Le Classique is considered France’s biggest rivalry; on Sunday Andre Villas-Boas Marseille will storm the capital in mission impossible for three points. Both Schalke and Borussia Dortmund fans will vie for local bragging rights in the first Ruhr derby of the season at the Veltins–Arena.
We begin in France;
LILLE OSC v GIRONDINS BORDEAUX – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 16.30HRS
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Lille and Bordeaux face each other at Stade Pierre-Mauroy in what is expected to be an entertaining game in Saturday. LOSC are without a win in three league matches and will want to put an end to this poor run. Bordeaux will want to back from last weekend’s disappointing home loss to Saint Etienne and seeing that both teams are level on points, a close encounter is on the cards at Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
VERDICT – Lille have been producing their best performances in Ligue 1 at home and they will be eyeing their fifth home win. In the last eight Ligue 1 meetings at Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Bordeaux have managed two wins and two draws. We expect both teams to cancel each other out. Under 2.5 goals
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN v OLYMPIQUE MARSEILLE – SUN. 27 OCT 2019, 21.00HRS
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Sunday’s clash between PSG and Olympique Marseille continues a rich tradition of intense rivalry that dates back decades. Despite the Qatari’s investment in Paris Saint-Germain, Le Classique remains a battle when these two sides lock horns. PSG are without a host of several stars but Angel Di Maria has been the driving force for Thomas Tuchel’s team. Andre Villas-Boas’s men did enough to beat Strasbourg last weekend but a trip to the capital is a different kettle of fish for the Portuguese tactician.
VERDICT – With Kylian Mbappe back to scoring duties – he scored hat-trick midweek in the Champions League, the World Cup winner is expected to lead the home team attack. Marseille have not won away at PSG in the league on their last 10 trips; AVB’s troops are on mission impossible in Paris
To Germany;
BAYERN MUNICH v UNION BERLIN – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 14.30HRS
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Without the services of Niklas Süle and Lucas Hernandez, Bayern Munich should still be good enough to earn a victory against one of the new Bundesliga boys. Goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz will be bidding to do what no Bundesliga shot stopper has done this season – stop Robert Lewandowski from scoring. The Polish striker will be facing his compatriot in the opposition goal as well as a former teammate at Dortmund – Neven Subotic. The Serbian defender will be assigned the responsibility of keeping his former colleague in check in this fixture.
VERDICT – This is the first league meeting between these two sides. Bayern are winless in two Bundesliga matches; 15 points from the first eight Bundesliga matches represents Die Roten’s worst start to a season in nine years. With Bayern’s shaky defense, conceding at least twice in the last three league matches, the visitors will fancy their chances of scoring at Allianz Arena. Over 2.5 goals is a very high outcome in this game.
SCHALKE v BORUSSIA DORTMUND – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 14.30HRS
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The Ruhr derby is all about local bragging right in Germany’s industrial heartland. The rivalry is always intense and there isn’t much to separate them in terms of results in 95 meeting; Dortmund have 34W to Schalke 32W and with 29 draws in between. The Revierderby averages three goals per game and its 95 meetings. Both teams aren’t in spectacular form and form often counts for little when it comes to the Revierderby. Last term, the Royal Blues were 42 points worse off than Dortmund when they blew them away at the Signal Iduna Park, dealing a major blow to BVB’s title hopes. The gap is much closer going int this derby.
VERDICT – Schalke have a better recent record, remaining unbeaten in five of the six most recent duels. The difference in squad quality is quite obvious; Dortmund have the better team but Schalke have proven to be a tough nut to crack. We expect both defenses to be breach but it will come down to who wants it more. Both teams to score.
To Italy;
LECCE v JUVENTUS – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 14.00HRS
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Lecce host league leaders Juventus on Saturday as they look to build on an impressive point away to Milan last weekend. The Salentians sit 16th in the league, and that draw at the San Siro helped stop a run of two defeats against Atalanta and Roma. Juventus winning run in the Serie A is now at five however, the goals haven’t flown freely for Maurizio Sarri’s side. The Bianconeris are coming up against a Lecce defence who have conceded 17 in their opening eight league games, they will be confident of racking up goals against the struggling side.
VERDICT – The point earned in Milan will give Fabio Liverani’s team confidence to face the champions but they are up against it. Juventus lost three of their last 15 Serie A trips to Lecce, winning nine with the others ending in a stalemate. Both teams will attack and with Chiellini still absence, there is a high chance both teams will get on the score sheet.
INTER MILAN v PARMA – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 17.00HRS
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Parma travel to the Giuseppe Meazza in high spirit following a commanding home win over Genoa. On the other hand, Inter will be buoyed by their Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund during the week as the entertain Parma at home. For Antonio Conte’s team to keep up with Juventus, the Nerazzurris need to keep winning. The Crociati are eight on the log and last weekend hero Andreas Cornelius leading the line for Roberto D’Aversa’s side.
VERDICT – Parma have struggled for consistency this season and their defensive issues is yet to be resolved. We can expect Inter’s attack led by Lautaro Martinez and Romelu Lukaku to exploit those weaknesses. Only three of the last 20 Serie A meetings between these clubs have been ended in draws. Parma earned a shock victory last season but that’s unlikely this time. Over 1.5 goals
To Spain;
ATLETICO MADRID v ATHLETIC BILBAO – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 20.00HRS
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Athletic Bilbao’s early season good form feels like a long time now; Gaizka Garitano’s team have not won in the last four and now have to travel to Madrid to face Atletico. Both coaches usually focus on the defensive side of the game and despite the attacking qualities possessed, we are in a tactical battle in the middle of the park. Diego Simeone’s men have drawn their last three LaLiga matches and their poor run of results has seen Los Colchoneros drop out of the top four on the league table.
VERDICT – La Liga’s two best defences square up against each other with both sides averaging just 0.6 goals conceded per game. Atletico have won four of the last six competitive meetings and with hoe advantage, the crowd at Wanda Metropolitano might be able to push their team over the line. Under 2.5 goals
GRANADA v REAL BETIS – SUN. 27 OCT 2019, 14.00HRS
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Granada can extend their winning run at home in LaLiga to four games when they welcome struggling Real Betis to Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes. Diego Martinez’s team have been the surprise team in the Spanish top flight; they sit third in the standings and are just two points behind leaders Barcelona. On the other hand, Rubi’s arrival has not changed the fortunes of Real Betis; Los Verdiblancos sit in the relegation zone as they prepare for the trip to Granada. Pressure has started building and rumors of discontent is in the air at Benito Villamarin on the former Espanyol coach.
VERDICT – Granada have kept five clean sheets in their last seven matches while Real Betis have failed to win nine of their last 10 away league matches. The home team have won the last three home matches in the league. The pressure is on the visitors to perform, they will need a top performance to prevail against a solid team at home. Over 2.5 goals
To England;
BURNLEY v CHELSEA – SAT. 26 OCT 2019, 17.30HRS
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Chelsea make the trip to Turf Moor with a fourth successive win in their sights while Burnley will be aiming to register a first-ever Premier League victory against the Blues on home soil. A controversial VAR decision cost the Clarets a share of the spoils at King Power Stadium against Leicester last week and Sean Dyche will aim to motivate his team to focus on the task ahead. Sitting eight on the table, Burnley will provide Chelsea’s defense with a different kind of test to what they face in Amsterdam on Wednesday night. The Blues ae beginning to look the path under club legend Frank Lampard. They have won five in a row on the road this season.
VERDICT – Burnley have lost four in a winless run of five Premier League home matches against Chelsea. The Clarets have conceded at least twice in each defeat. Chelsea have won their last three Premier League away fixtures, scoring 3+ on each occasion. Here is another tough test for the Blues but the stake is on them to leave Turf Moor with all three points.
LIVERPOOL v TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR – SUN. 27 OCT 2019, 17.30HRS
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Liverpool’s run of 17 successive victories in the Premier League came to a halt at Old Trafford and they will aim to get back to winning ways immediately when Tottenham Hotspur visit Anfield. Liverpool’s performance at Old Trafford was poor and they have been rightly criticized because they were lucky to escape with a draw. Spurs have been on a rough path in recent weeks and their five-star performance against Crvena zvezda midweek is not enough indication that they have turned the corner. Mauricio Pochettion side is yet to win on the road in the league this season.
VERDICT – Liverpool won all three meetings last season including the Champions League final. The Reds are on a nine-game unbeaten run at Anfield against Tottenham, winning three of the last four. Spurs are little fragile at the moment but Mauricio Pochettino’s team can match the Reds on their day. With the attacking qualities possessed by both teams, we believe there should be goals at either end.
This wraps up our FESIG preview for the week. Predict and win big by visiting our Sports shop Babaijebu.ng for mouthwatering offers in all matches available in the French, German, Italian, Spanish and English leagues and more for the weekend.