Premier matchups across Europe
The top pro soccer leagues in Europe are back in action after the international break. Here are some of the storylines to watch:
ENGLAND
The 12th round of the Premier League kicks off on Saturday with the north London derby and a chance for Tottenham to validate its supremacy over Arsenal. For the first time in 22 years, Tottenham finished above its neighbour last season. Already, Mauricio Pochettino’s second-place team has a four-point advantage over Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal.
Manchester City is already running away at the top of the standings, pushing eight points clear of Manchester United and Tottenham.
United will face Newcastle on Saturday without Phil Jones. Manager Jose Mourinho is annoyed the defender featured for England against Germany last week despite already struggling with a thigh problem.
Champion Chelsea, which is fourth, travels to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday. Among Saturday’s other games, Everton is set to face Crystal Palace while still under the temporary command of David Unsworth as the club has failed to appoint a permanent successor yet to the fired Ronald Koeman.
SPAIN
Real Madrid plays its first derby at Atletico Madrid’s new Wanda Metropolitano Stadium. The city rivals are already far behind leader Barcelona, so if either loses on Saturday it could be facing an 11-point deficit against the thriving Catalan club.
In south Madrid, Barcelona, which has won 10 of its 11 league matches, plays mid-table Leganes. Secondplace Valencia, four points off the lead, tries to extend its seven-game winning streak when it faces Espanyol on Sunday.
Valencia, Barcelona, and Atletico are the only unbeaten teams after 11 rounds.
GERMANY
Bayern hosts Augsburg for a Bavarian derby on Saturday when the defending champion will look to extend Jupp Heynckes’ record of seven wins across all competitions since his return as coach.
Leipzig, which is four points behind Bayern, visits Bayer Leverkusen for what should be a tough encounter on Saturday.
Cologne and Werder Bremen are still looking for their first wins. Cologne, bottom with only two points after nine defeats, visits Mainz on Saturday, while Bremen hosts promoted Hannover on Sunday.
ITALY
Less than a week after Italy’s failed qualification for the World Cup, Serie A returns with a big weekend.
Six of the top seven teams play one another, highlighted by Roma versus Lazio in the Rome derby on Saturday, and leader Napoli’s match against AC Milan.
On Sunday, defending six-time champion Juventus visits surprising Sampdoria and Inter Milan hosts Atalanta, which was last season’s revelation.
Lazio and Roma have had strong starts and sit fourth and fifth, respectively, in the standings with only one point separating them.
After losses to Lazio, Roma, Inter and Juventus, big-spending AC Milan is in desperate need of a big win to provide job security for embattled manager Vincenzo Montella.
FRANCE
Since taking charge of Nantes, Claudio Ranieri has built his team around a solid defence that has conceded only nine goals in 12 games. Only league leader Paris Saint-Germain and Montpellier have let in fewer goals.
But Ranieri’s tactical credentials face the toughest test possible when fifth-place Nantes travels to play PSG on Saturday. PSG has netted 39 goals already at an average of more than three per game.
Third-place Lyon is unbeaten in nine games in all competitions, scoring 15 and conceding none in the last four. With forwards Nabil Fekir and Memphis Depay in prolific form, Lyon will be confident of denting Montpellier’s proud defensive record when the teams meet on Sunday.