Aston Villa Frustrates Liverpool’s Hope Of Extending Lead
By Tanko Bauka
Liverpool’s hope of extending their seven points lead at the top of the English Barclays Premier League to ten points has suffered a major setback as they were held to a two-all draw by Aston Villa, a result which has thrown up an opportunity to the likes of Arsenal and the other chasing pack to reduce the points if they will hold their ground to be able to pick up three points in their various matches this weekend.
Though Liverpool still lead the pack with eight points, they have played one more game than Arsenal, who are closely following behind them and the rest.
As Arne Slot and his boys close in to the title, they must navigate some tougher matches as they continue to set the pace.
The Anfield landlord will this weekend travel to Etihad Stadium to take on wounded Manchester City, whose rebuilding process was dealt a heavy blow by Real Madrid in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League, which knocked them out of this year’s European tournament.
Following their disappointing showing in the two legs of the playoff, Pep Guardiola and Manchester City will now shift their attention to the league to salvage what is left of their unforgettable season to life in the English Barclays Premier League.
Arsenal, on the other hand, will be at the Emirate stadium in London, their home ground, as they welcome another London team, West Ham, in another London derby to battle for the three points and put more pressure on the league leader Liverpool.
Enzo Marasca and his Chelsea boys will make a tricky trip to take on Aston Villa to continue their fight for a place in Europe next football season while highly improved Everton will be seeking to further compound the woes of Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United as they travel to Goodison Park to do battle with Everton which have since leapfrogged Manchester United in the league table since the arrival of David Moyes.
Tottenham Hotspur will be on the road to slug it out with relegation-threatened Ipswich Town, while another relegation-bound Leicester City will host Brentford at the King Power Stadium.
In the Spanish, LA Liga Las Palmas take on the new league leader FC Barcelona which will want to go all out for the three points to cement their place on top of the league while second-place Real Madrid without Jude Bellingham who was suspended for two matches for dissent toward the centre referee in Real Madrid encounter with Osasuna will host Girona.
Real Madrid will be going into this encounter in fine form as their talisman, Kylian Mbappe, has rediscovered his confidence in front of the goal.
Getafe take on Real Betis while Valencia, which is fighting the battle of their lives in the league, looking at their position, welcome third-place Atletico Madrid.
Athletic Bilbao play Real Valladolid while Real Sociedad battle Laganes.
In the Italian Serie A, Como host Antonio Conte Napoli as Inter Milan take on Patrick Viara Genoa, with Empoli hosting Atalanta, who are in the news for the way they handled their elimination from the UEFA Champions League playoff following the face-off between the coach and Ademola Lookman.
In Germany Holstein Kiel welcome Bayern Leverkusen while Burussia Dortmund host Union Berlin.
The league leader Bayern Munich will be at Allianz Arena stadium to welcome the surprise team of the league, Eintracht Frankfurt, while RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim welcome Heidenheim and Stuttgart, respectively.
Fixtures across Europe
English Barclays Premier League
Friday
Leicester vs Brentford
Saturday
Everton vs Manchester United
AFC Bournemouth vs Wolves
Arsenal vs West Ham
Fulham vs Crystal Palace
Ipswich Town vs Tottenham
Southampton vs Brighton Albion
Aston Villa vs Chelsea
Sunday
Newcastle vs Nottingham
Manchester City vs Liverpool
Spanish LA Liga
Friday
Celta Vigo vs Osasuna
Saturday
Deportivo Alaves vs Espanyol
Rayo Vallacano vs Villarreal
Valencia vs Atletico Madrid
Las Palmas vs FC Barcelona
Sunday
Athletic Bilbao vs Real Valladolid
Real Madrid vs Girona
Gatafe vs Real Betis
Real Sociedad vs Laganes
Monday
Sevilla vs Mallorca
Italian Serie A
Friday
Lacce vs Udinese
Saturday
Parma vs Bologna
Venezia vs Lazio
Torino vs AC Milan
Inter Milan vs Genoa
Sunday
Como vs Napoli
Hellas Verona vs Fiorentina
Empoli vs Atalanta
Cagliari vs Juventus
Monday
AS Roma vs AC Monza
German Bundesliga
Friday
SC Freiburg vs Werder Bremen
Saturday
Holstein Kiel vs Leverkusen
Monchenglabach vs FC Augsburg
Wolfsburg vs VFL Bochum
Mainz 05 vs FC St Pauli
Dortmund vs Union Berlin
Sunday
RB Leipzig vs Heidenheim
Bayern Munich vs Frankfurt
Hoffenheim vs Stuttgart
