Page 10 – The Pulse of Football

Dec

2024

FotMob Profile: Antonio Nusa is the next player coming of age at Leipzig

If there’s one thing that RB Leipzig know how to do, it’s buying raw, young prospects and molding them into bonafide stars who can thrive at the apex of European football.

By Zach Lowy

From Christopher Nkunku (Chelsea) to Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool) to Joško Gvardiol (Manchester City), more and more players are earning lucrative moves to the biggest clubs in Europe after impressing in Saxony. At 19 years of age, it’s only a matter of time before Antonio Nusa does the same.

Born in Langhus, Norway to a Nigerian father and a Norwegian mother, Nusa joined Stabæk‘s youth academy in 2018 and ascended the ranks before eventually making his Eliteserien debut on 30 May 2021. Over the next three months, Nusa would register 3 goals in 13 appearances, including a brace on his full debut vs. Viking, before joining Club Brugge on the final day of the summer transfer window. While his first season abroad mainly took place with Club Brugge’s U19s, Nusa did play once in the Croky Cup, once in the regular season, and twice in the Jupiler Pro League Championship Play-Offs, where he opened his account in Belgium. Union Saint-Gilloise had led the table for 200 days until losing twice to Club Brugge in the playoffs, with Nusa scoring in a 2-0 victory vs. USG and leading them to their first league championship hat-trick since the 1970s.

“Nusa is one of the youngsters who’s reminded me the most of Kylian Mbappé in recent years,” said Jacek Kulig of the Football Talent Scout website. “I already spotted his incredible motor skills, bravery, and verticality while watching him for Stabæk. He’s able to combine his elite motor skills with a great amount of bravery, and most importantly, his decision-making is improving so that he won’t be just a speedster in the future.”

Nusa built on this momentum by grabbing an assist in his first league match of the 2022/23 campaign before finding the back of the net on 13 September 2022 in a 4–0 away win against Porto. In doing so, Nusa became the youngest Norwegian player to feature in the UEFA Champions League and the second-youngest player to score in the Champions League behind Ansu Fati (both Lamine Yamal and George Ilenikhena have since surpassed him). Despite registering just 3 goal contributions in 31 first-team appearances, Nusa’s performances attracted the attention of Ståle Solbakken, who gave him his Norway debut on 7 September 2023: Nusa quickly repaid his trust with a goal and an assist in a friendly vs. Jordan before grabbing a brace of assists vs. Georgia and an assist vs. Cyprus in his first two competitive matches. It wasn’t long before the Premier League came calling, with Brentford preparing to launch a €33m plus €4m bid in January 2024, only to pull out due to underlying medical issues with the player’s back and knees.

Although Nusa’s 2023/24 season was marred with injuries and a lack of productivity in front of goal (4 goals and 4 assists in 46 appearances), he nevertheless finished joint-third in Club Brugge’s squad for shots per 90 (2.9) and joint-first for possession won in the final third per 90 (0.9), while only Royal Antwerp’s Chidera Ejuke (4.0) completed more successful dribbles per 90 than Nusa (3.8) in the entire Belgian top-flight. It’s why RB Leipzig decided to sign Nusa to a five-year contract, paying €21 million plus €7 million for the teenager. Nusa seamlessly adjusted from Belgium to Germany with a goal contribution in each of his first three appearances, scoring on his debut – a 4-1 win vs. RW Essen in the DFB-Pokal – grabbing the winner vs. VfL Bochum within minutes of coming off the bench, and assisting Loïs Openda’s decisive goal to end Bayer Leverkusen’s 43-match domestic unbeaten run. He was back at it again in October, slicing through Heidenheim’s defense like butter and carving a through ball towards Openda, who cooly finished the sole goal of the match, whilst he also put the seal on a 4-2 victory against St. Pauli in the cup and grabbed a goal and an assist in their 4-3 loss to Hoffenheim on 23 November.

“Nusa started off as a pure No. 10 because Leipzig wanted him to provide exactly what Xavi Simons offers,” said German football consultant Adam Khan. “He’s mobile between the lines and quite athletic for a traditional central player, but Leipzig have recently recognised that his best qualities are as a true winger.”

“Leipzig would potentially fear that the left-sided pairing of David Raum and Nusa could be too offensive, but with Raum out injured, they have been more comfortable playing Nusa in a true winger role. Initially, Nusa was often only coming on late in fixtures, but since Xavi Simons got hurt on October 23, he has become a talisman in attack, and he’s probably been Leipzig’s most consistent and impressive attacking weapon since the start of November.”

Leipzig’s injury crisis has seen key figures like Simons, Raum, Xaver Schlager and Yussuf Poulsen miss significant periods, and it has also taken a toll on their form. After a run of five losses and a draw – the latest being a 5-1 home drubbing vs. Wolfsburg – Leipzig needed a win on Wednesday to save Marco Rose’s job. Once again, Nusa delivered the goods with a hat-trick of assists en route to a 3-0 win against Eintracht Frankfurt in the DFB-Pokal, whilst he also completed the most dribbles in Leipzig’s 2-0 victory at Holstein Kiel on Saturday.

It doesn’t get any easier for Rose’s side, who will host Aston Villa and Eintracht before closing out the year with a trip to Bayern Munich, but in Nusa, they have a rising star who looks set to play not just a vital role for Leipzig, but Norway as well. Having grabbed a brace vs. Slovenia and a goal and assist vs. Kazakhstan in their final two matches of 2024, Nusa is quickly emerging as a key figure in attack for Løvene, and alongside the likes of Erling Haaland, Martin Ødegaard, and Alexander Sørloth, he may just have what it takes to spearhead Norway to their first major tournament since 2000.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow all the action from the Bundesliga on FotMob – with in-depth stat coverage including xG, shot maps, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Valencia’s troubled season: Fear and loathing for Los Ches

Amid mismanagement from an uninterested Peter Lim and ongoing fan unrest, Valencia, one of Spain’s biggest and most storied clubs, face the very real threat of relegation come the end of the season.

By Alex Roberts

A lot has happened since the Singaporean businessman purchased the club back in 2014. From the disastrous appointment of friend and former Man United defender Gary Neville, to amassing a reported €400 million worth of debt, fans have had enough of the man they once hailed as their saviour.

The billionaire made unsuccessful bids for Liverpool and Atletico Madrid before ultimately settling on Valencia, becoming the club’s first foreign owner. Initially, he was celebrated, with thousands of fans taking to the streets to mark the purchase.

Over the first five years, despite fan frustrations regarding a few decisions, including the aforementioned appointment of Neville and Lim’s close relationship with super-agent Jorge Mendes, it wasn’t too bad.

Valencia were still a major European club, qualifying for the Champions League three times, as well as beating Ernesto Valverde’s Barcelona side 2-1 in the 2019 Copa de Rey final to secure their eighth title.

Now, yellow signs exclaiming “Peter Lim, go home” are commonplace, as are the protests. Every game, home or away, sees some sort of fan gathering, urging the incumbent owner to leave and never come back.

It’s gotten so bad, a Spanish couple were recently arrested while trying to leave Singapore after breaking country’s strict laws on public assembly having held stickers and signs outside of Lim’s house, protesting his ownership.

Manager Rubén Baraja was given a threadbare budget over the summer, only 30-year-old winger Luis Rioja came in for a fee, a relatively paltry €1.2 million, while the other seven incomings were either free agents, or loans. The kind of summer transfer window that would make UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves proud.

Goalkeeper and arguably their best player, Giorgi Mamardashvili, will depart for Liverpool at the end of the season after Arne Slot’s side purchased and subsequently loaned the Georgian back to Valencia in the summer.

Some teams are able to put whatever is happening in the background to one side, Valencia aren’t one of them. With any future investment looking unlikely, thing will get worse before they get better.

Since taking over in February 2023, Baraja has focused on regaining defensive stability at the club, defending in a 4-4-2 or 4-1-4-1/4-5-1. Last season it was a success, Valencia conceded the sixth fewest goals in LaLiga.

They remain relatively solid defensively this season, conceding 22 goals, the least among the bottom three, but the club’s struggles in front of goal are starting to take a serious toll. It’s not like they’re missing chances, Baraja’s side are simply not creating anything.

Ranked 18th in big chances created with just 20, as well as xG at 12.1 across their first 14 league games, they also sit second from bottom for touches in the opposition box, managing only 243.

Hansi Flick’s revitalised Barcelona were up first, and they faced an early scare when Hugo Duro powered in a header just before halftime to give Valencia a shock lead at the Mestalla.

Robert Lewandowski wasn’t too happy with that and the legendary Polish striker quickly took the game by the scruff of the neck. Ten minutes after the restart, Barca were 2-1 up, going on to secure all three points.

Valencia went over a month without a win, before finally securing their first victory against Girona in game week six thanks to an own goal from Juanpe and a stunning long-range effort from striker Dani Gómez.

After that came another five-game LaLiga winless streak, consisting of three draws, two defeats and only three goals scored.

In late November, a shock 4-2 over Real Betis in game week 14, gave Baraja’s side a reprieve, lifting them off the bottom of the table and into nineteenth, one point ahead of fellow strugglers Real Valladolid. Since then, they’ve won two games against lower league opposition in the Copa Del Rey. But they have also reverted to type in LaLiga, losing to Mallorca and Rayo Vallecano.

There is still hope for Valencia fans, however, the club is officially on the market, although the price remains a point of contention. Lim is reportedly asking for €350-400 million to relinquish his 91.5% stake in the club.

Lim’s limited investment has had an unintended yet positive side effect, reviving Valencia’s reliance on their renowned academy, which once produced talents like Juan Mata and David Silva, as they look to develop a new generation of stars.

Valencia have the second youngest squad in the Spanish top-flight with an average age of 24.1 years, just 0.4 more than Barcelona with the likes of defender Cristhian Mosquera and midfielder Javi Guerra leading the way. Hopefully Lim is able to sell the club before stripping them of their future by selling off these valuable assets.

It’s still early in the season and Los Che have time on their side. The next few months will be crucial in their fight to avoid relegation, and they can take solace in the fact that Lim won’t be around forever.

After a devastating year for both the club and the city of Valencia, brighter days are undoubtedly on the horizon.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from LaLiga on FotMob – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

FotMob Review: LA Galaxy are back on top in MLS

From being the second-worst team in their conference in 2023 and not making the playoffs, LA Galaxy went on to win the 2024 MLS Cup on Saturday night defeating New York Red Bulls 2-1 in the final at their home in Carson, California.

By James Nalton

It’s a turnaround built on shrewd work in the transfer market and the building of a team that works. This much was on show in the final itself for which the Galaxy were without their talisman Riqui Puig, through whom all of their football usually flows.

Puig picked up an ACL injury in the Western Conference final win against Seattle Sounders, and it immediately raised doubts as to the Galaxy’s ability to win the MLS Cup final without him, but their team have coped on the few previous occasions the Spanish midfield orchestrator has been missing.

As important as Puig is, they have difference-makers throughout, each performing on the back of and as part of a team unit.

The Galaxy didn’t leave it long to answer the question of how they would cope without Puig.

There is no replacement for Puig, but the player who came into the XI, Gastón Brugman, sent a perfectly timed pass through to Joseph Paintsil to open the scoring with just nine minutes played.

Four minutes later they added a second when Mark Delgado fed Dejan Joveljić who carried the ball forward and finished as he has done so well throughout the season, despite being off balance as he shot.

After scoring the Serbian attempted the classic Robbie Keane celebration in honour of the former Galaxy striker and three-time MLS Cup winner.

“I don’t want to sound arrogant but I knew I was going to score and do Robbie Keane’s celebration,” said Joveljić on Apple TV after the game. “It wasn’t that smooth but next time will be smoother!”

Brugman’s only other assist in 2024 came way back in March in the third game of the season against St. Louis City and the middle of his season was interrupted by injury, but this pass for Paintsil for the opener was that of a practised creative midfielder fully in their groove. The timing of the run from the Ghanaian matched the pass to perfection.

In those early stages of the game, the Red Bulls looked at a loss as to how to deal with the Galaxy attack.

The Red Bulls were out of sorts and lacked defensive organisation. This wasn’t helped by the news ahead of kick-off that dental defender Andrés Reyes was taken ill and had to be replaced at the last minute by Noah Eile.

The mistakes for the goals weren’t individual errors as such, even though man-for-man the Galaxy attackers should get the better of the Red Bulls’ defence, but had more to do with the defensive organisation required from the team as a whole to stop the likes of Paintsil, Joveljić, and Gabriel Pec.

The Red Bulls recovered and settled into the game. It took the concession of two goals before they were able to do so, but it was important for them and the spectacle as a whole that they eventually did.

Eile’s improvement epitomised this increased stability in the Red Bulls and they actually finished the game having had more possession than their opponents.

This was a reverse of the two teams’ usual styles as the Galaxy are normally the possession team while the Red Bulls like to soak up pressure and catch teams on the break or catch them out with high pressing.

Maybe this was part of the Galaxy’s game plan, but without Puig, they lack that world-class midfield controller and only dominated possession in one of the other five games he’s missed this season.

The Red Bulls moving Eile to left centre-back in a swap with Sean Nealis was another simple tweak that helped them improve. It was Nealis who scored the goal that got the Red Bulls back into the game in the first half with a composed finish following some chaos in the box following a corner kick.

Right until the end of the game, the Red Bulls looked like they had a chance to get back into it. Emil Forsberg missed a great opportunity to make it 2-2 after he set Lewis Morgan free down the right and eventually received a ball back from Elias Manoel but sent his shot wide.

The Galaxy held on and were deserved winners. Marco Reus came on with 15 minutes to help see the game out and add an MLS Cup to the two DFB Pokals he won with Borussia Dortmund.

By that time the game had been won by the contributions of the players mentioned earlier plus quality displays in defence from 23-year-old Colombian Carlos Garcés and the man to the right of him, steady 30-year-old Japanese right-back Miki Yamane.

Yamane also contributes in midfield up and down the pitch from his position on the right and is an underrated part of the Galaxy’s turnaround this season.

From the pressure applied by the supporters last season to the team-building of general manager Will Kuntz to sign the majority of the names mentioned in this article, the Galaxy have produced an almost perfect turnaround from 2023 to 2024 that saw them become one of the best teams in the regular season and then win the MLS Cup playoffs at the end of it.

This season was built up to be about the league’s latest headline club Inter Miami and the new global profile they’ve achieved on the back of signing Lionel Messi, but in the end, the final came down to a game between two original teams who were present in the first season of MLS back in 1996, and resulted in another trophy for the original MLS Galacticos.

(Cover Image from IMAGO)

You can follow every match from MLS live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage including shot maps, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: Spurs meet Chelsea in a London Derby

Tottenham’s inconsistency has left them with no win in their last three games across all competitions and Thursday’s defeat at Bournemouth has once again heaped pressure on the shoulders of manager Ange Postecoglou.

By Dan Tracey

There’s no such weight on the shoulders of Chelsea counterpart Enzo Maresca and after an emphatic victory at Southampton, on Wednesday, the Blues may just have been thrust into this season’s Premier League title race.

The Form Guide

Tottenham have won just two of their last six league matches and have picked up only seven points from the last 18 on offer. Due to that defeat at Bournemouth, they start the weekend lying tenth but could find themselves in the bottom half of the table before Sunday’s game begins.

As for opponents Chelsea, they make the short trip across the capital having not only won each of their last three league outings but also unbeaten in each of their last six – a run of form that sees them sit second in the table with a seven-point deficit between Liverpool and themselves (at the time of writing, before Saturday’s games).

Who Are The Key Players

If Tottenham have key players, they have struggled to unlock their talents over the course of the past seven days and although Dominic Solanke made his return against Bournemouth on Thursday, the club’s record signing will need to add to his current return of four league goals as soon as possible.

Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson have been the stand out men in Chelsea’s mammoth squad (although Christopher Nkunku is on a rich run of goalscoring form as well). The aforementioned Palmer and Jackson have scored 17 league goals between them this season and the former has also had time to make three league goals for the latter.

*Chelsea goals + assists, Premier League 2024/25*

Injury crisis in the Spurs defence

The Tottenham treatment room is looking rather busy at present and with Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero already absent, Ben Davies’ injury against Bournemouth means that Ange Postecoglou has just one senior centre back available for the visit of Chelsea on Sunday (Radu Drăgușin).

Chelsea have their own defensive injury issues with both Wesley Fofana and Reece James out until the end of the year at the earliest but with these two already being considered as long-term absentees, there are no new concerns to trouble manager Maresca.

Prediction

Although Tottenham are more than capable of turning it on against the teams that are perceived as the biggest outfits in the Premier League, their showing against Bournemouth on Thursday suggests that a good performance on Sunday is not as simple as flicking the switch back to on.

Especially as the visitors will be keen to continue their positive momentum. Last season’s clash in North London saw the first real cracks in Postecoglou’s methods, the same outcome on Sunday could turn those cracks into a chasm.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: Gunners set to face some familiar faces at the Cottage

Another weekend, another London derby – and one which at first glance seems routine enough, but actually might be another big test of Arsenal’s resolve and ability to fight their way back into Premier League title contention.

By Karl Matchett

With the gap at the top standing at seven points between themselves (and Chelsea) and leaders Liverpool, the Gunners have no room for dropping points and a trip to Fulham won’t be easy. The Gunners had won five in a row at Craven Cottage until last term, but almost exactly a year ago they were beaten 2-1 by Marco Silva’s side, who themselves are up to sixth in the table this term. With injury issues in defence for the visitors, the home team having a former Arsenal man as one of their form men this term and Mikel Arteta’s team managing only one away win from their last five and this has the hallmarks of a terribly tough encounter in the search for consistency.

Current form

Four wins from seven at home in the league shows Fulham are in decent shape, as does moving into the top six by beating Brighton in midweek. But the defeat against Wolves shows they are fallible, and their defensive record is far from solid. Arsenal are faring better at home than away, where they’ve won three of seven and only one in five, though that was last time on the road at West Ham. Beating Manchester United on Wednesday, thanks to set pieces once again, puts them back on track with three straight top-flight victories – but still plenty of ground to make up.

Team news

Tom Cairney is still out suspended for Fulham, but the two big injury absences are centre-back Joachim Andersen and midfielder Harrison Reed. Reiss Nelson’s own injury denies him being a sub option in a busy period for Fulham as he has been most of the season, though as he’s on loan from Arsenal he couldn’t have played this one anyway.

For the Gunners themselves, Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu are the ongoing absences at full-back and in the middle of the defence are two additional worries, with Gabriel Magalhaes and Riccardo Calafiori both missing the midweek win. If neither return, Jakub Kiwior will start in the middle.

Fulham’s most in-form ex-Gunner

Arsenal have talent all over the pitch but if Fulham are to do anything to halt them, it’s an ex-Gunner who will need to shine – and not Emile Smith Rowe either. Alex Iwobi netted twice in midweek and he’s created the second highest volume of chances for Fulham this season (26), the most big chances (5), has the highest xA (3.3) and is the club’s top league scorer (5). Whether he starts centrally or wide will dictate which of those traits he’s likely to add to, but on home soil the Cottagers will need him to be equal parts chance-creator and taker to register a shock result.

Prediction

Fulham 1 Arsenal 2. The home side will make it tough but Arsenal’s firepower will win out on the day by the odd goal.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every Premier League game with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: New York Red Bulls and LA Galaxy in MLS Cup showdown

Given their terrible form towards the end of the regular season, few could have foreseen the New York Red Bulls getting within one match of lifting their first-ever MLS Cup. The LA Galaxy, going for their first MLS title in a decade, will surely make the final hurdle the toughest for the Red Bulls.

By Neel Shelat

Youthful RBNY looking to create history

Weighted by minutes played, the New York Red Bulls have the youngest squad in Major League Soccer this season. Their midfield contingent is particularly youthful, as their starting lineup from the Conference final shows.

Their more experienced attack holds the key to their success, though. At 43.2%, RBNY have the lowest possession average in MLS this season. Their approach is very much centred around defending solidly with a back five and then sending the front three away on the counter. That has served them quite well in the playoffs, as they have scored eight goals and kept three clean sheets in five matches. At least one of their front three has been involved in creating or scoring all but two of those goals.

Will the Galaxy’s attack click without Puig?

After narrowly missing out on the top spot in the Western Conference, the LA Galaxy have been the best team in the playoffs by some margin. They put nine past the Colorado Rapids in two matches to progress from the first round and hit Minnesota United for six in the Conference semi-final before getting a late winner against the Seattle Sounders to reach the final.

Such results surely make them the overwhelming favourites, but there is one big caveat to note. Star midfielder Riqui Puig tore his ACL in the Conference final, though he still managed to play on and get the decisive assist. Indeed, his fantastic and creative forward passing has been the key driving force behind the Galaxy’s thrilling attack.

As the top scorers in the league this season, the Galaxy will hope they have enough to make do without the former Barcelona midfielder. Each of their front three have over 20 goal involvements to their name this year, so they still have more than enough attacking threat to blow any defence apart. So, Greg Vanney will only really have to concern himself with supplying them appropriately.

Summer signing Marco Reus may well be the solution. The Borussia Dortmund legend started the last two playoff matches but had to operate in a slightly unfamiliar role on the right of midfield to keep Puig in his natural area on the left. In the Spaniard’s absence, Reus could well replicate his work on the left.

Prediction

Both the New York Red Bulls and the LA Galaxy like to adopt a transitional attacking approach, albeit in quite different ways. While Sandro Schwarz’s side like to counterattack after defending deep, the Galaxy are happier to keep more of the ball, lure their opposition out and then quickly spring forward. These contrasting approaches could well result in a cagey affair on the big night unless we get some early fireworks.

Whichever way you look at it, the Galaxy have to be considered the favourites, but the Red Bulls’ playoff run shows that they can’t be entirely written off.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from MLS live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: Madrid look to bounce back at Girona

It has been a poor couple of weeks for Real Madrid after defeat in the Champions League and another midweek reversal last time out at Athletic Club.

By Karl Matchett

Now, Madrid’s third match in a run of five away fixtures across six games (in all competitions) sees them head to Girona, stars of LaLiga last term but struggling to find the same verve this time around. Even with a tremendous campaign in 2023/24, the side who finished third were 14 points off champions Los Blancos – and Carlo Ancelotti’s side beat them by an aggregate scoreline of 7-0 across their two league meetings. Real might be stuttering, but they have certainly had Girona’s number so far.

This season

Look at Girona’s league form and it looks half-decent: four unbeaten, up to eighth, and only four points separating them from Villarreal in fifth. European football for next season is still very much on the cards, if they can find some consistency once more.

But, that’s the problem: they haven’t, and league fixtures aren’t the only ones they play. Girona have actually gone three without a win in all competitions following a cup shootout defeat to Logrones, a fourth-tier side. It’s two wins in six and six wins in 18, going back further. Stringing results together is tough at the top for those unused to it.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, had a very consistent start – seven victories in nine to start 2024/25 – but four defeats and three wins in their last seven paints a different recent picture. Injuries have hurt them, yes, but tactically and physically they’ve been dominated by Barcelona, Milan, Liverpool and now Athletic of late.

Team news

Yangel Herrera and Viktor Tsyhankov are the two big misses for Girona, but Yáser Asprilla is also a big miss if he doesn’t recover in time. Ladislav Krejčí is back though and should play right side of the back three.

Ancelotti may juggle his pack a little but options are hampered by defensive absences, with David Alaba, Éder Militão and Dani Carvajal all sidelined for the long haul. Eduardo Camavinga and Vinícius Júnior are also out with injuries.

Rodrygo set to step up

Real Madrid are second, four points off the top and with a game in hand – but to really pressurise Barcelona they have to start winning matches more often. With Vini Jr. out and Kylian Mbappé somewhat of a shadow of himself at present, Rodrygo must step up and show his immense worth. He averages just under a shot on target per 90 (0.9) but has created 22 chances this term in LaLiga – third in the squad behind Vinícius and Luka Modrić. That creativity plus his ball carrying – 2.1 successful dribbles per 90 is fewer than Vini’s, but his 53% success rate is notably higher – makes him Madrid’s main outlet and chief creator in the final third. Given he ranks above 93% of Europe in chance creating forwards, that must come to the fore here.

Prediction

An away win would get Madrid rolling once more, though perhaps not without Girona causing some concerns across the 90 minutes. Therefore, we’ll go with Girona 1 Real Madrid 3.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from LaLiga with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: Man City out to make up for lost time at Crystal Palace

Pep Guardiola’s defending champions will be aiming to continue their recovery as they travel to face Oliver Glasner’s Eagles in South London.

By Ian King

Expect goals

Whether recent or ancient, history tells us that Crystal Palace vs Manchester City is a match that usually produces goals. The last four alone produced 17. It may surprise some to learn that these two clubs didn’t meet in the league until 1965. Their second of their only two meetings prior to this in the FA Cup came in January 1926 at Maine Road, when City beat Palace 11-4 as part of a run to the final which saw them score 31 goals in six games (including Manchester United 3-0 in the semi-final).

Recovery mode

Both teams will be in a considerably brighter frame of mind than they would have been had this match been played seven days earlier. The midweek matches brought welcome wins for both, Palace narrowly away to Ipswich and City convincingly at home against Nottingham Forest. The question facing both sets of players is that of whether these performances represent corners being turned or false dawns.

Key players

Kevin De Bruyne’s assured performance against Forest went a long way towards answering those who had questioned whether the Manchester City captain was part of a team that is ‘too old’. Another returnee from injury, Jérémy Doku, also scored against Forest after having been out since the match against Sporting in the Champions League last month.

Palace could do with a big performance from Jean-Philippe Mateta. They’re the lowest goalscorers in the Premier League at the moment with just twelve from their fourteen games so far, and he’s scored a third of them. And despite their clean sheet on Wednesday night, Palace will have seen that City remain potentially defensively vulnerable.

Team News

Players are starting to return for Manchester City, but that doesn’t mean that others aren’t still falling by the wayside. Nathan Aké sustained a hamstring injury in the closing stages of the midweek win over Forest and will join Rodri, Oscar Bobb, Mateo Kovačić and John Stones on the treatment table. In addition to this, Manuel Akanji was withdrawn at half-time, while Phil Foden has had bronchitis and it’s doubtful that he will be available.

Chadi Riad, Adam Wharton and Matheus França are all missing for Crystal Palace, but beyond that the news for them isn’t actually too bad. Cheick Doucouré was withdrawn at half-time during their win at Ipswich, but this has now been confirmed as precautionary on account of a booking that he’d picked up. Elsewhere, Dalchi Kamada returns following a three match suspension.

Prediction

Manchester City’s midweek win was in sharp progress to their prior recent performances, but was that run the blip or was it Wednesday night’s result? Kevin De Bruyne rumbling back to form is an ominous sign for the entire rest of the Premier League. More will likely follow. A win is a win for Crystal Palace at the moment, but they weren’t inspiring at Ipswich and City may find this a comfortable way to regain some more of their recently jettisoned poise. Therefore, let’s go for Crystal Palace 1-3 Manchester City.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Dec

2024

Preview: Barcelona visit the happy hunting ground that is Real Betis

Barcelona take on Real Betis on Saturday in a game that could prove huge in their hunt for the title in LaLiga this season.

By Kaustubh Pandey

Hansi Flick‘s side find themselves four points clear at the top of the table and have played a game more but the gap could have been much less comfortable, if Real Madrid hadn’t stumbled against Athletic Club on Wednesday.

At the same time, the Catalan giants have themselves had a bit of a stumble in recent weeks.

Barcelona have won only one game out of their last four league games. They did recover from last weekend’s home defeat to Las Palmas by routing Mallorca 5-1 in midweek. But one thing is certain; there are some chinks in the armour of the Blaugrana.

Struggling Betis look for hope

Manuel Pellegrini‘s Real Betis had started off the season in a fine fashion but they have faded away over the last couple of months.

They haven’t won a single league game since beating Atlético Madrid towards the end of October and the last three have yielded only a single point. That run has included a 4-2 loss to struggling Valencia.

Pellegrini’s Los Beticos will be hoping to expose Barcelona’s recent problems, as they look to lift themselves in the top half of the table. They could be helped by their good home record, having lost just once at the Benito Villamarín.

Goalscoring a problem for Betis

Goalscoring has been an issue for Pellegrini’s side in recent weeks, with Betis having underperformed on their Expected Goals metric by about six.

They’ve created an xG of 22.4 but have scored 16 times only. On top of that, they have missed the joint second-highest number of big chances this season – behind only Barcelona. The only difference in this context is that the Catalans create a lot of chances and them missing 40 big chances doesn’t matter as much to them.

Vitor Roque, who is on loan from Barcelona, will surely have something to say in this department on Saturday, having already revealed that he would like to score against his parent club.

Barcelona’s high risk make or break approach

Flick’s insistence on playing a risky yet effective high defensive line has worked out well for Barcelona so far – generally speaking. It helped them register wins over Real Madrid and Bayern Munich but at the same time, there are some concerning underlying numbers.

They have conceded the ninth-highest xG in LaLiga and a lot of it is because of how high they operate.

Whether that approach is sustainable or not remains to be seen in the longer term but Pellegrini’s side will count on those weaknesses tomorrow.

Injury problems for both Betis and Barcelona

Johnny Cardoso, Nobel Mendy, Héctor Bellerín, Marc Roca, William Carvalho and Isco are on the sidelines for Los Verdiblancos.

For Barcelona, Ansu Fati, Andreas Christensen, Marc Bernal, Marc-André ter Stegen, Ronald Araújo will remain out. Robert Lewandowski will come back into the side after being rested in mid-week.

Prediction

Barcelona should pick up a win in this one, with the Catalan giants having not lost at the Villamarín since 2008.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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Dec

2024

Preview: Man United and Nottingham Forest both need a response at Old Trafford

Manchester United will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to Arsenal as they take on Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

By Zach Lowy

Can United Keep Up Their Impressive Home Form?

Slowly but surely, Old Trafford is becoming a fortress again for Manchester United. With the exception of a 1-1 draw vs. Chelsea, Manchester United have won each of their last six home matches. After kicking off the Rúben Amorim era with a 1-1 draw at Ipswich, United prevailed with a comeback home win vs. Bodø/Glimt in the UEFA Europa League before demolishing Everton 4-0 at the Theatre of Dreams. They were smacked with a cruel dose of reality by Arsenal on Wednesday, being undone by second-half goals from defenders Jurriën Timber and William Saliba and succumbing to a 2-0 defeat – their first loss since 27 October.

United have won 11 of their last 12 meetings vs. Nottingham Forest, but their most recent Premier League meeting in December 2023, would go the way of the Tricky Trees, with Morgan Gibbs-White restoring Forest’s lead in the 82nd minute to secure a late victory. But while United enter the match as the overwhelming favourites, they face a tall task as they take on a Nottingham Forest side that currently sits three points and six places above them.

Can Wood Deliver the Goods?

After ending a 23-year top-flight absence under Steve Cooper, Nottingham Forest narrowly avoided relegation by four points and six points in their first two campaigns back in the Premier League. Today, however, they find themselves in seventh place after winning six of their first 14 league matches. Six years after leading Wolves to a seventh-place finish and their first European qualification in four decades, Nuno Espírito Santo has Forest fans dreaming of a return to continental competition after three decades away.

Having lost three of their last four matches – conceding three goals in each of those defeats – Forest are in need of a response following, particularly after the 3-0 set-back at Manchester City in the week. If they are to pull off their first away win since 25 October, they’ll need Chris Wood to deliver. The 32-year-old New Zealand international is in the best form of his career, scoring nine of Forest’s 16 goals, including the winning penalty in their 1-0 victory against Ipswich on 30 November. Only Mohamed Salah (13) and Erling Haaland (12) have scored more goals than Wood – we’re backing him to come up clutch against United.

Amorim to Change Things Up in Attack

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s usually the case, but not iif you’re Rúben Amorim – after demolishing Everton 4-0 thanks to braces from Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee as well as a brace of assists from Amad Diallo, United’s new Portuguese technician dropped all three of them for their trip to Arsenal, a decision which proved costly and resulted in a stale attacking display in North London. We’re expecting Diallo, Zirkzee, Rashford and Lisandro Martínez to return to the side as United look to get back to winning ways ahead of a busy week that will see them travel to Viktoria Plzeň in the UEFA Europa League, Manchester City in the Premier League, and Tottenham Hotspur in the EFL Cup. All signs point to this reinforced attacking firepower proving vital for United as they look to continue their impressive record vs. Forest.

Prediction

United are strong at home while Forest need a pick-me-up, so perhaps a score draw is on the cards?

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.