Time for our regular Friday run through the games that you should be looking out for over the next few days, including the big names, the derby clashes and maybe a couple of developing stories you might not have heard about.
? Friday Night.
?? Just one game in Germany tonight, but it should be a cracker. Freiburg, who sit 8th and have overachieved this season host Borussia Mönchengladbach. Die Fohlen, with their attacking brand of football led by the likes of French duo, Marcus Thuram and Alassane Pléa are on the hunt for their first spot in the Champions League since 2016 and could go 3rd with a win.
?? A number of additional leagues return to the app this weekend, but one in particular are doing things a little differently. None of your behind closed doors chat in Bulgaria, where the Efbet Clubs have been allowed to sell tickets for 30% of their grounds – meaning that at least some fans will get to see tonight’s game between the top two sides in the country – Levski Sofia vs. Ludogorets.
And if this week’s Cup Final in Hungary is anything to go by, the spectacle of fans actually being at a game in 2020 is going to be a strange one!
? Saturday
?? With the rest of Europe’s top 4 leagues all due back in action within a fortnight, this weekend is the ideal opportunity to enjoy the best of what the Bundesliga has to offer… before you get distracted!
The top 3 are all in action on Saturday, and Bayern and Dortmund in particular are up against in-form opposition.
Bayern go to Bayer Leverkusen, who boast the country’s new poster boy, Kai Havertz up front. He became the first German to score 35 goals in the league before turning 21 with a goal in their latest win. Could he be the man to stall Bayern’s march towards an 8th straight title?
Dortmund offered scant resistance when they faced them recently, but they did restore some confidence with their 6-1 thrashing of Paderborn last weekend. Now, the black and yellows face Hertha Berlin, themselves unbeaten since the lockdown.
RB Leipzig and their Chelsea-bound striker Timo Werner (tbc) now get a chance to face the out of form Paderborn defence. Things were looking on the up after a string of draws for the side rooted to the bottom of the table but they’ve since had to play Dortmund and now, 3rd placed Leipzig back-to-back.
?? There’s just one game in Portugal’s top division on Saturday, but it might be worth keeping an eye on. The league returned in midweek, but no-one seemed to tell the goalkeepers as league leaders Porto suffered defeat after conceding an embarrassing goal before Benfica and Sporting endured similar errors as they both drew.
Fans of Boavista and Moreirense might want to look away now.
?? Croatian league football marks their first matchday back from lockdown on Saturday with the league title already something of a forgone conclusion. Dinamo Zagreb are 18 points clear in the table and will go one step further to securing a 3rd straight championship if they can see off bottom club, Varaždin.
? Sunday
?? Something a little different for Sunday as we think some headlines could be made in Greece, where football returns with this season’s Championship Group. The top four from the regular campaign all meet with PAOK vs. Olympiacos seeing 1st take on 2nd and then the Athens derby between AEK and Panathinaikos being a clash between 3rd and 4th!
?? A big game in Estonia too, where the top two sides also meet. Nõmme Kalju are the only side to break the stranglehold that traditional giants, Flora and Levadia have had on the Meistriliiga since the country’s independence – and in the early stages of this season, they could just be at it again. On Sunday, Kalju host Flora with just one point separating them after 5 rounds.
?? If none of the above quite floats your boat, don’t worry – because EIGHT straight days of glorious La Liga action starts this coming Thursday!
To whet your appetite, here’s something on the opening game – the Seville Derby between Sevilla and Real Betis.
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