The best action to follow this weekend
Saturday
🇪🇸 We start this week with the final game in the long career of one of the all-time great defenders; Gerard Piqué. The Barcelona legend announced his surprise – but perhaps not shocking – decision to retire on Thursday evening. Out of favour this season, and booed by his own fans, the most surprising aspect of Piqué’s statement was that his retirement was imminent – coming straight after Saturday’s home game against Almeriá.
So, Camp Nou will have a one final chance to pay tribute to a player who has won three Champions League, eight LaLiga titles, seven Copa del Reys, three FIFA Club World Cups and countless Super Cups with the club. And Gerard Piqué can go out with Barcelona sitting on top of LaLiga once more, should they beat the recently promoted side.
🏴 There are five games lined up for Saturday in the Premier League, starting with Manchester City‘s home clash with Fulham. Having successfully rounded off their Champions League group unbeaten thanks to Wednesday’s comeback win over Sevilla, City can now concentrate on their domestic title challenge – with just this game and next weekend’s round of fixtures coming before the World Cup break.
Brighton are the only other top half club involved as they go to a Wolves side still struggling for goals – they’ve scored just six in thirteen games to date. The day’s late kick-off comes at Goodison Park, where Everton entertain Leicester in a meeting between two of the league’s more inconsistent teams.
🇮🇹 Serie A provides a top of the table clash as Atalanta welcome Napoli to Bergamo. The hosts have the best defensive record in the division but go in to the game five points worse off than their unbeaten opponents. Napoli had gone 17 games without defeat across all competitions since the start of the season until they finally came unstuck, in the Champions League contest at Liverpool, on Tuesday night – not that the result stopped them progressing to the round of 16 as group winners.
Champions Milan also secured their place in the Champions League knockout stages during the week, and they get back to their title defence with a home fixture against Spezia – a side they lost to in the corresponding fixture last season.
🇩🇪 In the Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund will be looking to extend their five game unbeaten run when they play local rivals Bochum in what is referred to as a minor Revierderby. Bayern can play their now weekly game of leapfrog with leaders Union Berlin, by going top of the table, with a win at Hertha – Union’s neighbours in the capital. Plus there’s the ‘derby’ between the German sides that fans love to hate – Hoffenheim (7th) vs. RB Leipzig (6th).
🇺🇸 Saturday also provides the culmination of the 27th season in MLS: The MLS Cup Final between LAFC and Philadelphia Union. Neither side have ever reached this stage of the traditional post-season jamboree but there can be no denying they were the two best performers during the regular season – LAFC winning the Western Conference, and Philadelphia doing the same in the East. Fitting then, that the top two seeds made it through the potential lottery of the play-offs.
The Los Angeles side may have won more regular season points to secure the Supporters Shield but the Union did score at a higher rate, and conceded less goals per game than their rivals, in the final. This one could be too close to call – especially with their one previous meeting this season ending in a 2-2 draw back in May.
🇹🇷 In Turkey, two of Istanbul’s three giant clubs face each other in one of the Süper Lig’s most anticipated fixtures. Fifth placed Galatasaray ‘entertain’ fourth placed Beşiktaş with both sides hoping a win will maintain their respective title bids as city-rivals, Fenerbahçe watch on – basking in their three point lead at the top of the table.
Sunday
🏴 The Premier League has some treats lined up for you with another five games scheduled for Sunday. Current league leaders Arsenal face London rivals Chelsea in a contest that hasn’t produced a draw in the last six meetings. With Chelsea unbeaten at home in 11 games and smarting from last weekend’s debacle at Brighton, can Graham Potter’s side test Arsenal’s mettle as the number one ranked side away from home this season?
Later in the day, we’ll have Unai Emery’s Aston Villa taking on Manchester United, in-form Newcastle against Southampton and third placed Spurs clashing with Liverpool. Which Reds side will turn up for that one – the one who lost to Leeds in the league last weekend, or the version that ended the unbeaten run of the all-conquering Napoli side in midweek?
🇮🇹 It looks like being a mouthwatering day of action in Italy as two of Serie A’s biggest fixtures take place. Il premo comes in the form of the Rome Derby with José Mourinho’s Roma having the hosting duties against Maurizio Sarri’s Lazio in their shared Stadio Olimpico home. The sides are separated by just a point in the table, with Roma sitting directly above Lazio in fourth and in the Champions League places.
Later, il secondo or main course is provided by the Derby d’Italia – the battle between the nation’s two most successful powerhouses: Juventus and Inter. Or, as it appears this season – two underperforming sides currently sat sixth and seventh and struggling for consistency. Not that you’ll notice much difference from the squads that contested May’s Coppa Italia Final, a game won by Inter after extra-time.
🇪🇸 Sunday is also derby day in LaLiga, where Real Betis meet Sevilla in el Gran Derbi. The city rivals have fared fairly differently this season – Betis building on last season’s Copa del Rey triumph to challenge for the Champions League places, while Sevilla are still struggling despite ending Julen Lopetegui’s successful reign at the club and replacing him with former manager, Jorge Sampaoli.
Results initially looked to have improved under Sampaoli but defeats in their last two league fixtures mean that they’ll start the derby in the relegation zone.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Atlético look to bounce back from recent disappointments – something we referred to as the week from hell in last week’s LaLiga review – when they meet Espanyol, and fifth placed Real Sociedad play Valencia.
🇳🇱 Similarly to Italy, the Netherlands is also looking forward to a big national rivalry in the guise of De Topper, Ajax vs. PSV. If you only take a passing interest in the Eredivisie, you may not be surprised to hear that the historic rivals are once again sitting first and second in the table. Two-time defending champions Ajax currently lead the way – but only by a single point, although they do also have the benefit of a game in hand.
🇩🇪 As has been the case in recent weeks, Bundesliga leaders Union Berlin will be playing catch-up on Sunday due to their participation in the Thursday-based Europa League – and that will remain the case after Christmas after their second placed finish in Group D. Returning to domestic duties, they’ll be looking to regain top spot with a win at Bayer Leverkusen – a side who’ve performed so badly at home, but who remain involved in Europe with a transfer from the Champions to the Europa League coming next for them.
🇫🇷 Finally, we’ll leave you with a tasty looking fixture from Ligue 1 where PSG travel to Breton club Lorient. Les Merlus have surprised all but the most ardent students of French football with a sustained run of form that even saw them challenging PSG for top spot during the first few months of the season. Three games without a win has seen Lorient slip down to fourth but this fixture is still looking like the next best bet in terms of when, and where PSG will next drop points. The champions remain unbeaten, drawing just two of their 13 games to date.
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Cover Image from IMAGO