In this weekend preview we summarise the best five games to follow on your match feed. And make a couple of suggestions for matches that you may otherwise miss.
🇪🇸 LaLiga: Real Madrid vs. Girona
Saturday brings us the Spanish showdown we’ve all been waiting for, as the two frontrunners in LaLiga meet at the Bernabéu. Nobody expected Girona to maintain their early season form, but here we are 23 rounds in to the season and the Catalonian club are still flying high, two points down on, but outscoring leaders Real Madrid.
In fact, their one defeat of the season came back in September, when Madrid put them to the sword 3-0 on their home patch. Girona have only failed to score in two other league games this season, once against winless Almería, with the other coming last weekend when they were held to a goalless draw by Real Sociedad.
Madrid weren’t able to fully capitalise on their rivals dropping points, though, as they completed the recent series of three derbies played against Atlético Madrid in the space of three weeks, with a 1-1 draw. Atlético landing a late sucker punch with the equaliser coming in the 93rd minute.
That result put an end to Madrid’s six game winning streak in the league. A win on Saturday, though, would put them five points clear, but if Girona were instead able to claim maximum points, that would completely change the complexion of this exciting title race once more.
🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen vs. Bayern Munich
There’s also another huge top of the table clash in Germany on Saturday. In fact, the much anticipated battle between Leverkusen and Bayern kicks off at the exact same time as the game in Madrid. Lucky then, that you are learning that from your favourite football app – where you’ll also be able to check the TV listings, and make a decision on which match to watch, and which match to follow on FotMob.
Here, the difference between the top two is also two points, with Leverkusen still unbeaten and holding the advantage coming into the weekend. The leaders can also boast the tightest defence in the league having conceded five goals less than the visitors. And if it wasn’t for the goals of Harry Kane (24 and counting), they’d probably also be outscoring Bayern too.
As it stands though, Bayern come in to the game having won their last three, following January’s shock defeat at Werder Bremen. Kane has scored in two of those victories as the Bavarian giants have notched up another seven goals in the For column. They will also be the more rested of the two sides as Leverkusen played out a gruelling 3-2 comeback win over Stuttgart in the quarter-finals of the DFB Pokal on Tuesday night.
That result meant that Leverkusen are now unbeaten in 30 domestic games, a run that puts them within touching distance of Bayern’s all-time German record. As if the away side needed any more motivation to go out and win Saturday’s crucial meeting between the two!
🏴 Premier League: Manchester City vs. Everton
Saturday also provides us with two intriguing battles in the Premier League title race. Especially with current chasers Manchester City having the opportunity to move above Liverpool, should they beat the Reds city rivals, Everton, in the day’s early kick-off.
Since their slight wobble, when City failed to win four league games in a row as November turned to December, Pep Guardiola’s defending champions have quietly got about their business: Winning the FIFA Club World Cup and then, following their return, winning seven straight games in domestic league and cup action. That run now puts them in the position to overhaul Liverpool, having already gone level on points with Arsenal, perhaps the other serious rival in this title race.
Everton come in to the game sat in the relegation zone, one point off safety, pending the result of their appeal against the 10-point deduction currently standing against them. The Toffees only win this year came in the FA Cup and they’ve drawn their last three league games.
City ran out 3-1 winners at Goodison Park over the festive period with Phil Foden on form in that game, just as he was when he bagged a hat-trick against Brentford, last Monday night.
🏴 Premier League: Liverpool vs. Burnley
As soon as City vs. Everton is over, it’s time for Jürgen Klopp’s side to respond, as the Reds host relegation threatened Burnley, at Anfield, in a Saturday afternoon kick-off.
Liverpool will be looking to bounce back from last week’s humbling 3-1 defeat at Arsenal. But having not lost at home in any competition all season the current league leaders should be confident of doing so. Only Man City have scored more goals than Liverpool in the division (54 to 52) and only Arsenal can match their defensive record (22 goals conceded, 8 clean sheets), but the Merseysiders have looked to have the edge in terms of grinding out points.
Burnley currently sit second bottom of the table having struggled following their promotion back to the top flight. They are winless in their last five league games, a run that started with a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool on Boxing Day, but there have been some sides of encouragement for Vincent Kompany’s side. They have, for instance, scored four goals in their last three games, and they recovered from 2-0 down to claim a point against Fulham last weekend, with new signing David Datro Fofana scoring twice.
The on-loan Chelsea man has three goal contributions in the 58 minutes he’s played in a claret and blue shirt, and Burnley will need him to continue his impressive start if they hope to get anything out of this game.
🇮🇹 Serie A: Roma vs. Inter
Last weekend may well have been the defining point of this Serie A season as Inter gave themselves a four point advantage over Juventus thanks to a 1-0 win over their nearest rivals. Having lost once in the league all season, and conceded just 10 goals over 22 rounds, Inter also have a game in hand up Simone Inzaghi’s sleeve.
As we argued during the week, this current Inter team might be the most underrated elite side in European football at the moment – click here for more on that.
Now though, Inter must back up that prevailing line of thought, as they travel to Roma on Saturday evening. The Giallorossi are in a state of flux having dismissed much loved coach José Mourinho and replaced him with the even more loved, but untested in a coaching sense, club legend Daniele de Rossi.
But all has gone relatively well under De Rossi so far, with three wins from three, albeit all three coming against sides currently sat in the bottom four. That run has moved Roma up to fifth and one point off the all-important fourth Champions League spot, occupied by Atalanta.
This though, should provide the new coach with a real test.
Plus two further suggestions, as you don’t want to miss the two major finals taking place over the weekend…
🏆 AFCON 2023: Nigeria vs. Ivory Coast
Sunday sees the climax to what many have argued has been the most exciting Africa Cup of Nations in memory. But despite all the shocks, all the spills, and all the near-misses, managerial sackings, and penalty shoot-outs, we’ve actually ended up with two giants of African football in the showpiece game.
Hosts Ivory Coast have gone through the lot to make it this far, including a 1-0 defeat to Nigeria, back on Matchday 2 in the Group Stages. Captain William Troost-Ekong scored from the penalty spot in that game, something he also did in regular time in Nigeria’s semi-final victory over South Africa, a game that was eventually decided by further penalties.
The Super Eagles had kept four straight clean sheets prior to what ended as a 1-1 draw in the final four and look the most solid team at the tournament. The same can’t be said for the Ivory Coast, with the 1-0 win over DR Congo, in their semi-final, being their most straight-forward result so far.
This game is hard to call, with Nigeria looking stronger, but the Elephants do have the prospect of a victory on home soil to inspire them, and the backing of a whole country that are ready to party.
🏆 Asian Cup 2023: Jordan vs. Qatar
On Saturday, at the Asian Cup, it’s a different matter. Here, Qatar, the tournament hosts, will start as the overwhelming favourites against Jordan, a nation who are playing in their first ever major final.
Prior to their midweek victory over South Korea, they’d never previously reached a semi-final in the Asian Cup, so the playing squad have already written themselves in to the footballing history of their nation. We weren’t supposed to have two Arab countries contesting the final, not with pre-tournament favourites Japan in form, and the aforementioned South Korea also looking well placed. But here we are!
In the knockout stages, Jordan have been underdogs against Iraq, Tajikistan, and South Korea, but they’ve beaten them all, and all in regulation time. They might just fancy repeating the trick against the defending champions.
Qatar, though, have also exceeded pre-tournament expectations, and they have only got stronger as the competition has progressed. Their semi-final being a case in point, where they triumphed over Iran despite conceding an early goal, and then being pegged back to 2-2 early in the second half. A goal from Almoez Ali eventually saw them though in a five-goal thriller.
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Images from IMAGO