A big thanks to Cobi Jones for pitching in with the last Rankings, but as U2 once said, we're stealing them back. Somewhere through our post-Halloween haze, we've got our eye on this weekend's calendar for some mega-showdowns around the world. On Saturday, Manchester United visits Arsenal for a winner-take-all first-place duel in the English Premier League (which makes for doubly painful watching: 8:30 a.m. ET on Setanta Sports USA, if you've got it). Then on Sunday, Inter Milan heads to Turin to face Juventus for the first time in two seasons (2:30 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel) -- you may recall a little scandal in Italy where Juve was heavily punished and Inter made off like bandits. Both matches will have heavy implications here on the Rankings, but until then, there's been plenty of movement to deliberate. And a special congratulations to São Paulo, which won its fifth Brazilian title on Wednesday night. Note: All rankings, records and statistics are through Oct. 31.
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Arsenal
It's time for the Gunners to put their money where their mouth is. They're still undefeated and demolishing their opponents by a combined 42-7 in all competitions. But have they really been challenged yet? Their 1-1 draw at Liverpool last weekend was their first match against a worthy foe. Saturday's visit from Man United will go a long way toward telling us if Arsenal is for real -- and settling the No. 1 spot.
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Manchester United
Remember when we were lamenting Man Utd's lame run of 1-0 victories? Feh. The Red Devils have been on a tear, scoring four goals in four straight games, reclaiming a share of first in the Premiership and reestablishing themselves as one of the most dangerous teams in the world. Carlos Tévez seems to finally have arrived, Nani is creating all kinds of problems on the wings and Cristiano Ronaldo is back to being Cristiano Ronaldo. But how will they respond without their steadiest producer, Paul Scholes, out three weeks with knee-ligament damage?
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Real Madrid
Funny, Real's only struggle of late was a 2-1 loss at Espanyol on Oct. 20, but it's also the only showing that truly exposed the team's biggest vulnerability. Without Robinho and Arjen Robben (both missing in that game), Real didn't have nearly the creativity on offense that has so far carried it to 2.5 goals per game in La Liga play. And there's nothing like down-on-its-luck competition to boost your confidence: After shattering in-transition Valencia 5-1 on Wednesday, Real next visits in-tatters Sevilla on Saturday.
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Inter Milan
Not a bad October for the Nerazzurri, who went undefeated through six matches. They're still unbeaten in Serie A, too. If you're not pumped for Inter's visit to Juventus on Sunday, go watch the NBA. This is the first showdown between the two since the '05-06 Scudetto was ceremonially awarded to Inter after Juve was stripped and demoted. It's also Zlatan Ibrahimovic's first visit back to the Grande Torino since trading his stripes for the black-and-blue.
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Bayern Munich
It's been business as usual in Bavaria, where Bayern is running over its Bundesliga competition, outscoring them 27-4. But isn't it just strange watching a Champions League devoid of the four-time champs? If you're in agreement, that means you probably missed Bayern's thrilling 3-2 comeback at Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Cup, where 17-year-old Toni Kroos stole the show.
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FC Barcelona
Is this guy -- five goals in 11 games, and countless unlucky misses -- really Thierry Henry? "The Arsenal Henry was at Arsenal," said the French striker on Tuesday. "Now I'm at Barcelona and you won't see the Arsenal Henry anymore." No kidding. There's no turn-and-burn at the Camp Nou (unless your name is Leo Messi), and Henry isn't the focal point of a starting lineup with at least five reliable goal scorers. He'd better get in a groove quickly, because Samuel Eto'o is weeks from returning, creating a nightmare logjam at the forward position.
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AS Roma
The Giallorossi have been playing some pretty impressive soccer of late, especially with tough back-to-back victories over AC Milan and city rival Lazio in Serie A. But they're still looking up at first-place Inter in league play and Man United in the Champions League's Group F, which has kept them from moving up here. Upcoming winnable games in both competitions could help both situations.
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São Paulo
Their lame bow-out from the Copa Sudamericana aside (on a shocking 3-0 aggregate to Colombia's Millonarios), the Tricolor Paulista have been the only club in South America to show any kind of consistency over the calendar year. On Wednesday night, São Paulo clinched its fifth league title -- and second straight -- with four rounds to go. And they did it with bruising (literally) defense, surrendering .4 goals per game, thanks to manager Muricy Ramalho's heavily physical game plan.
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River Plate
I'm shocked River is here, too. Just three months ago, one of the most storied clubs in the Western Hemisphere was in utter disarray, suffering from an overbloated, underperforming roster, embarrassingly bowing out of the Copa Libertadores in the group stage and dealing with one of the worst hooligan problems in the history of Argentine soccer. We all should have trusted Daniel Passarella. River is somehow within striking distance of the Apertura title and has muscled its way into the semis of the Sudamericana. Its nine-on-10 comeback against Botafogo in the round of 16 was epic, and its inspirational star has come in the form of a Colombian, Radamel Falcão García. Anyone else pulling for a Millonarios vs. Millonarios final?
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AC Milan
What do we make of this Milan team, which is tenuously holding onto its grip on the Rankings? It's capable of brilliant displays -- witness Wednesday's 5-0 thrashing of Sampdoria or last week's 4-1 crusher over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League. Then the Rossoneri will go to sleep against Empoli, Parma or Palermo, clubs they need to beat in Serie A. Somehow, Milan hasn't won a league game at home yet this season.
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Honorable mentions: FC Porto, Rangers, Urawa Red Diamonds, Al-Ahly Cairo, Villarreal
Dropped off: Liverpool
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