Get this in your inbox every Friday by signing up here.
What to Watch for this Weekend
England | Mourinho’s last stand?
Leicester City vs. Liverpool – Liverpool sit in first as they hope to dethrone Man City, with three wins from three and zero goals conceded. While Leicester’s only blemish is their 1-0 opening day loss to Manchester United, they’ll again be without Jamie Vardy who is serving a red card ban.
Manchester City vs. Newcastle – City are mortal! Wolves managed to earn a 1-1 draw against the Champions last weekend, aided by the assured possession of Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves. Newcastle however, don’t have those luxuries in midfield and will instead be set up to frustrate City.
Burnley v Manchester United – Somehow an early September fixture against Burnley feels like a must-win for Jose Mourinho. Lucky for him, Burnley’s squad has already been stretched by Europa League qualification as they’ve conceded seven goals in three EPL matches so far. They were eliminated on Thursday, but fielded a strong squad, so Mourinho may be let off the hook this weekend against a tired Burnely side.
Watford v Spurs – It’s a top of the table clash between Spurs and…Watford? Yes, the Hornets are enjoying a perfect start to the EPL season with wins over Brighton, Burnley, and Crystal Palace. Spurs are a more accurate barometer of how well Watford could do this season, and a win would make it only the second time in Watford’s history they’ve began a season with four consecutive victories.
Scotland | Gerrard and Rodgers reunite
Celtic vs. Rangers – The Old Firm derby has been played five times in the past calendar year with Celtic outscoring Rangers 14-2. It’ll be Steven Gerrard’s first as Rangers manager, against his old Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers. Surprisingly, it’s Hearts that sit atop the SPL table, after they beat Celtic 1-0 earlier this month, while Rangers have drawn two of three.
Spain | A Madrid Derby (not that one)
Real Madrid vs. Leganes – It’s a lesser-known Madrid Derby this weekend as Leganes travel from the outskirts of the city to the Bernabeu. Leganes is the only La Liga team Karim Benzema has faced that he hasn’t scored against, and he enters the match in good form after a brace in a man of the match performance last weekend against Girona.
Barcelona vs. SD Huesca – The last time these two teams met, Barcelona won 8-1 (without Messi) in a Copa Del Rey match in 2014. Huesca have enjoyed a solid start to their first season in La Liga with an opening weekend win over Eibar and a 2-2 draw against Athletic Bilbao.
Italy | Waiting on that goal..
AC Milan vs. Roma – Both sides have been involved in thrillers early in the Serie A season, with Milan going up 2-0 over Napoli last weekend before losing 3-2, and Roma drawing 3-3 with Atalanta on Monday. Add in that Milan and Roma both won away in the teams’ two meetings last season, and we should be set for an entertaining Friday.
Parma vs. Juventus – And still, we wait. Wins over Chievo Verona and Lazio, but no goal for Ronaldo…yet. Parma haven’t won either of their two fixtures and Juve will have this written down as an expected three points. But, all we really want is a GIF of Ronaldo bounding away from the goal in a Juve shirt.
Germany | Dortmund start strong
Hannover 96 vs. Borussia Dortmund – Hannover finished 13th last term, but boosted their attack over the summer after scoring just 44 goals in 34 matches. They host Dortmund who made an opening weekend statement by beating RB Leipzig 4-1.