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European Weekend Preview: Tottenham hosts Man City, Monaco travels to PSG, and more

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The last two weeks have not been the prettiest for Premier League leaders Manchester City.

Pep Guardiola’s side has seen themselves eliminated from the UEFA Champions League and also defeated by their closest rivals, Manchester United in the latest Manchester Derby. The Citizens will look to get back to winning ways this weekend as they travel to Tottenham.

City ran away 4-1 winners in the last meeting between these two back in December, but look light of confidence at the moment. Raheem Sterling has 16 goals and eight assists in league action this season for Manchester City.

Tottenham are still in the race for a top-four finish, currently sitting in fourth place on 67 points. Mauricio Pochettino’s side have won their last four fixtures in all competitions, outscoring their opponents 12-3. Harry Kane made his first start last weekend at Stoke, since March 11th scoring his 25th goal of the season. The positive news for Spurs is they have won their last two home meetings with Manchester City, outscoring them 6-1 over those matches.

Elsewhere in Europe, the Revierderby takes place in Germany as Schalke hosts Borussia Dortmund. Barcelona will look to shrug off their UCL elimination as they host Valencia in La Liga play. The Rome Derby takes place in Italy as Lazio plays Roma at the Olimpico. PSG welcomes Monaco to the Parc Des Princes, looking to sweep the season series.

Here’s a closer look at this weekend’s European action:

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

Two teams in the thick of the relegation battle in the Premier League will face off on Monday.

West Ham United faces Stoke City at London Stadium, looking to further distance themselves from the bottom three. The Hammers got a massive point at Chelsea last Sunday, with Chicharito getting on the score sheet. The Mexican forward has eight league goals for David Moyes’ side this season. Stoke City are four points from safety in the standings, currently sitting in 19th.

The Potters have lost their last four matches, and will need to turn things around if they want to remain in the top flight for next season. Swiss international Xherdan Shaqiri leads the team with seven goals this season, and will need to be at his best for Stoke to have a chance at survival.

Here’s all of this weekend’s EPL fixtures:

Saturday

  • Southampton vs. Chelsea
  • Burnley vs. Leicester City
  • Crystal Palace vs. Brighton & Hove Albion
  • Huddersfield Town vs. Watford
  • Swansea City vs. Everton
  • Liverpool vs. AFC Bournemouth
  • Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester City

Sunday

  • Newcastle United vs. Arsenal
  • Manchester United vs. West Bromwich Albion

Monday

  • West Ham United vs. Stoke City

SPANISH LA LIGA

Barcelona will look to get back to winning ways after their midweek collapse in Rome, as they welcome Valencia to the Camp Nou.

Ernesto Valverde’s side have already defeated Valencia twice this season, defeating them in both league and cup action. After being very quiet in their Champions League defeat, Lionel Messi will look to add to his 29 league goals on Saturday.

Valencia is still in the race for a second place finish and are hitting great form. The visitors are winners of their last five matches, posting clean sheets in four of those five. Spanish forward Rodrigo leads the team with 15 league goals.

After almost being eliminated from the Champions League by Juventus, Real Madrid hit the road on Sunday to face Malaga.

Los Blancos needed a late penalty kick from Cristiano Ronaldo to advance to the semifinals, and have been truly carried by the Portuguese forward this season. Ronaldo has 38 goals this season with 23 coming in La Liga play. Malaga have only won once out of their last five matches, being held scoreless in three of those five. Uruguayan forward Diego Rolan has four goals for the hosts this season, but as a team the league minnows have only scored 19 goals in 31 matches.

Here’s a closer look at this weekend’s La Liga fixtures:

Friday

  • Girona vs. Real Betis

Saturday

  • Sevilla vs. Villarreal
  • Barcelona vs. Valencia
  • Las Palmas vs. Real Sociedad
  • Leganes vs. Celta Vigo
  • Athletic Bilbao vs. Deportivo

Sunday

  • Eibar vs. Alaves
  • Atletico Madrid vs. Levante
  • Getafe vs. Espanyol
  • Malaga vs. Real Madrid

GERMAN BUNDESLIGA

A pair of top-five sides square off on Saturday as Bayer Leverkusen welcomes Eintracht Frankfurt to the BayArena.

The hosts hold a two-point advantage over their opponents and are coming off a 4-1 beatdown of RB Leipzig on Monday. German forward Kevin Volland has 11 league goals this campaign, and found the back of the net in the side’s recent victory. Frankfurt are winless in their last two matches, but have won two of their last five. Serbian midfielder Luka Jovic has been a nice player for Frankfurt this season, with eight goals in 18 appearances.

The Revierderby returns this weekend with Schalke and Borussia Dortmund sitting only a point apart in the standings.

Schalke welcomes Dortmund to Veltins Arena on Sunday, looking to bounce back from a tough loss at Hamburg. Last weekend’s defeat snapped a six-match winning run for Schalke, who want to remain in the runners-up spot. Daniel Caligiuri has been a nice two-way player for Schalke, scoring five goals and adding six assists this season.

Dortmund bounced back from a thumping at Bayern Munich, by easing past Stuttgart 3-0 last Sunday. Christian Pulisic had a sensational goal for the hosts, while two other forwards also got on the scoresheet. Dortmund lost a 4-0 lead in the first meeting between these two, and had to settle for a point back in November.

Here’s all of this weekend’s Bundesliga fixtures:

Friday

  • VfL Wolfsburg vs. FC Augsburg

Saturday

  • 1899 Hoffenheim vs. Hamburg SV
  • Hertha Berlin vs. FC Koln
  • Bayer Leverkusen vs. Eintracht Frankfurt
  • VfB Stuttgart vs. Hannover 96
  • Bayern Munich vs. Borussia Monchengladbach

Sunday

  • Schalke 04 vs. Borussia Dortmund
  • Werder Bremen vs. RB Leipzig

Monday

  • FSV Mainz vs. SC Freiburg

ITALIAN SERIE A 

The Derby della Capitale takes centerstage in Italy on Sunday as Lazio and Roma duke it out in Rome.

The teams are both sitting on 60 points apiece, with Lazio sitting just ahead in the standings. Lazio are unbeaten in their last seven matches, winning four of those seven. Ciro Immobile has 27 league goals for Lazio this season, and is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon. Roma pulled one of the most-historic comebacks in Champions League history on Tuesday rolling from behind to eliminate Barcelona. Now the Romans will look to carry that performance into this weekend’s derby. Edin Dzeko has 14 league goals this season, and 20 in all competitions.

A pair of top-six sides will also be in action on Sunday as AC Milan welcomes Napoli to the San Siro. Napoli is still fighting for the league table, sitting four points behind leaders Juventus. Maurizio Sarri’s men are unbeaten in their last three matches, beating Genoa and Chievo in the process. The visitors will look towards leading scorer Dries Mertens to carry the load on Sunday. Milan have drawn their last two matches against Inter and Sassuolo respectively, and will look for a huge home win. Patrick Cutrone leads the team with seven goals this season.

Here’s all of this weekend’s Serie A fixtures:

Saturday

  • Cagliari vs. Udinese
  • Genoa vs. Crotone
  • Chievo Verona vs. Torino
  • Atalanta vs. Inter Milan

Sunday

  • Fiorentina vs. Spal
  • Sassuolo vs. Benevento
  • Bologna vs. Hellas Verona
  • AC Milan vs. Napoli
  • Juventus vs. Sampdoria
  • Lazio vs. AS Roma

FRENCH LIGUE 1

The top two teams in Ligue 1 will square off in Paris on Sunday as PSG welcomes Monaco to town.

The hosts can officially clinch the league title with all three points against their rivals, and would love to do it at home. Unai Emery’s side have already beaten Monaco in league play and also the Coupe de la Ligue final this season. Edinson Cavani leads the team with 24 goals this season. Monaco’s time as title winners could come to an end this weekend, unless they come away with a win. Leonardo Jardim’s side are unbeaten in their last 16 matches since their elimination from the Champions League. Both Radamel Falcao (18 goals) and Marcos Lopes (12 goals) each have hit double digits in goals this season for Monaco.

Here’s all of this weekend’s Ligue 1 fixtures:

Friday

  • Angers vs. Nice

Saturday

  • Lyon vs. Amiens
  • Caen vs. Toulouse
  • Lille vs. Guingamp
  • Nantes vs. Dijon
  • Rennes vs. Metz
  • Strasbourg vs. St. Etienne

Sunday

  • Montpellier vs. Bordeaux
  • Troyes vs. Marseille
  • Paris Saint-Germain vs. AS Monaco

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