Five things to look forward to in Europe this week
With only a couple of weeks left in January, European teams are looking to wrap up their transfer business before heading into February.
We begin with the first-legs of the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey, with the three big teams in La Liga all featuring. Bayern Munich kick off league action in Germany on Friday, while Tottenham’s visit to Manchester City and AC Milan’s home tie against Napoli highlight Saturday’s action.
Another big game in Italy on Sunday will see Juventus host Lazio, while Chelsea and Arsenal will also be in action, over in England. The week concludes with more action from the domestic cup competitions across Europe.
#1 La Liga intensifies following Real Madrid loss
Last week, Sevilla managed to get the better of an unbeaten Real Madrid side, and in turn, blow the La Liga title race wide open. Los Rojiblancos scored two late goals to reduce the gap between the two teams to a single point, although Zinedine Zidane’s side are still atop the table having played a game less than their fellow contenders.
Barcelona and Atletico Madrid also grabbed important victories over the weekend to keep themselves in close contention.
Football in Spain once again kicks off with Copa del Rey in midweek with Celta Vigo travelling to the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium and Atletico Madrid hosting Eibar on Thursday. The following day will see Barcelona in action against Real Sociedad to conclude the first legs of the quarter-final of the Copa del Rey.
Only a couple of days later, teams will be back in league action, with the top four all expected to claim wins. Leaders, Real Madrid will be itching to get back to winning ways against Malaga on Saturday, while Sunday sees the remainder of the top four in action.
Luis Enrique’s team will make the trip up north to Eibar, while Sevilla visit Osasuna. Atletico Madrid will need to keep their run of three wins in a row going against Athletic Bilbao.