Page 9 – The Pulse of Football

Nov

2025

The underlying numbers are turning for Thomas Frank’s stuttering Spurs

When Thomas Frank was hired as Tottenham Hotspur manager, his challenge was pretty straightforward.

Following Ange Postecoglou’s disastrous second season in charge, the bar for Frank was low. The main objectives for the former Brentford boss were the following; Improve on the team’s 17th place finish from last season and work on their defensive deficiencies. For context, they had the fourth worst defensive record in the Premier League last season when looking at Expected Goals Against.

A bright start for Frank’s Tottenham quickly fizzled out. Despite being fifth in the Premier League table, Spurs were booed off on Saturday evening following a 1-0 loss to Chelsea.

Speaking afterwards, the Danish tactician sympathised with the fans, saying: “We all sense the frustration and the emotions. That is part of football.

“It is extremely painful and of course that is part of the job to face you guys now and answer the very good questions when you just are burning inside. And you like to find solutions, watch the game back and see what went wrong, but I think it’s about trying to stay calm. In general, I think Chelsea were good and we were definitely second best.

“We performed badly. I think we lacked energy and intensity and that freshness, we didn’t have. Then I think the high pressure they came with, I don’t think we solved it well enough even though we worked on it, so that we need to keep working on. I think our high pressure, we lacked a little bit in the beginning until we got on top of it and then they went up 1-0 and we are chasing. Then it’s a bad circle where we are chasing, lacking intensity and energy and bad decisions.”

Tottenham had started well. They romped to a 3-0 win over Burnley on matchday one and then beat Manchester City in the Premier League. Spurs had three wins, a draw from their opening five in the Premier League. They also kicked off their Champions League campaign with a win over Villarreal.

Things have gone awry since then though. Frank’s side have won just three of their last 10 and have three defeats in their last five. During this run, they have been held to draws in Europe by Bodø/Glimt and Monaco. A 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United also brought their Carabao Cup run to a premature end.

If performances were positive, results could be overlooked. But performances have been just as dire as the results.

In a home game against Chelsea, a match in which a win would’ve moved them up into second, Spurs racked up an xG of just 0.10 from their three shots. By comparison, the visitors ran riot in arguably the most one-sided 1-0 win of recent memory. Enzo Maresca’s side finished with an xG of 3.68. With better finishing, 6-0 would not have flattered the Blues.

While the headline numbers look ok, there are issues with Spurs right now. Yes, only Arsenal (seven) and Newcastle (five) have kept more clean sheets than Tottenham (four) and, yes, Frank’s side rank fifth for goals (1.7), the underlying numbers aren’t as positive.

They rank 15th for Expected Goals with 10.1. Last season, they ranked ninth for this metric. They’re 15th for shots, 12th for big chances and sixth for possession. They’re having a lot of the ball but doing nothing with it. In terms of xG Conceded, they rank sixth, so there’s a slight improvement on last season but only Everton, West Ham, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and Burnley have given up higher value chances and three of those make up the bottom four.

Overall, things are probably just as worrying as they were under their former manager.

They’re not as much of a threat as they were under Postecoglou and they’re only marginally better defensively. It’s why they’re down to 15th when looking at the Expected Points table, just two points outside of the relegation zone.

Spurs have no threat in the final third. Micky Van de Ven is the club’s joint-top scorer in the Premier League with three while summer signings Xavi Simons and Randal Kolo Muani have struggled to make an impression at all. Mohammed Kudus has four assists, though two of those arrived in the season opener against Burnley. Richarlison (three) is the only forward with more than one goal this term.

It is unlikely Tottenham do anything drastic in the near future but they are up against Copenhagen, Manchester United, Arsenal and PSG in their next four. If this winless run extends to six during this period, and performances remain the same, there’s going to be an uncomfortable conversation to be had, especially if fans turn on the manager during this period.

After heavy investment in the summer, people expected performances to be better. If Frank can’t get a tune out of this talented squad, someone else might be able to.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Spurs looking for home comforts against Danish champions

Tottenham host FC København at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Tuesday evening as Thomas Frank’s side look to continue their unbeaten start in the Champions League.

By Matt Smith

København are winless in the competition so far, and this is the first time these two sides have met before, with Frank facing a side from his home country.

The last time Frank faced a Danish opponent was back in March 2016, 3-1 defeat while in charge of København’s city rivals Brøndby.

Team news

Frank has confirmed that Lucas Bergvall will be unavailable for this one after getting a concussion against Chelsea last time out. Djed Spence and Mohammed Kudus have picked up knocks, but they should be available for this one. Other than that, there should be no fresh injury concerns for the home side.

København have a host of injury problems heading into this game. Thomas Delaney, Oliver Højer, Magnus Mattsson, Rodrigo Huescas and Birger Meling are all on the treatment table for the Danish side. Marcos López was substituted last time out due to injury, so there’s a chance he’s unavailable for this one too.

Is the table telling a lie on Tottenham?

Spurs currently sit in fifth position in the Premier League table, but their performances have been far from convincing so far this season. Frank’s side have created just 10.1 xG in the Premier League this term, ranking them 15th in the table, while they’ve also conceded 14.6 xG, the fifth highest.

Despite conceding that, they’ve actually conceded just eight goals, while they’ve found the back of the net on 17 occasions, despite their 10.1 xG. That suggests Spurs are perhaps getting a little lucky and falling on the right side of variance in games, with the data hinting that they’ve not been as good as their results look on paper.

København need to show more

It’s been a fairly disappointing campaign by København’s standards. They won the league’s Championship playoffs last season, but they currently find themselves sitting in fourth position in the Superliga.

They’ve looked strong going forward, enjoying the most possession in the league while scoring 29 goals, but they’ve looked leaky at the back. Brøndby, FC Midtjylland, and AGF, are in a three-way race for the title as it stands, with the distraction of the Champions League clearly not helping København.

Moukoko finally finding form

Youssoufa Moukoko was widely regarded as one of the most exciting young talents in world football when he broke through at Borussia Dortmund, but it’s not quite worked out for him so far. He made the move to København earlier this year, and after a slow start, he might be finally starting to build some confidence.

Moukoko has struck four times in his last four games, and he could be one to watch in this game, as he’s expected to play from the start.

Prediction

We’re not expecting a thriller in terms of goals, but Tottenham should have a little too much quality for København. We’re going for a 2-0 home win.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Xabi Alonso’s Los Blancos on revenge mission to Anfield

Liverpool host Real Madrid in a high-octane Champions League clash on Tuesday night.

By Filip Mishov

The Reds ease their crisis with the in-form Spaniards coming next

Liverpool’s win against Aston Villa relieved some pressure on Arne Slot, as the reigning champions ended their four-match losing run in the Premier League ahead of an important week with a couple of blockbuster matches before November’s international break. Even though the Reds did not really shine at Anfield, with the Villans enjoying a lot of possession (47%) or the most by any opponent over their past five matches, it was still an encouraging performance and much-needed confidence booster in the build-up to Real Madrid’s visit.

The leaders of LaLiga travel to Merseyside full of confidence after Xabi Alonso‘s in-form squad saw off Valencia at the Bernabéu over the weekend and in the aftermath of that Clásico win over Barcelona. Also, the 15-time European champions are one of only five clubs with a flawless record in the Champions League so far and have lost only once this season across all competitions, recording 13 wins in the process.

However, the Spanish coach did not enjoy his Anfield homecoming last season, as the popular Xabi was on the losing side with Bayer Leverkusen, and additionally, Real Madrid were also defeated without scoring in last year’s league phase, which speaks volumes about Anfield evolving into a different beast on big European nights.

Key players

Ryan Gravenberch started and starred in the victory against Villa after the tenacious midfielder recovered from injury. The Dutch international was instrumental in the middle of the pitch, both in protecting the defence and in the build-up play, with the 23-year-old capping off his Player of the Match performance with a goal, earning him a FotMob rating of 8.5. Also, it is not a coincidence that the Reds’ three clean sheets this season have all come with Gravenberch in their starting XI.

Another unsung hero is shining brightly in Madrid, as Alvaro Carreras scored his debut goal over the weekend with a scorcher from the edge of the box, and the Spaniard’s stock is rising with each passing week. The tireless full-back has played more minutes than any other outfield player for Madrid during this campaign, starting all but one match and quickly establishing himself as one of the first names on the team sheet. With the former Manchester United left-back being in impressive form and averaging a FotMob rating of 7.52 in LaLiga, a debut call-up to the national team is a matter of when and not if, but first, the 22-year-old awaits his most difficult test to date: Man marking Mohamed Salah.

Team news

Arne Slot welcomed Curtis Jones back to first-team training, but Alexander Isak missed out and the most expensive signing in Liverpool’s history remains on the sidelines, with Alisson Becker and Jeremie Frimpong also out.

Arda Güler came off at half-time against Valencia as a precaution, but made the trip to England, unlike Franco Mastantuono who is not part of the travelling squad. The captain, Daniel Carvajal is set to be out for a number of weeks, which opens the door for Trent Alexander-Arnold to get some minutes on his Anfield homecoming, while Antonio Rüdiger and David Alaba are on the sidelines.

Prediction

Undoubtedly, the momentum is on Real Madrid’s side and with Xabi Alonso being a quick learner who boasts the free-firing Kylian Mbappé in the squad, I expect the visitors to come out victorious on Merseyside.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Arsenal take their defensive record to Prague

Mikel Arteta’s Premier League leaders are in Czechia to face Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Tuesday.

By Graham Ruthven

Mismatch

You have to scroll through a lot of the current Champions League standings to get to Slavia Prague from Arsenal. Indeed, 24 places separate the two sides ahead of Tuesday’s meeting.

Arsenal’s perfect start to the continental campaign has marked them out as one of Europe’s strongest teams right now while Slavia have just two points from their opening three fixtures.

The omens are good for the Gunners ahead of Tuesday’s match. Arsenal have won each of their last seven League Phase matches and have never lost to Czech opposition in a UEFA competition.

These two teams are fighting for different things this season. While Arsenal want to win the Champions League for the first time in their history, Slavia Prague are merely targeting a place in the knockout rounds.

A Slavia win would be among the biggest shocks produced in this season’s Champions League. Mikel Arteta’s team are firm favourites.

Key players

Arteta could rotate his lineup ahead of a potentially tricky trip to Sunderland in the Premier League this weekend, making it challenging to predict how Arsenal will shape up in Prague on Tuesday.

Bukayo Saka is expected to start on the right wing. The English winger remains the Gunners’ most reliable creative presence, averaging 0.9 shots on target per 90 minutes this season.

Christian Nørgaard could be in line to start in the Champions League for the first time with the Danish midfielder a potential replacement for Martin Zubimendi who suffered an injury against Burnley.

At the back, Piero Hincapié might be given the nod to start in central defence after overcoming an injury which impacted his first two months as an Arsenal player after joining from Bayer Leverkusen.

Slavia Prague have kept five clean sheets in their last five games in all competitions and so Arsenal could find the Czech opponents difficult to break down.

A back three of Jan Bořil, Tomáš Vlček and David Zima will aim to limit Arsenal’s scoring opportunities with goalkeeper Jakub Markovič the last line of defence. Slavia must be sharp.

Youssoupha Mbodji bagged a brace against Bodø/Glimt earlier in the competition and could be a threat down the left side for Slavia on Tuesday night.

Team news

Saturday’s comfortable 2-0 win over Burnley came at a cost as Viktor Gyökeres and Zubimendi both sustained injuries, although the extent of their knocks are not fully known yet.

Gabriel Martinelli is also expected to sit out the trip to Czechia with Martin Ødegaard, Noni Madueke, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus all currently sidelined for the North London club.

Slavia Prague will be without a number of players for the visit of the Premier League leaders, limiting Jindřich Trpišovský’s options.

Ivan Schranz, Filip Horsky, Petr Ševčík, Dominik Javorček, Tomáš Holeš, Igoh Ogbu and Jan Bořil (unspecified) are all sidelined and will be unavailable to face Arsenal.

Prediction

The Gunners don’t often come up against a side with a defensive record similar to theirs, but as their results have shown in the Champions League, perhaps the gulf between the Czech 1. Liga leaders and the Premier League leaders will be evident: Slavia Prague 0-2 Arsenal.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Erling Haaland is producing numbers beyond all expectations

Erling Haaland must’ve been given a hard reset during the summer.

By Sam McGuire

The two-time Golden Boot winner finished last season with just the 22 Premier League goals. By his standards, he had a bit of a down year. He missed out on a third successive Golden Boot, losing out to Mohamed Salah with the Liverpool striker netting 29 as the Reds clinched the title.

Haaland posted career-low numbers last season at the Etihad. His career-low numbers would be career-high numbers for 99% of the other forwards in the Premier League. But when you’re a goal machine like the City No. 9 is, you are held to different standards.

*Haaland’s player traits comparison (vs. strikers in top five leagues)*

Some pondered whether or not the 25-year-old had been figured out. Others wondered if his injury issues had finally caught up to him. The Norway international had a lot of ankle worries over the previous two campaigns. He’d also played a lot of football from a young age, and at a high level. Sometimes, it all just gets a bit too much for the human body.

The former BVB forward isn’t human though. He’s a machine. Haaland, jokingly, confirmed this over the weekend by celebrating his opener against Bournemouth with a robot celebration. He then took to social media afterwards, captioning the photo of his celebration with: “Guess I couldn’t hide it any longer…”

Haaland has bounced back from his disappointing 2024/25 campaign by posting career-best numbers for Pep Guardiola’s side. Yes, he’s better than ever before. Better than the season he scored a Premier League record 36 goals.

It shows his mental resilience to be registering the best numbers of his Manchester City spell, one season after posting the worst. Across the Premier League and Champions League, Haaland has been responsible for 65% of the goals scored by the Citizens.

He has a Non-Penalty Expected Goals per 90 average of 1.07 and his NPxG+xA average is 1.2 per 90. His previous best for City was the 2022/23 campaign when he finished with 0.96. Now, the sample size isn’t the largest but we are almost a third of the way into the season. This isn’t just a purple patch.

*Haaland’s shooting numbers per 90, Premier League 2025/26*

Haaland’s entire game appears to have been slightly tweaked. For example, he’s averaging 4.5 shots on a per 90 basis, the highest of his career. He’s also hitting the target with a career-high 58%. His shots are, on average, closer to the goal than ever before too. The focus appears to be firmly fixed on ensuring he’s in high value situations. It’s why he’s now attempting fewer passes on a per 90 basis than ever before and he’s also creating fewer chances than he ever has during his time at the Etihad.

This isn’t a player wasting time on anything other than putting the ball into the back of the net.

Haaland blanked against Aston Villa last weekend, a game City lost 1-0, and it’s something he’s not forgotten about, despite his goalscoring exploits this season.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the win over Bournemouth, he said: “I didn’t score last game. I try to help the team to win – that’s my goal. Even by scoring, helping or winning duels, it doesn’t matter as long as we are winning games. I want to help the team become a better football team, that’s my job.”

Perhaps the change in personnel for City has helped free Haaland once again. Jérémy Doku is in the form of his life and looks dangerous every single time he’s in possession while the addition of Rayan Cherki this summer adds an element of unpredictability to the XI. The Frenchman has three assists and a goal in his last two starts. He assisted both of the Haaland goals against the Cherries on Sunday with one touch passes.

Whereas they’d previously been accused of trying to walk the ball into the net, Cherki takes risks and this gets Haaland into possession a lot quicker. It makes him an even greater threat and it’s possibly why he’s on this current goalscoring run of form.

*Haaland’s shot map, Premier League 2025/26*

After the game, his manager likened him to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Guardiola said: “The numbers from Cristiano and Messi have been for 15 years, Messi is still scoring two, three goals every game and Cristiano in Saudi Arabia, the same. This is that level.

“The first goal, the way he shoots the ball, going down on the grass saying, ‘I am going to score this’. I have said many times, he is incredibly coachable and I am tough with him sometimes. I always try to be open-minded with him and there are players who say, ‘what are you talking about?’ He is completely down to earth, he wants to do it and he lives for the goals. Without him, it would be tough to be honest.”

At his current rate, Haaland is on course to finish the season with 52 Premier League goals. He’ll slow down, he has to, but the record he set is in danger of being broken. The scary thing is everything seems sustainable right now. His Non-Penalty xG rate would see him finish on 41 in the Premier League – if he played every game. His numbers are extraordinary.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Barcelona look to get back on track vs. Elche

Barcelona will be hoping to turn their form back around after a rocky spell over the last few weeks as they host Elche at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

By Matt Smith

Hansi Flick’s side enjoyed a strong start to the season, but two defeats in their previous three games have seen them fall slightly behind in the title race. Elche will be looking to rock the boat even further, as they face the defending champions for the first time in over two years. The two sides last met during the 2022/2023 season, where Barcelona did the double over Elche.

Team news

Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo could both return to the squad this weekend after their recent injury troubles. Barcelona will, however, be without Gavi, Marc-André ter Stegen, Andreas Christensen, Raphinha and Pedri for this one.

Elche could have a fully fit squad for this one, which is a huge boost considering the task at hand, facing the champions away from home.

Barcelona looking shaky at the back

Barcelona are certainly having no issues going forward, especially after their 6-1 victory against Olympiacos in the Champions League last week, but Flick’s side are starting to leak goals at the other end. They’re averaging 1.2 goals conceded per game so far this season in LaLiga.

Barcelona have also conceded a whopping 14.6 xG, with only eight sides conceding more in the league this term. The Catalan giants are heavily relying on outscoring the opposition, and Flick needs to find a way to tighten them up at the back.

Elche’s low block causing problems

Averaging just 2.9 possessions won in the final third per game this season, Elche have been sitting back and trying to hit teams on the counter-attack, and it’s worked well for them so far. They’ve conceded just one goal per game this season, with only Deportivo Alavés, Villarreal, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid managing fewer.

Elche were promoted from LaLiga 2 last season, and it’s been an impressive start to life back in the top tier. They currently sit in eighth position in LaLiga, and they’ve only lost twice, with their defensive style making them difficult to beat this term.

Lamine Yamal flourishing despite injury

Lamine Yamal is currently carrying an injury, but he’s playing through the pain and remains one of Barcelona’s key players. The Spanish youngster has provided eight goals and assists combined in as many games, and boasts the highest average FotMob rating in the Barca squad. He’ll be the player Elche will be worrying about ahead of this one.

For an 18-year-old player to be such an important cog in a side is almost unheard of, but it’s testament to his development that he’s become one of the best players in the world. Flick will be desperately hoping his injury doesn’t cause him a long-term issue, and he’s expected to be involved this weekend.

Prediction

Despite Barcelona having a small blip in recent weeks, many will still be expecting them to secure three points against Elche. We’re going for a 3-1 win for Flick’s side.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: High-flying Cherries head to Man City

Pep Guardiola’s inconsistent, eighth placed Man City host Andoni Iraola’s high-flying, second placed Bournemouth at the Etihad on Saturday. That Premier League, eh?

By Alex Roberts

City found out what happens when Erling Haaland doesn’t turn up in their 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa in the previous round of fixtures. Without the big Norwegian scoring, they truly looked impotent.

As for Bournemouth, everything they touch is turning to gold, even Marcus Tavernier is scoring directly from corners, and Eli Junior Kroupi looks like a Kylian Mbappé regen, bagging three goals in two league games.

No Haaland, big problem?

It’s starting to feel like ‘get the ball to Haaland’ is Guardiola’s only plan at the moment, though in his defence, it’s not necessarily a bad one. Remarkably, no other Man City player has scored more than a single Premier League goal so far this season.

Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres had Haaland’s number at Villa Park, with the striker having 17 touches, the fewest of any outfield player. He did have a 100% pass success rate, however, but there were only seven of them.

Thankfully for Guardiola and City, Haaland is arguably the best at putting the ball in the back of the net in the world, you could probably count on one hand how many times he’s gone without a goal across two games. It’s not sustainable though, and if they want to be winning the big trophies again, they’ll need other players to start chipping in.

He was rested for the League Cup win over Swansea over in midweek after appearing to be in some discomfort due to a nasty collision with the post at Villa Park, but he will doubtless be doing everything he can to be back for this one.

Milos Kerkez has been long forgotten

Bournemouth’s defensive rebuild needs to go down in the history books. After losing Dean Huijsen, Ilya Zabarnyi, and Kerkez, many had written them off, but if anything, they’re better than they were last season.

Perhaps the best of the replacement signings has been Adrien Truffert. The French wing-back has taken to the Premier League like a duck to water, already creating six chances, having nine successful dribbles, and ten successful crosses.

If Kerkez is worth the £40 million Liverpool spent on him, Truffet may be worth double that. He never stops, not only is he an attacking threat, but his defensive numbers also illustrate just how good his is all over the left flank. Truffet has made 44 recoveries, eight interceptions, and won 45 duels.

We look forward to seeing who Bournemouth replace him with next summer…

Team news

The only player that Guardiola will DEFINETLY be without is Rodri. The Ballon d’Or winner is out with a muscle injury, although he is back in training. Mateo Kovačić and his fantastic new hair could come in and take his place, although Nico González has done a fine job.

As we mentioned, Haaland is hit or miss, but if he is available, he’ll start and probably score.

Iraola has an almost clean bill of health, with Enes Ünal still recovering from his ACL injury and Evanilson doubtful due to a calf issue.

Prediction

We predict another frustrating outing for Guardiola’s lads here; 2-1 to Bournemouth.

(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.

Nov

2025

Preview: Inter Miami head to Nashville for Game 2

Inter Miami will hope to advance to the next round of the MLS playoffs as they go into a second meeting with Nashville SC in the round-one, best-of-three series.

By James Nalton

Lionel Messi scored twice in a 3-1 win in game one, and has since made some rare appearances in the media ahead of the second game, raising a couple of key issues ahead of his team’s push to win the MLS Cup.

Familiar foes

This match will be Inter Miami’s eighth meeting with Nashville in the last two years.

The pair met last season in the Concacaf Champions Cup last 16, where Inter Miami won 5-3 on aggregate across the two legs.

Since then, they have played each other five times in MLS competition, including last week’s first round game, with Inter Miami winning on each occasion.

It will be the 18th meeting overall between the two teams, who joined the league as expansion franchises at the same time, in 2020.

The only teams Inter Miami have faced as often in their history are Atlanta United (19 times) and Orlando City (18).

If there is to be a 19th game between the pair, Nashville will need to win this match to force a game-three decider next week.

Messi says Miami needs the trophy

Messi will be hoping a decider is not necessary, and that Inter Miami’s path to the MLS Cup final is as smooth as possible.

The Argentine doesn’t often make media appearances, but did two short interviews this week, one with NBC and another with Fabrizio Romano, to promote the MLS playoffs.

Speaking to Romano, Messi was fairly candid about the team’s defensive problems and admitted that they need the MLS Cup for this season to be a success.

“I think the team had a moment where it knew how to compete at a high level, but it’s also true that we were very inconsistent, especially defensively, where we conceded a lot of goals,” Messi said.

“That’s something where we’re still lacking, if we really want to compete and be champions of MLS.

“I think it was a positive year, although we didn’t win any competitions, we still have the opportunity to do the best by winning MLS [Cup].”

Opposition watch: Nashville SC

Nashville were unable to get much going in game one, with Hany Mukhtar’s late, late strike serving merely as a consolation goal.

Returning home to Geodis Park for this second game, BJ Callaghan’s side will be hoping they can show more in attack against a Miami defence that even Messi admitted is a weak point.

In the final game of the regular season, Nashville created plenty of good opportunities against Inter Miami, racking up an xG of 2.98 and six big chances.

In Mukhtar and Sam Surridge, the team from Tennessee certainly have the attacking weapons to cause trouble for Miami and their inconsistent defence.

Prediction

This one could end all square with home advantage paying off in a penalty shootout for Nashville to take it to a game-three decider in Fort Lauderdale.

(Cover Image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Real Madrid head to Levante in midweek round

Real Madrid host Valencia at the Bernabéu this weekend as Xabi Alonso’s side hope to record a fourth straight win in LaLiga, going up against Carlos Corberán’s men, who are struggling near the foot of the table.

By Matt Smith

Valencia pulled off a shock 2-1 victory over Madrid when the two sides last met back in April, with Hugo Duro scoring a late winner to give his side the three points. Before that, Madrid had won the previous six meetings on their own turf in LaLiga.

Team news

Dani Carvajal is set for an extended spell on the treatment table after undergoing a knee operation, while Antonio Rüdiger is also out. David Alaba is a doubt for this one, but Trent Alexander-Arnold could return to action. Andriy Lunin will miss out after a recent sending off.

Mouctar Diakhaby, Largie Ramazani and Dimitri Foulquier will all miss out for Valencia, while Lucas Beltrán and Filip Ugrinic will undergo late fitness tests.

Real Madrid almost unstoppable

A small blip against Madrid rivals Atlético threatened to derail Alonso’s side’s season, but they bounced back with three wins on the bounce in LaLiga. They’ve won nine games out of 10 so far this season, sitting top of the table with a five-point cushion.

Madrid have been impressive at both ends this season, conceding just one goal per game while averaging 2.2 goals themselves. Barcelona are certainly on their tail in terms of attacking numbers, but Madrid have shown a ruthlessness in getting points on the board.

Valencia in trouble this season

Valencia have struggled immensely this season after Carlos Corberán started to turn things around last term. They sit in the relegation zone heading into the weekend’s fixtures, winning just twice in their opening 10 LaLiga matches.

A defeat could see them go bottom of the table if Girona and Real Oviedo both secure three points, and it doesn’t get much more difficult than facing Madrid away from home at the moment. On their travels, Valencia are yet to pick up a victory, drawing two and losing three games so far this campaign.

Mbappé in the form of his life

Kylian Mbappé has a point to prove this season, and has already racked up 17 goals in 16 games in all competitions. In LaLiga this campaign, only Mallorca have managed to prevent him from scoring, with the French attacker finding the back of the net at least once in every other game.

Mbappé has produced 13 goals and assists combined in LaLiga this term, four more than any other player. Madrid won’t have been happy with their 2024/2025 campaign, but with the help of Mbappé, they look a different animal this season.

Prediction

It would be silly not to predict a Real Madrid victory in this game, and that’s exactly what we’re going with. Valencia have struggled on the road and Madrid are on fire, so we’re going for a 3-0 home win.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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

Nov

2025

Preview: Under pressure Reds welcome Villa to Anfield

With the clubs level on points in the table, the stakes are high ahead of Saturday’s clash on Merseyside.

By Filip Mishov

Slot’s comments raise eyebrows and fuel Emery’s confidence

Liverpool’s sixth defeat over their past seven matches across all competitions resulted in EFL Cup elimination with the Eagles flying high at Anfield and into the quarter-finals, prompting the under-fire Arne Slot to publicly question the squad’s depth after spending over €480 million during the summer transfer window. With matches against Aston Villa, Real Madrid and Manchester City coming ahead of November’s international break, the champions’ crisis could unravel further if the Reds’ form does not improve quickly.

With the Villans free of midweek EFL Cup action following last month’s exit, Unai Emery enjoyed a full week to prepare his in-form squad for the visit to Anfield, which is an unfavourable ground for the Midlands club to go to, with their last win in Merseyside dating back to 2014. However, Aston Villa are on an impressive four-match winning streak and are undefeated in the Premier League since August, sparking confidence ahead of Saturday’s clash. Furthermore, the Lions’ aggressive defence ended Erling Haaland‘s 12-match scoring streak for club and country at Villa Park and kept City’s fruitful attack at bay last weekend, perfect preparation for facing Mohamed Salah this weekend, who scored in each of their previous two visits.

Key players

Cody Gakpo is the champions’ most dangerous and reliable attacker this season, and the Netherlands forward is the squad’s leading scorer (3), assist maker (2) and chance creator (19) in the Premier League, earning him an average FotMob rating of 7.52. The Dutchman’s performances have been a shining light in Liverpool’s underperforming forward line, and impressively, the 26-year-old’s output could have been even higher, if he was not the player who has hit the woodwork the most time (3) this campaign.

Matty Cash signed a new contract to extend his stay in Birmingham until 2029 at the least, following his Player of the Match performance against Manchester City, with the Polish right-back scoring a stunning winner and helping Emiliano Martínez record a clean sheet by keeping, both Savinho and Jérémy Doku quiet. The energetic defender is one of Villa’s top performers this season and the 28-year-old’s impressive attacking output (2 goals) makes him the squad’s joint-top scorer in the Premier League.

Team news

With Arne Slot deciding to field a heavily-rotated side against Crystal Palace during midweek, most of the first-team players were given a rest and are expected to return, with Ryan Gravenberch closing in on a return as well, while Curtis Jones and Alexander Isak are almost certain to join Alisson Becker and Jeremie Frimpong on the sidelines.

Emiliano Buendia recorded an assist for Villa’s winning goal against the Cityzens before coming off with a foot injury and the Argentine left Villa Park on crutches, which puts him out of contention, just like Harvey Elliott who is ineligible to face his parent club, and Youri Tielemans, who is also sidelined.

Prediction

The Reds’ form is going from bad to worse, but the champions are unbeaten against the Villans since 2020 across all competitions, and despite the visitors’ current winning streak, Anfield has been an unconquerable fortress for them, so perhaps a draw is the most realistic outcome.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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