The latest episode of the EPL Talk Podcast went live this afternoon. During the interview with Jenny, Diana and Nikki from The Treble soccer radio show, the women discuss how their show started, how they came up with the name 'The Treble,' their World Cup predictions and much much more.

Listen to episode five right now at http://epltalk.libsyn.com, or subscribe via iTunes.

Speaking of the EPL Talk Podcast, be sure to listen the previous episode (number four). It features a very interesting interview with Richard Beresh, one of the main producers responsible for the new 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany video game. Go to http://epltalk.libsyn.com

Today, the biggest day of the Premiership season, sums up my biggest criticism of Fox Soccer Channel. Yes, I love the channel just as much as you do, but it doesn't cater to the soccer fan who wants to experience the EPL in real-time.

Right now, between 10am and Noon, the fate of Birmingham and Portsmouth hangs in the balance (and, as a result, West Brom). Liverpool, meanwhile, aim to tie it up with Man United for 2nd place. If you're watching Fox Soccer Channel, you're in a vacuum and would have to wait until 3pm ET to watch the Wigan v Portsmouth match (the final result would be revealed on FSC at 5pm ET -- five hours after the match finishes).

Of course, if you watch the Premiership via Fox Soccer Channel on Tivo later in the day, then this doesn't affect you.

But for those fans, like myself, who follow the game live (whenever possible), the best solution is the internet.

Follow the coverage live right now on the EPLTalk.com web site for live scores, chat live with me via the webcam, and listen in on the live internet radio coverage from Talksport.net.

Congratulations to Chelsea for winning the 2005-2006 Premiership trophy. The Blues cruised to victory in a 3-0 home win against a very disappointing Manchester United side. Class goals from Gallas, Cole and Carvalho sealed the victory.

Portugese national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has just made the shocking announcement that he does not want to become the manager of the England national team due to the pressure from the English media.

Read the full story at http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/4955490.stm

The biggest weekend of the English Premier League season is here. By Saturday at Noon ET, the Premiership champions and two remaining relegation positions may be decided, or not. So much is riding on each game.

Here's your essential guide to this Saturday's nailbiting matches that matter the most:

Chelsea v Man United, 7:30am ET, Fox Soccer Channel: If Chelsea wins or ties, they'll be crowned champions. If Chelsea loses, the Blues will hope that Boro can get a tie or win against Man United on Monday for Chelsea to win the title. Or, if Man United beat Boro, Chelsea will have to go to Blackburn on Tuesday knowing that a tie or win will clinch them the title.

Birmingham v Newcastle, 10am ET, no live TV: The Blues have to win to have any hope of avoiding relegation. Note: Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast this game on Sunday at 1pm ET on tape delay.

Wigan v Portsmouth, 10am ET, no live TV: If Portsmouth wins and Birmingham ties or loses against Newcastle, Portsmouth will ensure survival and both Birmingham and West Brom will be relegated. Note: Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast the Portsmouth game on Saturday at 3pm ET on tape delay.

Liverpool v Aston Villa, 10am ET, PPV: If Manchester United lose to Chelsea earlier in the morning, and Liverpool defeat Villa, Liverpool will move to joint second with Man United (although the Red Devils will have one game in hand over Liverpool).

Here's your essential guide to this Sunday's nailbiting matches that matter the most:

Spurs v Bolton, 11am ET, PPV: Spurs have to win on Sunday to step closer to getting the fourth spot in the Premiership (and entry into Europe, if Arsenal lose in the Champion's League Final).

Here's your essential guide to this Monday's nailbiting matches that matter the most:

West Brom v West Ham, 10am ET, no live TV. If Portsmouth lose on Saturday against Wigan, West Brom will have to win this match to have any hope of ensuring Premiership survival. Baggies fans will also hope that Birmingham will lose against Newcastle to give them any hope of staying up. Note: Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast this game at 5pm ET on Monday via tape delay.

Man United v Middlesbrough, 10am ET, no live TV: If Man United beat Chelsea on Saturday, they have to beat Boro to having any hope of winning the Premiership on goal difference. If United tie or lose, Chelsea will be Premiership champs. Note: Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast this game at 3pm ET on Monday via tape delay.

Sunderland v Arsenal, 12:15pm ET, Fox Soccer Channel: This is a must-win match for Arsenal to have any hope of finishing in fourth place above Spurs.

Here's your essential guide to this Tuesday's nailbiting matches that matter the most:

Blackburn v Chelsea, 3pm ET, Fox Soccer Channel: If Chelsea lose on Saturday against United and United beat Boro on Monday, Chelsea can win the title if they tie or beat Blackburn.

Here's your essential guide to this Thursday's nailbiting matches that matter the most:

Man City v Arsenal, 2:30pm ET, Fox Soccer Channel: Another must-win match for Arsenal.

From today, there's only 8 more days of Premiership left before the season ends. Even with Chelsea running away with the title and people claiming they had won it in October, here we are with three games to go and nothing has been decided as of yet.

Can Chelsea get the point they need to be victorious? Or can Man United shock the world and put immense pressure on the Blues to get one point from their two remaining games against Blackburn and Newcastle?

Tomorrow at 7:30am ET is Manchester United's biggest match of the season. Can they turn the world upside down?

The London Evening Standard newspaper today is reporting that Luiz Felipe Scolari has accepted the offer for him to become the next England national team manager.

Read the following article (see bulletpoint near bottom of the page) to learn more.

5:42pm ET -- The Guardian is also reporting the same news.

The BBC announced today more information about it's World Cup coverage.

Read the full article to learn what theme song the BBC will be using, what experts will be analyzing the games on the BBC Five Live broadcasts, and more.

Without a doubt, the 2006 World Cup will be the most interactive one ever for soccer fans with so many ways to enjoy the game (via satellite radio, high-definition TV, and the internet -- whether it be via blog, web site, webcam or more).

Today is the deadline for the first round of bidding for the rights to the 2007-2013 Premiership TV season, and The Guardian newspaper reports that ESPN is interested in purchasing the overseas rights.

In North America, ESPN already owns the rights to the Champion's League and World Cup.

Stay updated on this developing news via the EPL Talk Blog.

Suspend your disbelief for a minute, and go along with the following scenario for the end to the Premiership season:

Chelsea, dented by their FA Cup Semi-Final loss against Liverpool, succumb to Manchester United this Saturday and lose their first home game in more than a year. United will be buoyed by this win and will have the bragging rights of being the only team to defeat Chelsea home and away this season.

Now, for a moment, imagine that Chelsea go into a tailspin from the loss to Manchester United and manage to lose their two remaining away matches of the season against Blackburn (a difficult team to beat, even for Chelsea) and Newcastle (a team reborn with Michael Owen possibly back in contention).

Man United, meanwhile, cruise to victories in their final two home matches against Middlesbrough and Charlton.

I realize the scenario is incredulous, but with the game of soccer, anything is possible. If the above did happen, Man United would be joint first with Chelsea and the title would come down to goal difference. Right now, Chelsea are +12 over Man United, so United would have to score several goals in the remaining games to close that gap.

As I mentioned, anything is possible. Chelsea could draw United on Saturday and the Premiership trophy would be theirs.

Watch the match live on Fox Soccer Channel at 7:30am and hang on to the edge of your seat!

Last night's match was similar to a chess game, with Arsenal making very few calculated moves and playing very conservatively waiting to capitalize on a mistake from Villarreal, which never materialized. Even though it wasn't pretty, it was very effective.

If Barcelona can defeat AC Milan on aggregate today, it makes me wonder whether Arsenal may consider employing the same tactics that they did yesterday in the final. Arsenal, playing a 4-1-4-1 (essentialy a 4-5-1 formation) could decide to hold Barcelona at bay with those tactics to stem the Spanish team's attacking exploits.

For the sake of entertainment, I hope they decide to play more like they did against Real Madrid and attack, attack, attack.

Liverpool's 2-1 FA Cup semi-final win against Chelsea yesterday was good news for the Premiership.

For the past decade, the Premiership has been a two horse race with Arsenal and Manchester United dominating the league. Now, looking at next season, it's finally a four horse race with Liverpool officially joining Chelsea, Man United, and Arsenal as worthy title contenders next year.

If Liverpool can win their midweek game against West Ham and Chelsea can defeat Man United next Saturday, Chelsea will be crowned champions but Liverpool will be tied in second place with Man United (albeit, with Man United having one game in hand over Liverpool).

Can Liverpool, with the momentum from the FA Cup semi-final win, pip Man United for second place?

The Sunday Telegraph newspaper from the UK is reporting that it's unlikely that Britain's ITV and BBC will bid on the Premiership TV packages available for the 2007-2013 seasons.

Instead, it looks like it'll be a three horse race between Sky, NTL and Setanta.

The first round of bidding closes this Thursday. The repercussions from the decision by the Premier League could have a major impact on EPL TV viewers around the world.

Read the complete article for the full story.

It's always refreshing to read interesting insights into the Premiership, and the You'll Never Blog Alone page is no exception.

Coined by a female Liverpool fan living in America, the blog features spunky copy, videos, photo slideshows and more.

The biggest match of the weekend won't be televised on Fox Soccer Channel. So, if you're interested in following the Chelsea versus Liverpool FA Cup Semi Final, read on...

In the States, the only way to watch the game is on closed-circuit TV in your local pub or restaurant (with a $20 cover charge). To find which pubs show soccer matches, use this venue finder.

The other option is to listen to the match on BBC's Five Live via the internet. Visit EPLTalk.com and look under the 'What's On Radio' tab on the homepage to click the link on Saturday at Noon ET for coverage.

Next Thursday, April 27th, is the deadline for the first-round of bidding on UK TV rights to the English Premier League for 2007-2013.

Interestingly, The Guardian newspaper revealed this morning that Setanta Sports plans on submitting bids for two of the six packages available. Read the entire article here.

Canadian readers should read the Maple Lions blog by Paul Caniff for some interesting insights into what impact the TV right deal (or 'Footie TV Revelation' as Paul puts it) will have on Canada. Read the post and his excellent blog at http://maplelions.canniff.com/.

Although Villarreal played poorly this past Wednesday night in the Champion's League match against Arsenal, Gunners fans should have little to fear in the second leg next Tuesday.

The most important aspect of the game for Arsenal, despite the lack of a killer second or third goal, was that the Gunners now have the confidence knowing that they have what it takes to beat the Spanish side.

Confidence can win games, and I predict the Gunners will hold on to play in the final versus Barcelona in Paris.

In Arsenal's last European match at their hallowed Highbury stadium, one of most interesting moments of the match was when a grey bushy squirrel ran across the pitch, halting the match. The best part was the crowd chanting "Squirrel, Squirrel." Classic!

As reported here on March 28, EPL Talk can now confirm that Chelsea will play versus the MLS All-Star team in Chicago on August 5.

Read the complete story here.

Setanta Sports yesterday announced the launch of new World Cup programming, scheduled to begin on May 1:

2006 FIFA World Cup; The Official Guide: Sixteen half-hour programs that preview the World Cup. Includes key archival moments.

FIFA World Cup Film Collection 1954-2002: Thirteen one-hour specials showing the unforgetable moments over the years.

Top 20 FIFA World Cup Moments: Countdown, in reverse order, of the top 20 moments of all time.

FIFA World Cup Stories: Interesting stories regarding the World Cup such as a feature on the Netherlands, African stars, shock defeats, Golden Boot legends and more.

Setanta Sports is available on DirecTV.

I had a fascinating interview this evening with Richard Beresh.

You may not be familiar with his name, but you'll soon be familiar with his next release. He's one of the top producers responsible for the upcoming "2006 FIFA World Cup" video game, scheduled for release by Electronic Arts (EA) on April 28 in the US.

Richard was born in England, but moved to North America from London 14 years ago. An avid Liverpool supporter, Richard's and a team of 40-50 people at EA spent 11 months creating the most advanced soccer video game yet.

Subscribe to the EPL Talk Podcast today to make sure you don't miss this interview when it's made available in the coming weeks.

2006 Fifa World Cup is available from Electronic Arts through most major retailers as of April 28.

Episode 3 of the EPL Talk Podcast launched today featuring an interview with Ray Hudson, former Newcastle United and Fort Lauderdale Strikers legend.

During the fascinating interview, Ray discusses several topics including:

• how Bruce Arena would fair as a manager in the Premiership
• the difference between the Premiership and Spain's La Liga
• what the deal between Chelsea and AEG means to America
• who he'd want to win if England faced the US in the World Cup this summer,
• and much more.
  
  My Odeo Channel (odeo/7e2f83121d119ad2)
  

I've added some new technology to the EPL Talk web site, and I'm interested in hearing what you think about it.

It's a new technology from a company called Stickam. If you visit the EPL Talk web site, you'll notice a new feature near the center of the page.

In the module, you can click on the buttons to view:

* a live webcam with me (when available). When it's not available, you'll see an 'EPL Talk' image
* a photo slideshow, which is currently focused on "Farewell to Highbury," Arsenal's stadium
* soccer videos, this month featuring soccer bloopers
* and more.

Take a look. And be sure to click on the 'Enlarge view' button to get a full appreciation of the technology.

Is it me or is Fox Soccer Channel getting better and better?

Their Super Saturday + round-up program seems more polished. During this past weekend's episode, Webster and Bretos wore suits instead of their business casual attire. Their rapport together is very smooth.

Meanwhile, the "Passport to Germany" is a welcome addition and, again, well produced. And, of course, the Premiership matches have been brilliant as they head towards the climax of the season.

Looking ahead, Easter Monday beckons with Fox Soccer Channel offering four back-to-back EPL matches! But before we sink into our couches watching those matches, FSC offers Wednesday's FA Cup 5th Round reply between Boro and Charlton, then this Friday's Man U v Sunderland match kicking off live at 3pm, followed up by Saturday and Sunday's Premiership matches.

Episode 2 of the EPL Talk Podcast has been released, featuring an interview with Fox Soccer Channel's Nick Webster.

Listen to the podcast right now, or subscribe via iTunes.

During the interview, Nick Webster reveals some of the celebrities that watch Fox Soccer Channel, his thoughts on GolTV picking up the Arsenal TV and Liverpool TV broadcasts, and much more including a hint of new programming to expect from Fox Soccer Channel.

Episode 3 will be released later this week? The guest: Ray Hudson!

Spare a thought for our neighbors to the north in Canada.

According to an interesting article in today's Toronto Star newspaper, here are some interesting revelations:

> Fox Sports World Canada are often airing one live English Premier League match a week, instead of three.

> The channel's 24-hour average audiences have dropped from a high of 3,000 to about 1,600.

The article explains why it thinks the audiences are dropping because they're televising less live Premiership matches.

With only six games to go before the Premiership season ends, football fans across North America will be sitting on the edge of their seats.

What does Fox Soccer Channel have in store for us? Here are the upcoming highlights:

Easter Monday; April 17: While most of North America will be working, you may want to consider calling in sick that day as Fox will have FOUR back-to-back matches (Spurs v Man U, Man C v Arsenal, Chelsea v Everton and West Brom v Bolton).

This Sunday; April 9: If Arsenal can beat Man U at Old Trafford (11am ET, PPV), chances are that the season will be over for the Red Devils. If Man U can win the match, the pressure will definitely be on the Blues. Speaking of Chelsea, they play West Ham at 7am ET. This will be a tricky match for the Blues, indeed.

Saturday, April 29: Save this date on your calendar. Depending on what Chelsea and Man U do in the next couple of weeks, the visit of United to Chelsea' Stamford Bridge could be the match of the season. Scheduled to kick off at 7:30am ET, Fox Soccer Channel hasn't announced whether they'll be broadcasting the match but all indications are positive.

Will Chelsea falter during their next six matches and can Man United go undefeated? Post a comment now and let us know...