WEEKEND BANGERS
Lille and Paris St. Germain have to put the pressure on Lyon in the Ligue 1 title race.
Roma, Atalanta, Napoli, and AC Milan are all going into this weekend for a result that will allow them to take advantage of the Derby d’Italia results.
Dortmund and RB Leipzig looking for results that will keep them on pace with Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich have points to make-up.
Ajax look to extend their lead at the top of the Eredivisie.
Schalke and Sheffield United add to their first win of the season.
Inter-Continental derby in Turkey.
Liverpool attempt to dethrone Manchester United.
O Clássico
Rome Derby
West London derby
De Klassieker
Derby d’Italia
Istanbul derby (Kıtalararası Derbi)
North West derby
Spanish Super Cup final
January 15, 2021
Porto vs Benfica (Portuguese Primeira Liga)
The last four meetings have ended in a Porto win; a league double last season.
Both teams are tied on 31 points and are chasing Sporting CP in the title race.
A win for either Porto or Benfica will keep them 4 points from the top.
Sporting CP vs Rio Ave (Portuguese Primeira Liga)
The last time Sporting CP won the league was in 2002.
With their two closest rivals in the title race going against each other on the same day, Sporting can take advantage of the results from that game with a win against Rop Ave.
Montpellier vs Monaco (French Ligue 1)
Monaco continuing with their good run of results in recent games with a win at Montpellier will help them close in on the top three in the league.
Union Berlin vs Leverkusen (German Bundesliga)
Union Berlin can use a win to pull a point away from equalling the point tally of 3rd place Leverkusen.
Being 4 points from the top of the league is the only incentive Leverkusen needs to prevent a defeat while seeking their own success in this tie.
Lazio vs Roma (Italian Serie A)
Rome derby.
Roma will widend their lead on Lazio to 9 points with a Rome derby win.
Lazio will cut the gap between the two teams to 3 points with a win.
Roma survived Inter Milan to enter the Rome derby unbeaten in their last 4 matches.
As they are currently sandwiched in the top 4 by Inter Milan and Juventus, the objective for Roma is to pick up a win that will allow them to take full advantage of the results from the ‘Inter vs Juventus’ game.
After 17 matches last season, was 3rd in the league on 39 points, while Roma was 4th on 35 points.
Roma is a point shy this season but in a better positon (3rd) than they were last season at this stage. Lazio have picked up 11 points fewer than they did last season, and it shows in their position drop from 3rd to being 8th.
January 16, 2021
Marseille vs Nîmes (French Ligue 1)
After dropping points against Dijon in their last league game and losing out on the SuperCup to Paris St. Germain, Marseille will need a win against Nimes to boost their morale.
Angers vs Paris St. Germain (French Ligue 1)
After pulling a point behind Lyon in the last round, Paris St. Germain will be looking to put more pressure on Lyon with a win at Angers.
Fulham vs Chelsea (English Premier League)
West London derby.
With Fulham relegation-zoned and Chelsea midtabled, this West London derby is a fight for the two clubs to get out of what is seen as the lowest expectation for the season.
Leicester vs Southampton (English Premier League)
Their last win was a 1-0 win against Liverpool, now Southampton are a win away from catching up to Leicester City on points.
Leicester City don’t have the room to drop points and remain in the ‘Top 4’ at the end of the round.
Dortmund vs Mainz (German Bundesliga)
Against bottom-table Mainz is an opportunity for Dortmund to secure another three points to solidify their place in the ‘top four’.
Wolfsburg vs RB Leipzig (German Bundesliga)
Keeping up pace with Bayern in the title race means a win at Wolfsburg for RB Leipzig.
Wolfsburg might have fallen short in recent games but not at home. It will be a challenging task for Leipzig.
January 17, 2021
Lille vs Reims (French Ligue 1)
Paris St. Germain won’t be the only team putting the pressure on Lyon this weekend.
Lille will be chasing a win against Reims in hopes that the teams around them will fail at getting the maximum points.
Lyon vs Metz (French Ligue 1)
Lyon’s position at the top of the league is only guaranteed at the end of the round if they are to pick up a win against Metz.
Bayern Munich vs Freiburg (German Bundesliga)
Bayern will face Freiburg on the back of a defeat in their most recent league match, and an elimination from the German Cup by second division Holstein Kiel.
Things must be set right at home against Freiburg or else Bayern Munich will be at risk of losing their lead in the title race.
Frankfurt vs Schalke (German Bundesliga)
Can Schalke kick off a winning streak after ending a run of 30 winless league games in the last round?
Ajax vs Feyenoord (Dutch Erdivisie)
De Klassieker.
The last time Feyenoord won a game against Ajax was in 2015 (KNVB Cup).
We have to go far back to 2012 for the last time Feyenoord won De Klassieker.
Ajax have an opportunity to use a win in De Klassieker to widen their lead in the Dutch Eredivisie title race.
Atalanta vs Genoa (Italian Serie A)
Sitting outside of the ‘top 4’, Atalanta will use a win against Genoa to take advantage of the ‘Inter Milan vs Juventus’ tie.
Inter Milan vs Juventus (Italian Serie A)
Derby d’Italia
After the points dropped in the last round of league games, Inter Milan is at risk of allowing AC Milan to widen the gap at the top of the league standings.
The last time Inter Milan won against Juventus was in 2016.
Inter Milan were on 42 points and top of the league after at this point last season. Juventus were 2nd in the league and on 29 points.
Inter have accumulated 5 points fewer this season but are just a position lower in the league standings. Juventus are two positions lower, and 4 points fewer.
Beşiktaş vs Galatasaray (Turkish Super Lig)
Istanbul derby (Kıtalararası Derbi)
Beşiktaş keep top spot if they can fend off Galatasaray.
Galatasaray can potentially take the top spot at the end of the round if they pick up a win.
The last time Beisktas lost a home game to Galatasaray was in 2015. (Jan 4, 2015). Over 6 years ago.
Sheffield United vs Tottenham (English Premier League)
What will Sheffield United do after picking up their first win of the season in their last league match?
Both teams played a midweek fixture.
Tottenham dropped points against Fulham while Sheffield United picked up their opening win of the season from a 1-0 win against Newcastle.
With 1 win from their last 6 league games, Tottenham are losing the ‘title contender’ status they had a few weeks ago. Playing against bottom-tabled Sheffield United should be a good opportunity for Tottenham to get back on track.
Liverpool vs Manchester United (English Premier League)
North West Derby
English classic – The most successful teams in English league football.
Pre-season expectations wouldn’t have picked Manchester United going to Anfield in January ahead of Liverpool in the league standings; and Manchester United being at the top of the league.
Well, this is the situation at the moment.
The league leaders; Manchester United takes on Liverpool.
A win at Anfield will double Manchester United lead on Liverpool (currently second).
A win at Anfield will see Manchester United snap Liverpool’s streak of 67 unbeaten at home games in the Premier League.
The last win for United against Liverpool was a 2-1 win at Old Trafford in 2018.
Their last meeting at Anfield was a 2-0 win to Liverpool.
At this point last season, Liverpool were 24 points clear of Manchester United and 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League standings.
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace (English Premier League)
With a game in hand, a win against Crystal Palace will allow Manchester City to take advantage of the clash between the top two in the league ‘Liverpool vs Manchester United’.
The ideal outcome at the end of the round for Manchester City will be a win for them, but a draw in the ‘Liverpool vs Manchester United’ match.
Barcelona vs Athletic Club (Spanish Super Cup Final)
Barcelona and Athletic Club left Real Sociedad and Real Madrid at the semis.
January 18, 2021
Cagliari vs AC Milan (Italian Serie A)
Their place at the top of the league will be kept with any result but a defeat.
A win against Cagliari will allow AC Milan to take full advantage of the ‘Inter Milan vs Juventus’ tie.
Fenerbahce vs Ankaragucu (Turkish Super Lig)
Fenerbahce are counting on a win against Ankaragucu to take advantage of the result from ‘Beşiktaş vs Galatasaray’. If Besiktas does not come out with a win, Fenerbahce will use a win to claim top of the table.
