past Osasuna. Pardeep Cattry with the recap from both Supercopa semifinals ahead of Sunday’s Clasico as we get set for another dose of the good stuff from these two giants of La Liga.

• Cattry: “The storied rivalry match was set after both sides won their semifinal matchups. Barcelona secured a 2-0 win over Osasuna on Thursday to ensure they would meet Real Madrid once again this season, with Robert Lewandowski and 16-year-old Lamine Yamal scoring in the second half. Los Blancos, meanwhile, advanced to the final under much more chaotic circumstances. Real Madrid beat city rivals Atletico Madrid 5-3 after extra time on Wednesday in which they went down in the seventh minute. The sides from the Spanish capital went back-and-forth for 120 minutes until Real Madrid scored twice in the last minutes of extra time. Sunday’s matchup marks the second meeting of the teams this season. Real Madrid won the first game between the two sides this campaign on Oct. 28, when Jude Bellingham scored twice to ensure his side’s come-from-behind victory. They will play at least one more time this season on April 21.”

🔗  Top Stories

📈 USMNT stock watch: Weston McKennie has caught the eye while Folarin Balogun and Miles Robinson have work to do as we asses the American depth chart.

📉 Manchester United’s worst transfers: We rank the Red Devils’ woeful recent business with 2021-22’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho deals now looking very poor indeed.

🚫 Argentina’s FIFA stadium ban: World soccer’s governing body hits world champions with partial stadium ban owing to fan misconduct during CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers.

🇬🇲 Gambia national team plane scare: Players and staff on flight which was forced to return after oxygen supply failed ahead of Africa Cup of Nations.

🤔 Premier League best XI so far: Our midseason selection features Declan Rice, Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland as the EPL’s current top five dominate.

💭 USWNT options: Breaking down Emily Fox to Arsenal and Casey Krueger to Washington Spirit through the eyes of national team coach Emma Hayes.

💰  The Back Line

💵 Best bet

• EPL: Newcastle United vs. Manchester City, Saturday, 12:30 p.m.
  💰 THE PICK: Draw and both teams to score (+450) — This is big for both sides and although it is not an ideal moment for the hosts, they did beat their visitors last time out. Newcastle away is tricky for City who need all three points to keep closing the gap at the top and are in good form at the moment. The Magpies equally need points to get back into European contention and Eddie Howe will set his side up to make life tough for Pep Guardiola’s men. Although City are still likely to come out on top, the defending Premier League champions could be give a scare by Newcastle who still managed to threaten a result against Liverpool before ultimately coming undone due to so many absentees. If you really feel bold, a home win with both teams to score could pay out handsomely at +750 but it is much less likely than a draw with goals on both sides.

📺 What’s on CBS Sports Golazo Network

☀️ Morning Footy (Weekdays 8-10 a.m.): Hosts Susannah Collins, Charlie Davies, Nico Cantor and Alexis Guerreros help fans get their day started 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.

📦 Box 2 Box (Weekday afternoons): The news-driven show quickly recaps all the latest headlines from around the world with panelists previewing the top matchups of the day. Catch Box 2 Box on CBS Sports Golazo Network on the CBS Sports app, PlutoTV and Paramount+. 

3️⃣ Attacking Third (Monday, Wednesday and Friday evening): The leading women’s soccer podcast and social brand is now a live studio show. Just because the NWSL season is over doesn’t mean that our coverage of the women’s game is going anywhere. Our analysts will be breaking down the USWNT. NWSL offseason and European domestic season all winter long.

👟 Kickin’ It (Tuesday, 7 p.m.): CBS Sports Golazo Network’s new unfiltered interview show returns Tuesday Hosted by Kate Abdo, Clint Dempsey, Mo Edu and Charlie Davies, the group chat candidly with the biggest names from the Beautiful Game and share their stories from on and off the pitch. 

⚽ Call it What You Want (Monday night): A weekly podcast where Jimmy Conrad, Jesse Marsch and Charlie Davies cover all things USMNT and the state of the beautiful game in the United States.

🥅 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+.