This Weekend 's Match Previews
EPL: Manchester United V Liverpool
This season has brought a lot of twists and turns in the title race with Manchester City and Liverpool going neck and neck between each other for the title as they are level on points but Liverpool have a game in hand. That game in hand is against a resurgent Manchester United at Old Trafford in Sunday. Since the appointment of Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Manchester United have gained more points and wins than any other team. Part of that is due to the form of Paul Pogba. The French midfielder has been in fantastic form scoring eight goals since the Norwegian took over. It's likely they will be without Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard for the game on Sunday, with Romelu Lukaku and Juan Mata deployed in their absence. Liverpool, coming from a goalless draw against Bayern, are on good form as well with three wins in their last five league games but dropped four points against Leicester City and West Ham which enabled City to close the gap on them. A positive result against their rivals will take Liverpool back on top of the table but Old Trafford is a difficult hurting ground for the Reds with only one win in their last five meeting at the Theatre of Dreams, losing three and drawing one. What could win or lose the game for Liverpool could be their midfield with Jürgen Klopp having a heavy process on who to pick with the forms of Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum as well as Jordan Henderson's performance against Bayern in midweek and Naby Keïta. A win for United will not only damage the title hopes of their rivals but will boost United's chances for the top four while a Liverpool win will take them back on top which is not what United want. Something's got to give.
EFL Cup Final: Chelsea V Manchester City
While Liverpool are facing Premier League action on Sunday, Manchester City will be looking to add their first piece of silverware this season in the EFL Cup Final on Sunday against Chelsea. City, who won the competition last year, are heavy favourites going into the Final having given Chelsea their worst ever Premier League defeat just over a week ago. Pep's side are flying at the moment and it would be interesting on who will start at the Final with the Premier League title race still at the back of their minds as well as the Champions League following their 3-2 win over Schalke. City beat the likes of Oxford United, Fulham, Leicester City and Burton Albion with Leicester being their most difficult tie needing to beat them on penalties. Chelsea looks like a team that is on turmoil right now and will only amplify if they lose on Sunday. They beat Liverpool, Derby County, Bournemouth and Tottenham to reach the Final. It is a big opportunity for manager Maurizio Sarri to win his his first trophy of his career and to ease the pressure he's on right now from the Chelsea board and supporters with the poor results the Blues are getting despite beating Malmö in the Europa League. Nevertheless, it's still a Cup Final and a piece of silverware is still up for grabs.
La Liga: Sevilla V Barcelona
Sevilla meet with Barcelona on Saturday at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. Sevilla made a great start to La Liga this season with their attacking play with Wissam Ben Yedder and André Silva scoring 20 goals between them this season and were as high as 2nd in the La Liga table. However, since the turn of the year, Sevilla have won only one game in their last seven league games with four defeats to Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid, Celta Vigo and Villarreal. They are through to the Round of 16 in the Europa League but they will have to translate their form in Europe into the league with Getafe, Alavés, Real Sociedad, Real Betis and Valencia on their heels. Barcelona have been in good form with eight wins in their last ten league games but it hasn't been all good at the Camp Nou. Barça have been unable to score in their last three goals in all competitions and with only two wins in their seven in all competitions. Midfielder Arthur is out for the game with Philippe Coutinho or Arturo Vidal deployed in his absence. With two games against Real Madrid in the league and the Copa Del Rey plus the second leg of the Champions League against Lyon, Valverde will be hoping that fatigue doesn't get to the squad given how much they rely on Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi for goals.
Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund V Bayer Leverkusen
Borussia Dortmund are having a bit of a wobble lately. The Black and Yellow are without a win in their last five games in all competitions with a damaging 3-0 defeat to Tottenham in the Champions League which is a big blow in their chances of going through. Keeping it in the Bundesliga, Dortmund have won three of their last six games but are winless in three games with their last league game a goalless draw against Nürnberg who are bottom of the Bundesliga. This has enabled Bayern Munich to close the gap now to three points and with twelve games remaining, BVB knows they can't afford to drop points. Dortmund will be hoping that Marco Reus returns from injury having missed the attacking midfielder against Tottenham and Nürnberg and is their top goalscorer with 13 goals in the league. Leverkusen are coming to this after being eliminated from the Europa League but are in form under new manager Peter Bosz. Leverkusen have won four of their five league games since the turn of the year including a 3-1 win against Bayern Munich. Dortmund have to get back on track but Leverkusen can be difficult given what they did to Bayern and will be looking to close the gap between them and RB Leipzig for the fourth place spot which means Champions League football for next season.
Serie A: Fiorentina V Inter Milan
A lot has gone on at Inter Milan over the past week particularly with the club and striker Mauro Icardi. The Argentine, who has scored nine goals in the Serie A, was stripped from the captaincy by the club and wasn't in the matchday squad in their past three games, bringing more uncertainty around his future with Inter. Besides the drama between Icardi and Inter, the Nerazzurri are through to the Round of 16 in the Europa League and have won their last four games in a row. However, their league form recently has been patchy with three wins in their last six league games with two defeats to Torino and Bologna. This still keeps Inter third in the table with Milan and Roma behind them. Fiorentina are unbeaten in their last six games but that consist of only two wins and four draws. The Viola have been exciting to watch in the Serie A and a win will close the gap between them and others in Atalanta, Lazio and Roma for the European spots for next season.
This season has brought a lot of twists and turns in the title race with Manchester City and Liverpool going neck and neck between each other for the title as they are level on points but Liverpool have a game in hand. That game in hand is against a resurgent Manchester United at Old Trafford in Sunday. Since the appointment of Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Manchester United have gained more points and wins than any other team. Part of that is due to the form of Paul Pogba. The French midfielder has been in fantastic form scoring eight goals since the Norwegian took over. It's likely they will be without Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard for the game on Sunday, with Romelu Lukaku and Juan Mata deployed in their absence. Liverpool, coming from a goalless draw against Bayern, are on good form as well with three wins in their last five league games but dropped four points against Leicester City and West Ham which enabled City to close the gap on them. A positive result against their rivals will take Liverpool back on top of the table but Old Trafford is a difficult hurting ground for the Reds with only one win in their last five meeting at the Theatre of Dreams, losing three and drawing one. What could win or lose the game for Liverpool could be their midfield with Jürgen Klopp having a heavy process on who to pick with the forms of Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum as well as Jordan Henderson's performance against Bayern in midweek and Naby Keïta. A win for United will not only damage the title hopes of their rivals but will boost United's chances for the top four while a Liverpool win will take them back on top which is not what United want. Something's got to give.
EFL Cup Final: Chelsea V Manchester City
While Liverpool are facing Premier League action on Sunday, Manchester City will be looking to add their first piece of silverware this season in the EFL Cup Final on Sunday against Chelsea. City, who won the competition last year, are heavy favourites going into the Final having given Chelsea their worst ever Premier League defeat just over a week ago. Pep's side are flying at the moment and it would be interesting on who will start at the Final with the Premier League title race still at the back of their minds as well as the Champions League following their 3-2 win over Schalke. City beat the likes of Oxford United, Fulham, Leicester City and Burton Albion with Leicester being their most difficult tie needing to beat them on penalties. Chelsea looks like a team that is on turmoil right now and will only amplify if they lose on Sunday. They beat Liverpool, Derby County, Bournemouth and Tottenham to reach the Final. It is a big opportunity for manager Maurizio Sarri to win his his first trophy of his career and to ease the pressure he's on right now from the Chelsea board and supporters with the poor results the Blues are getting despite beating Malmö in the Europa League. Nevertheless, it's still a Cup Final and a piece of silverware is still up for grabs.
La Liga: Sevilla V Barcelona
Sevilla meet with Barcelona on Saturday at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. Sevilla made a great start to La Liga this season with their attacking play with Wissam Ben Yedder and André Silva scoring 20 goals between them this season and were as high as 2nd in the La Liga table. However, since the turn of the year, Sevilla have won only one game in their last seven league games with four defeats to Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid, Celta Vigo and Villarreal. They are through to the Round of 16 in the Europa League but they will have to translate their form in Europe into the league with Getafe, Alavés, Real Sociedad, Real Betis and Valencia on their heels. Barcelona have been in good form with eight wins in their last ten league games but it hasn't been all good at the Camp Nou. Barça have been unable to score in their last three goals in all competitions and with only two wins in their seven in all competitions. Midfielder Arthur is out for the game with Philippe Coutinho or Arturo Vidal deployed in his absence. With two games against Real Madrid in the league and the Copa Del Rey plus the second leg of the Champions League against Lyon, Valverde will be hoping that fatigue doesn't get to the squad given how much they rely on Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi for goals.
Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund V Bayer Leverkusen
Borussia Dortmund are having a bit of a wobble lately. The Black and Yellow are without a win in their last five games in all competitions with a damaging 3-0 defeat to Tottenham in the Champions League which is a big blow in their chances of going through. Keeping it in the Bundesliga, Dortmund have won three of their last six games but are winless in three games with their last league game a goalless draw against Nürnberg who are bottom of the Bundesliga. This has enabled Bayern Munich to close the gap now to three points and with twelve games remaining, BVB knows they can't afford to drop points. Dortmund will be hoping that Marco Reus returns from injury having missed the attacking midfielder against Tottenham and Nürnberg and is their top goalscorer with 13 goals in the league. Leverkusen are coming to this after being eliminated from the Europa League but are in form under new manager Peter Bosz. Leverkusen have won four of their five league games since the turn of the year including a 3-1 win against Bayern Munich. Dortmund have to get back on track but Leverkusen can be difficult given what they did to Bayern and will be looking to close the gap between them and RB Leipzig for the fourth place spot which means Champions League football for next season.
Serie A: Fiorentina V Inter Milan
A lot has gone on at Inter Milan over the past week particularly with the club and striker Mauro Icardi. The Argentine, who has scored nine goals in the Serie A, was stripped from the captaincy by the club and wasn't in the matchday squad in their past three games, bringing more uncertainty around his future with Inter. Besides the drama between Icardi and Inter, the Nerazzurri are through to the Round of 16 in the Europa League and have won their last four games in a row. However, their league form recently has been patchy with three wins in their last six league games with two defeats to Torino and Bologna. This still keeps Inter third in the table with Milan and Roma behind them. Fiorentina are unbeaten in their last six games but that consist of only two wins and four draws. The Viola have been exciting to watch in the Serie A and a win will close the gap between them and others in Atalanta, Lazio and Roma for the European spots for next season.
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