#WeekendBangers – The return of Ligue 1 and the heavyweight clash between Spurs and United are part of this weekend’s picks.

Weekend Bangers
January 12, 2019
Sporting CP vs Porto (Primeira Liga)
At 6 points clear at the top of the standings, Porto is running away with the Primeira Liga. Can Sporting CP make use of home support and get a win against Porto?
The third most successful team in Portugal will be going against the most second most successful team.

Sporting CP is currently one of the 3 teams that are keeping up with Porto to make the Primeira Liga title race to make it a competitive one.
Had Sporting CP not suffered defeat in the last round, we would have been looking at the potential of them shrinking Porto’s to just 2 points.

West Ham United vs Arsenal (Premier League)
A London Derby. The quality is there for West Ham to take a win at home. The ‘3-1’ Arsenal victory in the first round wasn’t a convincing one, but West Ham’s record against top teams in the league makes Arsenal the favorites in this London Derby.

January 13, 2019
Tottenham vs Manchester United (Premier League)
The highlighted fixture of the weekend is also Manchester United’s biggest test since their managerial change. Can Manchester United make is 5 straight league victories under Ole Gunna Solksjaer?
Earlier meeting of the two teams was a historic 3-0 win for Tottenham at Old Trafford. As things stand in the Premier League, Tottenham is 10 points above Manchester United.

There is a lot on the line for both teams. An inspired Manchester United team is looking to reduce the gap to 7 points while putting some more pressure on the other teams in the top quarter of the Premier League table.
Manchester United will need to make up for the points dropped at Old Trafford to help their goal of finishing in the ‘top four’ of the final league standings, while Tottenham will be searching for the home win that will widen the gap to 13 points.

Real Betis vs Real Madrid (La Liga)
Both teams are yet to win a La Liga match in 2019. Real Betis will be cutting Real Madrid lead on them in the La Liga standings to a point if they make use of home advantage and get a victory. Expectations and investments do not give Real Madrid an excuse to be in 5th place at the halfway mark in the season. A win is a requirement for Real Madrid this weekend.

Marseille vs Monaco (Ligue 1)
This fixture in the 2017/18 season meant a lot more. Relegation-zone Monaco will try their luck at Marseille.

January 14, 2019
Manchester City vs Wolverhampton (Premier League)
Manchester City dropped their first set of points in their title defense against Wolverhampton. As things currently stand in the league, Manchester City is need of the points to make up the 4-point gap between themselves and the top of the table. Manchester City has to be careful because Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool have both been beaten by Wolverhampton in recent weeks.

Real Sociedad vs Espanyol (La Liga)
Espanyol id not too far off from throwing their hat into a race for top-6 in La Liga and Real Sociedad is just 2 points away from Espanyol. The victory against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in their last league fixture should be a boost in confidence for Real Sociedad to leap over Espanyol in the league standings with another win.