After airing several taped English Premier League games during NFL season, Fox goes one better and airs Sunday’s Arsenal-Manchester United game live at 10:30 a.m. ET. And in two weeks, Fox will air Chelsea-Manchester United live as well.
Rob Stone will make his Fox debut as the studio host. Eric Wynalda will be the main analyst. Joining them will be CNN talk show host and notorious alleged phone hacker Piers Morgan who claims he’s an unabashed Arsenal fan. What he’ll bring to the table is unknown, but I’d rather see someone else instead of the alleged phone hacker.
Anyway, we have the Fox press release which includes Wynalda discussing what it means to have this game on network television.
FOX SPORTS NOTES, QUOTES & ANECDOTES
Arsenal and Manchester United Kick-Off #EpicSunday with First-Ever LIVE English Premier League Match on U.S. Broadcast TV at 10:30 AM ET
ENGLISH RIVALS ARSENAL AND MAN U MEET LIVE ON FOX – FOX Sports leads off NFC Championship Sunday with its first-ever live English Premier League match on U.S. broadcast television featuring two of the world’s most storied clubs. Arsenal and Manchester United meet at Emirates Stadium, and coverage on FOX begins at 10:30 AM ET from Studio A in Los Angeles with Rob Stone in his first FOX Sports appearance accompanied by FOX Soccer analyst and former U.S. Men’s National Team legend Eric Wynalda, and CNN talk show host and Arsenal supporter, Piers Morgan.
A century-old rivalry, Arsenal and Manchester United look to leave their stamp on a crucial mid-season match. Hoping to avenge an 8-2 loss last August at Old Trafford, a re-energized Arsenal features the Premier League’s top-scorer Robin van Persie and the prolific Thierry Henry, while Manchester United looks to Wayne Rooney to propel them to the top of the standings.
FOX’s soccer coverage on Jan. 22 begins when FOX Soccer, America’s premier soccer destination, presents Manchester City vs. Tottenham at 8:25 AM ET in a matchup of championship contenders fighting for all available points, featuring superstar Mario Balotelli (Manchester City) and American goalkeeper Brad Friedel (Tottenham). Fans can catch highlights from both matches on Goals On Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.
Viewers can join in on the social conversation on Twitter surrounding the matches and NFC Championship game, coverage of which begins at 6:00 PM ET by using #EpicSunday, and by visiting https://twitter.com/foxsoccer, www.facebook.com/foxsoccer, and www.facebook.com/foxsports
WYNALDA: ARSENAL IS VULNERABLE – FOX Soccer analyst and former U.S. Men’s National team legend Eric Wynalda believes Sunday’s match features a very wide open contest between two teams both in need of a win. “This game is going to be fantastic because both teams desperately need a win for different reasons,” said the U.S. Men’s all-time second leading goal scorer. “Manchester United has had a bit of a rough patch but they look pretty good right now and I expect them to throw everything at Arsenal. They’ll throw everything at them because Arsenal is vulnerable defensively. This is going to be a wide open very high pace game.”
ROB STONE AND ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE MAKE BROADCAST DEBUTS ON FOX SPORTS SUNDAY – Seasoned sportscaster Rob Stone makes his FOX Sports debut as the lead studio host this Sunday, Jan 22 with coverage of Arsenal vs. Manchester United match, Sunday, Jan. 22, the first-ever live English Premier League match on U.S. broadcast television. Stone talked about what he expects to see this when these legendary teams meet Sunday.
ON WHAT HE EXPECTS FROM SUNDAY’S MATCH – “Arsenal may not admit it, but revenge will be a huge factor after they were humiliated 8-2 in their last outing vs. the Red Devils. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said that not only did he start to feel uncomfortable as that result was transpiring, but he also knew it would be used against his club in the return match. I bet Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has the lowlights of the match cut up already for pregame motivation.”
ON THE ICONIC HISTORY OF THESE TWO CLUBS – “Sir Alex Ferguson broke into smile when he reflected back on the glory days of this rivalry. In the heyday this was a brutally challenging encounter, both physically and mentally. Both clubs have high levels of respect and contempt for one another, which traditionally adds up to a classic cocktail of soccer entertainment.”
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS BEING THE FIRST-EVER LIVE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE MATCH ON U.S. BROADCAST TELEVISION – “This is just another example of the continued growth and mainstream acceptance of soccer in the United States. Every day more and more people are seeing the light, respecting the skills and athleticism, and embracing the game. That list will grow on Sunday.”
That will do it.
