5️⃣ spicy fixtures you must watch this weekend 🌶 | OneFootball

We’re back with another selection of the best games to watch this weekend, excluding the Premier League – and boy has the European schedule delivered!

Vini revenge against Valencia?

Spice rating: Mild 🌶

We kick things off in Spain as two clubs who made headlines last year go head-to-head on Saturday – and a big talking point will be around Vinicius Junior.

It’s the first time Real Madrid and Valencia have faced off since the match that put the Brazilian attacker front and centre following racial abuse from fans inside the Mestalla.

And this clash at the Santiago Bernabéu could actually have an added edge for Vinicius Junior for another reason too.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side are coming off a goalless draw against Rayo Vallecano, as Madrid’s gaping issue was on full display. When Jude Bellingham doesn’t have his best day, goals are scarce.

Vinicius Junior has struggled this season in front of goal but after a goal and an assist in their mid-week Champions League victory, he will undoubtedly look to have his say against Valencia while backed by home support.

Both sides enter this match with a strong record, Madrid unbeaten in nine matches across all competitions and Valencia in five. History tends to favour the hosts, with seven wins from the last 10 meetings.

Can the Brazilian get his revenge while also jumpstarting his season?

Rebounds on the table in Bundesliga headliner

Spice rating: Medium 🌶 🌶

Germany’s top flight pits two teams in the top four against each other as VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Dortmund hope to claim third place outright.

The teams are level on 21 points (seven off leaders Bayer Leverkusen) and after stumbling in their last two league fixtures a rebound is vital for both.

Stuttgart will hope Serhou Guirassy can return after missing their last three fixtures due to injury. His form in front of goal is particularly outstanding so far, with 14 goals in eight games (only bettered by Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane). The hosts average 3.12 goals per game with him versus one without.

BVB, meanwhile, enter the match coming off a humbling 4-0 Klassiker defeat against Bayern but hinted in the Champions Legaue mid-week that their confidence is on the rise again after beating Newcastle. The visitors will notably look to Julian Brandt, who has registered a goal or assist in every league fixture except in the Bayern defeat.

Looking at their head-to-head record, history heavily favours the visitors, as Stuttgart have just one win from 10 home clashes against Dortmund.

But that all goes out the window this weekend with the hosts playing some of their best football this season.

A changing of the guard in France

Spice rating: Hot 🌶 🌶 🌶

Only four points separate giants Paris Saint-Germain from Reims as Will Still continues to prove Football Manager can be a true asset in real life.

The fourth-place hosts have won six of their first 11 games for the first time since 1974-75 and are unbeaten in three. They hold solid defensive records as well with 12 goals conceded (just three more than their upcoming opponents).

And during his pre-match press conference, PSG boss Luis Enrique admitted the trip will be a challenging contest for his second-place side.

“They are one of the best teams of 2023 in Ligue 1,” he insisted. “We will see how we can adapt, but it will be difficult. Obviously, we are not expecting a simple or quiet match. It will be a very intense, complicated match. Clearly, I think we need to be concentrated so as not to be surprised.”

The Parisian giants enter the match off a shock loss to Milan in the Champions League, with superstar Kylian Mbappé now two games without a goal. But this is PSG, we’re talking about, so don’t write them off.

Suspensions harm both sides with Reims’ top scorer Teddy Teuma out alongside PSG missing Achraf Hakimi and Randal Kolo Muani.

Looking at their history, the hosts are winless in seven league games against the visitors, but their last meeting (1-1 draw) testifies to a changing of the guard in France. Claiming all three points is vital for both sides looking to close in on leaders Nice.

El Gran Derbi

Spice rating: Fire 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶

Sevilla face cross-town rivals Real Betis in one of Spain’s liveliest clashes, and these clubs have had two very different starts to the season currently separated by nine points.

The hosts will feel the pressure having propelled themselves out of the relegation zone by the skin of their teeth (four consecutive draws). The visitors, meanwhile, are unbeaten in 11 fixtures, last losing on 21 September.

Aside from results, the clubs are evenly matched. They both find ways to put the ball in the net but are also leaky in their defence, boasting goal differentials of +1 with scoring talent across the board.

Willian Jose leads the way for Real Betis (nine goals), but four other names are tied for second at four goals each: Marc Roca, Ayoze Perez, Abde Ezzalzouli and Assane Diao. For Sevilla, Youssef En-Nesyri leads the way with seven goals so far and Nemanja Gudelj is second with three followed by four names tied on two.

There will be a particular spotlight on Isco as he faces his old club, this time wearing green, and Nabil Fekir’s return after suffering an ACL injury eight months ago is a huge boost. Unfortunately for Sevilla, Sergio Ramos remains a serious doubt, while goalkeeper Orjan Nyland and Marcos Acuna are also unavailable. A late decision from Real Betis sees goalkeepers Claudio Bravo and Rui Silva both out, and Vieites forced to start.

Sunday’s derby could be a historic achievement for the visitors, too, as their impressive form could propel them to a first away victory over their rivals in five years. The Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, however, is always a challenging atmosphere.

Derby della Capitale dramatics

Spice rating: Insane 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶

Finally, all eyes will be on the Stadio Olimpico in Rome for what’s expected to be a dramatic Derby della Capitale as Lazio welcome Roma to town. And some of the biggest names in Italian football will be at centre stage.

It’s Maurizio Sarri against Jose Mourinho with Ciro Immobile, Pedro, Felipe Anderson, Taty Castellanos, Ivan Provedel, Romelu Lukaku, Paulo Dybala, Andrea Belotti and Leandro Paredes amongst the players on the pitch.

The in-form Lukaku loves to play against Lazio, with five-goal involvements in his last three meetings alongside nine goals in 13 games this season. However, Immobile also loves this all-Italian thriller, sitting two goals shy of the most goals for Lazio in the derby (six).

Looking at the history of this particular rivalry, fans can expect fireworks. No fixture has led to more red cards than this one in Serie A dating back to 1994-95 (38 in 58 games).

Both sides had a poor start to their 2023-24 season, but an eventual uptick in forms sees the two clubs separated by just one point in the table (Lazio 10th, Roma seventh). The three points on the table could propel either club within reach of the top four.

Lazio won their last two meetings against Roma, completing the derby double for the first time in 11 years with a clean sheet in both results. Can Mourinho’s men avoid three defeats in a row? It would be the perfect response to a shock defeat in the Europa League mid-week.