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FIVE games to follow this weekend: Big derbies and clashes between teams in contrasting form

FIVE games to follow this weekend: Big derbies and clashes between teams in contrasting form

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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.

By Bill Biss

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Premier League: Chelsea vs. Manchester City

In a game no one is calling the Cole Palmer Derby, Chelsea meet current Premier League leaders Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. And it’s a game that both sides will be very keen to win. City, because they’ll need to in order to return to the top of the table (presuming earlier weekend results have gone against them) and Chelsea, because they are looking to build on what was their biggest win of the season, the 4-1 thrashing that ended Spurs’ unbeaten start last Monday night.

The aforementioned Palmer performed well in that game, and the City academy product has been a rare source of consistency for Mauricio Pochettino’s side since his summer move; providing seven goal involvements across league and cup.

City come in to the game following a midweek result in the Champions League that secured the defending champions their place in the knockout stages of the competition. Erling Haaland scored twice and Phil Foden provided the other in a 3-0 victory over Swiss side Young Boys at the Etihad.

Interestingly, the last time City lost to Chelsea was in the 2021 Champions League Final. Chelsea haven’t so much as scored against City in the six meetings since then – games all won by Pep Guardiola’s side.

🇪🇸 LaLiga: Sevilla vs. Real Betis

In LaLiga, we’ve selected ‘El Gran Derbi’, the battle between Sevilla and fierce city rivals Real Betis. In truth, neither are challenging for honours, as yet, but outside of the Clásico and the Madrid Derby, this is perhaps the biggest game in the Spanish football calendar.

Betis, still under the steady stewardship of Manuel Pellegrini, sit sixth in the table and are unbeaten in 11 games, winning each of their last five. They haven’t suffered defeat since Round 5 when they were smashed at Barcelona but they appear to have tightened up at the back since then – conceding an average of 0.7 league goals per game.

They stayed top of their Europa League group on Thursday, beating Cypriot side Aris Limassol 4-1 at home.

A day earlier, Sevilla were on the receiving end of a 2-0 defeat at Arsenal in the Champions League. A result that left them bottom of their group with two points from four matchdays. Back in the league, it’s been another difficult start to the campaign for the current Europa League champions. They find themselves in 15th position, on a run of four straight draws, having won just twice. The club have also changed manager, with former Uruguay coach Diego Alonso stepping in to steady the ship during October. His only win, so far, came in a Copa del Rey tie against sixth tier opposition.

Elsewhere, surprise leaders Girona face Rayo Vallecano while Madrid host Valencia on Saturday, and on Sunday, Barcelona face Alavés.

🇮🇹 Serie A: Lazio vs. Roma

Sunday is also Derby Day in Serie A as Lazio and Roma meet at their shared home, the Stadio Olimpico. Another key spectacle in European football, this one can get very heated, not least on the sidelines, where master tacticians Maurizio Sarri and José Mourinho will once again lock horns.

In typical fashion, neither played down the rivalry in their respective pre-match press conferences, with Mourinho aiming a number of digs at the amount of silverware won by his Lazio counterpart! On the pitch this season, there isn’t much between them, with Roma seventh and Lazio tenth, but separated by a single point. Both have five wins to their name but it’s Lazio, last season’s runners-up, who’ve looked more inconsistent, having also lost five games, and scoring just 13 goals to Roma’s 22 in their first 11 games of the campaign.

Sarri’s side lost to in-form Bologna last Friday but did get back to winning ways with a narrow 1-0 victory over Dutch champions Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday. The usually reliable Ciro Immobile scored that goal, just his fourth in what’s been a quiet season for the club captain. Roma have had an equally turbulent week – they needed goals scored on 90+1 and 90+4 to come back and beat Lecce at home last weekend, then travelled to Prague where they lost 2-0 to Slavia in the Europa League on Thursday.

🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen vs. Union Berlin

These sides finished sixth and fourth, respectively, in the Bundesliga last season but their form in 2023/24 couldn’t be more different. Leverkusen, in what will be Xabi Alonso’s first full season in charge, are flying, top of the table with nine wins and a draw after 10 rounds. In contrast, Union Berlin sit in the relegation zone having drawn twice and lost all eight of their other games.

The side from the capital remain in a positive mood though, this being a period of unprecedented success having qualified for, and now enjoying their debut in the Champions League, and Urs Fischer remains in the dugout he has occupied since 2018. In midweek, Union finally stopped the rot – ending an extraordinary run of 12 consecutive defeats (all comps) by earning a 1-1 draw at Serie A holders Napoli in their Champions League group. David Datro Fofana’s goal in that game was the club’s first in six competitive fixtures.

Leverkusen, who’ve only dropped points once, in either the league, or their Europa League group have now won 11 straight games. The latest of which was a 1-0 victory secured in Azerbaijan, against Qarabağ, thanks to an injury time penalty from their form man, Victor Boniface.

The Nigerian striker has seven goals and five assists in his first 10 leagues games with the club, plus four goals in cup competitions, and is one to watch whenever Leverkusen play.

🇫🇷 Ligue 1: Stade Reims vs. Paris Saint-Germain

French league leaders Nice drew a blank at Montpellier on Friday night so our attention now focuses on the game between two sides among the chasing pack – second placed PSG and fourth placed Reims. In fact, PSG can leapfrog Nice should they find a way to beat Will Still’s impressive outfit on Saturday afternoon.

We made reference to the fact that PSG had scored three goals in each of their previous four games when we previewed their own match with Montpellier last weekend. And sure enough they beat them 3-0. But that quirky run was ended with defeat at Milan in the Champions League group of death on Tuesday, a result that left them second behind Dortmund with two matchdays to go.

As you’d imagine of a club with their resources, PSG are currently the top scorers in the division with 26 goals, and Kylian Mbappé is already in to double figures. But it appears that new coach Luis Enrique has sorted out things at the back with his side having the second best defensive record behind Nice (who’ve conceded just four goals in 12 matches!). Reims sit four points down on the Parisians and are currently scoring at a rate of 1.5 goals per game, which is the third highest rate behind Monaco and PSG, the two sides directly above them in the table.

Will Still, their young English/Belgian manager, came to worldwide attention thanks to the club’s 17 game unbeaten run when he took over last season, a run which included two draws with PSG. And although they ultimately only finished in 11th place, it looks like the club are building on that this season with six wins in their first 10 fixtures. They should give PSG a real test, especially with the game coming at the end of a week where the defending league champions will be low on confidence following that defeat at Milan.

Plus two hidden gems from a little deeper in your match feed…

🇸🇪 Swedish Allsvenskan: Malmö vs. Elfsborg

On Sunday we’ll have a nail-biting title-decider in Sweden’s top flight where after 29 rounds the top two in the table face each other on the final day of the season.

With a three point advantage, a draw is all Elfsborg need to secure what would be their first Allsvenskan since 2012. But should Malmö win, they’ll take back the title they lost to Häcken last year, having won it in both 2020 and 2021.

The equation could have been even tighter had Malmö not lost at Häcken last weekend at the same time that Elfsborg were rescuing a point thanks to a 95th minute equaliser against Degerfors.

🇵🇹 Liga Portugal: Benfica vs. Sporting

Not to be outdone by the headline grabbing action in Europe’s biggest leagues, other huge local rivalries are also scheduled in for Sunday across a number of countries. Not least in Portugal, where Lisbon clubs Benfica and Sporting face off against one another.

This is another top of the table clash, with Sporting currently holding a three point advantage over Benfica thanks to a 10-game unbeaten start to the new season. Benfica have only lost once themselves, way back in round one, so domestically speaking at least, this is as big as it gets.

And despite their woes in the Champions League, where they’ve lost four all four of their group games, Benfica will point to their recent win over Porto in the country’s other big game as a sign that they remain on course to back up last season’s title win.

The two Derby games last season ended in 2-2 draws and with both sides averaging just over two goals per game it would be fair to expect a similarly exciting match up in this one.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Threads, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Cover Image from IMAGO

FIVE games to follow this weekend: Big derbies and clashes between teams in contrasting form

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.

By Bill Biss

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Premier League: Chelsea vs. Manchester City

In a game no one is calling the Cole Palmer Derby, Chelsea meet current Premier League leaders Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. And it’s a game that both sides will be very keen to win. City, because they’ll need to in order to return to the top of the table (presuming earlier weekend results have gone against them) and Chelsea, because they are looking to build on what was their biggest win of the season, the 4-1 thrashing that ended Spurs’ unbeaten start last Monday night.

The aforementioned Palmer performed well in that game, and the City academy product has been a rare source of consistency for Mauricio Pochettino’s side since his summer move; providing seven goal involvements across league and cup.

City come in to the game following a midweek result in the Champions League that secured the defending champions their place in the knockout stages of the competition. Erling Haaland scored twice and Phil Foden provided the other in a 3-0 victory over Swiss side Young Boys at the Etihad.

Interestingly, the last time City lost to Chelsea was in the 2021 Champions League Final. Chelsea haven’t so much as scored against City in the six meetings since then – games all won by Pep Guardiola’s side.

🇪🇸 LaLiga: Sevilla vs. Real Betis

In LaLiga, we’ve selected ‘El Gran Derbi’, the battle between Sevilla and fierce city rivals Real Betis. In truth, neither are challenging for honours, as yet, but outside of the Clásico and the Madrid Derby, this is perhaps the biggest game in the Spanish football calendar.

Betis, still under the steady stewardship of Manuel Pellegrini, sit sixth in the table and are unbeaten in 11 games, winning each of their last five. They haven’t suffered defeat since Round 5 when they were smashed at Barcelona but they appear to have tightened up at the back since then – conceding an average of 0.7 league goals per game.

They stayed top of their Europa League group on Thursday, beating Cypriot side Aris Limassol 4-1 at home.

A day earlier, Sevilla were on the receiving end of a 2-0 defeat at Arsenal in the Champions League. A result that left them bottom of their group with two points from four matchdays. Back in the league, it’s been another difficult start to the campaign for the current Europa League champions. They find themselves in 15th position, on a run of four straight draws, having won just twice. The club have also changed manager, with former Uruguay coach Diego Alonso stepping in to steady the ship during October. His only win, so far, came in a Copa del Rey tie against sixth tier opposition.

Elsewhere, surprise leaders Girona face Rayo Vallecano while Madrid host Valencia on Saturday, and on Sunday, Barcelona face Alavés.

🇮🇹 Serie A: Lazio vs. Roma

Sunday is also Derby Day in Serie A as Lazio and Roma meet at their shared home, the Stadio Olimpico. Another key spectacle in European football, this one can get very heated, not least on the sidelines, where master tacticians Maurizio Sarri and José Mourinho will once again lock horns.

In typical fashion, neither played down the rivalry in their respective pre-match press conferences, with Mourinho aiming a number of digs at the amount of silverware won by his Lazio counterpart! On the pitch this season, there isn’t much between them, with Roma seventh and Lazio tenth, but separated by a single point. Both have five wins to their name but it’s Lazio, last season’s runners-up, who’ve looked more inconsistent, having also lost five games, and scoring just 13 goals to Roma’s 22 in their first 11 games of the campaign.

Sarri’s side lost to in-form Bologna last Friday but did get back to winning ways with a narrow 1-0 victory over Dutch champions Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday. The usually reliable Ciro Immobile scored that goal, just his fourth in what’s been a quiet season for the club captain. Roma have had an equally turbulent week – they needed goals scored on 90+1 and 90+4 to come back and beat Lecce at home last weekend, then travelled to Prague where they lost 2-0 to Slavia in the Europa League on Thursday.

🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen vs. Union Berlin

These sides finished sixth and fourth, respectively, in the Bundesliga last season but their form in 2023/24 couldn’t be more different. Leverkusen, in what will be Xabi Alonso’s first full season in charge, are flying, top of the table with nine wins and a draw after 10 rounds. In contrast, Union Berlin sit in the relegation zone having drawn twice and lost all eight of their other games.

The side from the capital remain in a positive mood though, this being a period of unprecedented success having qualified for, and now enjoying their debut in the Champions League, and Urs Fischer remains in the dugout he has occupied since 2018. In midweek, Union finally stopped the rot – ending an extraordinary run of 12 consecutive defeats (all comps) by earning a 1-1 draw at Serie A holders Napoli in their Champions League group. David Datro Fofana’s goal in that game was the club’s first in six competitive fixtures.

Leverkusen, who’ve only dropped points once, in either the league, or their Europa League group have now won 11 straight games. The latest of which was a 1-0 victory secured in Azerbaijan, against Qarabağ, thanks to an injury time penalty from their form man, Victor Boniface.

The Nigerian striker has seven goals and five assists in his first 10 leagues games with the club, plus four goals in cup competitions, and is one to watch whenever Leverkusen play.

🇫🇷 Ligue 1: Stade Reims vs. Paris Saint-Germain

French league leaders Nice drew a blank at Montpellier on Friday night so our attention now focuses on the game between two sides among the chasing pack – second placed PSG and fourth placed Reims. In fact, PSG can leapfrog Nice should they find a way to beat Will Still’s impressive outfit on Saturday afternoon.

We made reference to the fact that PSG had scored three goals in each of their previous four games when we previewed their own match with Montpellier last weekend. And sure enough they beat them 3-0. But that quirky run was ended with defeat at Milan in the Champions League group of death on Tuesday, a result that left them second behind Dortmund with two matchdays to go.

As you’d imagine of a club with their resources, PSG are currently the top scorers in the division with 26 goals, and Kylian Mbappé is already in to double figures. But it appears that new coach Luis Enrique has sorted out things at the back with his side having the second best defensive record behind Nice (who’ve conceded just four goals in 12 matches!). Reims sit four points down on the Parisians and are currently scoring at a rate of 1.5 goals per game, which is the third highest rate behind Monaco and PSG, the two sides directly above them in the table.

Will Still, their young English/Belgian manager, came to worldwide attention thanks to the club’s 17 game unbeaten run when he took over last season, a run which included two draws with PSG. And although they ultimately only finished in 11th place, it looks like the club are building on that this season with six wins in their first 10 fixtures. They should give PSG a real test, especially with the game coming at the end of a week where the defending league champions will be low on confidence following that defeat at Milan.

Plus two hidden gems from a little deeper in your match feed…

🇸🇪 Swedish Allsvenskan: Malmö vs. Elfsborg

On Sunday we’ll have a nail-biting title-decider in Sweden’s top flight where after 29 rounds the top two in the table face each other on the final day of the season.

With a three point advantage, a draw is all Elfsborg need to secure what would be their first Allsvenskan since 2012. But should Malmö win, they’ll take back the title they lost to Häcken last year, having won it in both 2020 and 2021.

The equation could have been even tighter had Malmö not lost at Häcken last weekend at the same time that Elfsborg were rescuing a point thanks to a 95th minute equaliser against Degerfors.

🇵🇹 Liga Portugal: Benfica vs. Sporting

Not to be outdone by the headline grabbing action in Europe’s biggest leagues, other huge local rivalries are also scheduled in for Sunday across a number of countries. Not least in Portugal, where Lisbon clubs Benfica and Sporting face off against one another.

This is another top of the table clash, with Sporting currently holding a three point advantage over Benfica thanks to a 10-game unbeaten start to the new season. Benfica have only lost once themselves, way back in round one, so domestically speaking at least, this is as big as it gets.

And despite their woes in the Champions League, where they’ve lost four all four of their group games, Benfica will point to their recent win over Porto in the country’s other big game as a sign that they remain on course to back up last season’s title win.

The two Derby games last season ended in 2-2 draws and with both sides averaging just over two goals per game it would be fair to expect a similarly exciting match up in this one.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Threads, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Cover Image from IMAGO