Serie A

Apr

2018

Weekend Brief: Wenger visits Old Trafford, Serie A gets serious, Barcelona title looms

What to Watch for this Weekend

England | Wenger farewell tour visits Old Trafford. Manchester United’s home has been the scene for some of Arsene Wenger’s most memorable moments (the image of him being sent to the stands miming “Where do I go?” is certainly among them). Sunday will be his last visit as Arsenal manager and the first opportunity for Alexis to face his former club.

The EPL could confirm its first relegated club of the season on Saturday, with West Brom going down if they fail to beat Newcastle. At the opposite end of the table, Man City could reach 100 goals if they score two against West Ham on Sunday, becoming the fourth squad to do so in the modern Premier League. More milestones could be reached as Mo Salah’s next goal would set the record for most goals in a 38 game EPL season. Liverpool play Stoke City (who’ve allowed the most goals in the league) on Saturday.

Italy | Derby d’Italia has title implications. Napoli’s 90th minute winner away to Juventus last weekend has made Serie A the league to watch to the finish line. With Juve’s lead down to a single point, their trip to face Inter Milan in the Derby d’Italia on Saturday has new importance. A loss, and they could be down two points to Napoli with a trip to face Roma still to come. Napoli’s run-in is simpler, with their toughest test coming on Sunday away to Fiorentina, who have kept clean sheets in four of their last five home games (but conceded four to Lazio in the fifth).

[interaction id=”5ae2d9f4bb7c0ad023ac49b5″]

Spain | Barcelona could be crowned as champions. Barca need just a draw on Sunday against Deportivo La Coruña to confirm their cup and league double. It would mark their seventh title in ten seasons as they look to complete the first unbeaten season in La Liga history.

Scotland | A potentially historic Old Firm Derby. Celtic could clinch their seventh consecutive Scottish Premiership title at home to eternal rivals Rangers on Sunday. Manager Brendan Rodgers hasn’t lost in 10 meetings with Rangers.

You can get The Weekend Brief with more content in your inbox every Friday. Subscribe here!

Apr

2018

What to Watch For This Weekend

Sign up to receive the Weekend Brief in your inbox each Friday!

Football never sleeps. After a frenetic midweek in the Champions League, the weekend is already here and is packed with high-stakes fixtures.

The best drama remains in Italy. After their heartbreaking near-comeback against Real Madrid, the week could get worse for Juventus. They’re four points clear of Napoli at the top of Serie A, but host Sampdoria on Sunday, who beat them 3-2 in November. In-pursuit Napoli will need to travel to the San Siro and beat AC Milan to keep the pressure on. Then to cap the weekend off, midweek heroes Roma face Lazio in the Rome Derby with the two sides level on points, with goal difference putting Lazio in third and Roma in fourth.

Relegation worries and promotion hopes headline England. With just a handful of matches remaining, there are realistically eight teams fighting for EPL survival: Brighton, West Ham, Swansea, Huddersfield, Crystal Palace, Southampton, Stoke, and West Brom. Two of those squads go head-to-head this weekend as Crystal Palace host Brighton to begin a difficult run-in for the Seagulls. Below them in the Championship, Wolves could seal promotion to the EPL this weekend with a win over Birmingham City, should Fulham drop points against Brentford.

Back at the top, champions-elect Manchester City will look to stop a slide in which they’ve lost three massive matches in a row as they visit Spurs.

Barcelona could claim the first undefeated season in La Liga history. They’ll risk that record this weekend as third place Valencia travel to Camp Nou. A win would put Valencia level on points with second place Atletico Madrid.

Schalke are chasing a runners-up finish in the Bundesliga. At just 32 years old, manager Domenico Tedesco has them one point above Dortmund, who they’ll welcome to the Veltins-Arena on Sunday.

Portugal is home to the tightest title race in Europe. FC Porto are one point behind Benfica as they two sides face off on Sunday. Benfica have won the last four Primeira Liga titles.

Paris is the scene for first vs. second in France. But with PSG holding a 14 point lead over Monaco, it’s simply for bragging rights.

Holland also features a top of the table matchup. PSV hold a seven point lead over Ajax in the Eredivisie title race, as Mexican winger Hirving Lozano had led them with 15 goals and 8 assists.