La Liga enters week 7 with Madrid Derby taking the centre stage
By Tanko Bauka
One of the fiercest rivalries will be rekindled this weekend in the Spanish La Liga as Atletico Madrid prepares to welcome their neighbour and arch-rival to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium in the Spanish capital for the week 7 battle.
Atletico Madrid have not been having it easy in the league so far but they would want to use this weekend encounter to send a strong statement to other teams of their intentions to challenge for the league but they need to be at their very best because their opponent Real Madrid is already proving a difficult opponent to play against this season.
Real Madrid are sitting top of the league with 15 points out of five matches and look strong to challenge FC Barcelona for the league crown, which they narrowly missed out on last season, with the New Manager. Xabi Alonso seems to have reawakened the winning mentality in the team, which has won the league more than any of their opponents, but whatever it may be, this encounter between the two Madrid giants will have a significant impact on where the league will swing and boost the chance of whoever wins in the supremacy battle.
The defending Champion FC Barcelona is closely following behind, dispatching their opponents without mercy as they seek to catch up with Real Madrid, and this weekend they have Real Sociedad to contend with for the three points at stake, while Villarreal welcome Athletic Bilbao to the Yellow submarine stadium, with Sevilla travelling to battle Rayo Vallacano.
Real Betis welcome Osasuna, Mallorca and Deportivo Alaves slug it out as Valencia host newly promoted Real Oviedo.
In the English Barclays Premier League, the defending Champion Liverpool FC will seek to continue with their impressive runs as they travel to take on Crystal Palace in their backyard, Selhurst Park Stadium in London and Arne Slot and his boys would pray that Crystal Palace didn’t spoil their party as they seek to retain the league trophy.
Manchester United with their victorious feat against Chelsea travel to take on high-flying Brentford at the Graffin Park Stadium while Manchester City which picked up a valuable one point against Arsenal last weekend will be at Etihad Stadium to welcome newly promoted Burnley as Enzo Maresca Chelsea cannot afford any further slip as they welcome Brighton and Albion Hove to Stamford Bridge Stadium in London.
The Blues suffered a painful 2-1 loss to Manchester United last weekend, and the coming of Brighton and Albion Hove offers them the opportunity to make amends, but their opponents are also not a pushover because they have been known to play better away from home.
Arsenal will have a very tricky trip to a very difficult ground for any team in the league, Saint James Park Stadium, to battle Newcastle United, and Mikel Arteta and his opponent, Eddie Howe, are all battle-ready to fight for the three points, which is very crucial to both teams at this stage.
Aston Villa welcome Fulham, while underperforming Wolves travel to London to take on Tottenham Hotspurs, which has since rediscovered its form since the coming of Thomas Frank, who has turned Tottenham Hotspurs into a contender.
Everton face a lacklustre West Ham United that is not doing very well in the league, while Nottingham Forest is prepared to go toe to toe with impressive Sunderland.
In the Italian Serie A Juventus and Atalanta will set the league on fire as Lookman Ademola and his colleagues hit town to take on the Old ladies in Turin while Cagliari wrestle Inter Milan for the vital three points at stake as AC Milan seek to stop the defending Champion Napoli’s momentum as they come visiting in San Siro stadium.
Como host Cremonese while Genoa welcome Lazio, as Parma battle Torino, with Lacce taking on Bologna.
In the German Bundesliga, Bayern Munich will be at Allianz Arena in Munich to take on Werder Bremen, while FC St Pauli entertain Bayer Leverkusen, and Wolfsburg engage RB Leipzig.
Bayern Monchengladbach welcome Eintracht Frankfurt, and Mainz 05 battle Borussia Dortmund, while SC Freiburg slug it out with Hoffenheim, with Koln facing Stuttgart, and Union Berlin taking on Hamburger.
Fixtures across Europe
English Barclays Premier League
Saturday
Brentford vs Manchester United
Leeds United vs Bournamount
Manchester City vs Burnley
Crystal Palace vs Liverpool FC
Chelsea vs Brighton Albion
Nottingham vs Sunderland
Tottenham vs Wolves
Sunday
Aston Villa vs Fulham
Newcastle United vs Arsenal
Monday
Everton vs West Ham United
Spanish La Liga
Friday
Girona vs Espanyol
Saturday
Gatafe vs Lavente
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid
Mallorca vs Deportivo Alaves
Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao
Sunday
Rayo Vallacano vs Sevilla
Elche vs Celta Vigo
FC Barcelona vs Real Sociedad
Real Betis vs Osasuna
Monday
Valencia vs Real Oviedo
Italian Serie A
Como vs Cremonese
Juventus vs Atalanta
Cagliari vs Inter Milan
Sunday
Sassoulo vs Udinese
Pisa SC vs Fiorentina
AS Roma vs Hellas Verona
Lacce vs Bologna
AC Milan vs Napoli
Monday
Parma vs Torino
Genoa vs Lazio
