This weekend will be one that is full of sharing the love around the world. However, there will be no love lost on the soccer field over the coming weekend, as teams around Europe contest huge fixtures. However, which teams should be included in this week's soccer predictions?
Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester City took a huge stride towards winning the Premier League title last weekend, and they will be looking to move further ahead this weekend, as they welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the Etihad. City have been in excellent form since in the middle of November, as they have been unbeaten, and it is looking incredibly hard to see anything other than Pep Guardiola’s side running away with the league title at this point.
They already have a healthy advantage at the top of the league table, as they lead Manchester United by five points with a game in hand. City would need to lose at least two games to allow United the chance to get back in contention and that looks incredibly unlikely. City put their marker down for the league title at the home of the defending champions last weekend, as they hammered Liverpool 4-1. Ilkay Gundogen scored twice in the win, while there were also goals for Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden.
Tottenham had been in the title race earlier in the season, but Jose Mourinho would be appeased with just Champions League qualification now. Spurs are four points off the top four at present, and have been inconsistent over recent weeks. They have lost three of their previous four. However, the return of Harry Kane signalled fresh hope, as the England captain scored in a 2-0 win against West Bromwich Albion last weekend.
City have been on a roll over recent weeks, and it would be incredibly hard to bet against them claiming all three points against Spurs.
Napoli vs Juventus
Juventus look to finally be hitting their purple patch of form at present, and the Old Lady will be looking to close the gap on the top two in Serie A this weekend as they visit Naples to take on Napoli.
Andrea Pirlo’s side have been able to recover their form over the past number of weeks, and will come into this game after three wins on the bounce. Confidence could also be high within the camp, as they may have also reached the Coppa Italia final by the time that the game gets underway on Sunday. The Old Lady picked up a huge win against Roma in their last league game, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring one of the goals.
Champions League football will be the aim for Napoli this season, but they will have work to do in the second half of the campaign to achieve that. They have lost half of their previous six fixtures, and are three points behind fourth placed Roma coming into this game. Genaro Gattuso’s side were beaten by Genoa in their last game, as they suffered a 2-1 defeat.
Juventus are the in-form side in Serie A at present, and they will continue to put more pressure on the league leaders this weekend with a hard-fought win on the road against Napoli.
Wolfsburg vs Borussia Monchengladbach
Wolfsburg have gone under the radar throughout much of the Bundesliga season to this point, but they look primed to challenge for a Champions League position in the second half of the season, as they currently sit in third.
There is no disputing that they have been one of the most difficult sides to beat in the league this term, as they have lost the joint-fewest number of games so far this term. However, their biggest change has been turning draws into victories since the turn of the year, as they have won their last four top-flight fixtures. They now hold a healthy three point lead in the race for the top-four.
Borussia Monchengladbach have been one of the teams in Germany that have fell victim to the surprising challengers for the Champions League places this season, as they currently sit out of the European places altogether in seventh. They are level on points with Borussia Dortmund though, and a win this weekend could see them rise into the final Europa League spot in the Bundesliga.
Wolfsburg’s form this season has caught every soccer fan by surprise, but there is no doubt that they will finish in a Champions League place if they maintain their form. We expect an entertaining game this weekend, with the home side claiming the three points.
Real Madrid vs Valencia
As far as every soccer fan is concerned, the LaLiga title has already fell out of the reach of Real Madrid this season, as they trail Atletico Madrid by a huge margin. The pressure has been mounting on Zinedine Zidane, and he will need to ensure that he gets the best out of his side ahead of the restart of the Champions League.
Madrid have won two of their previous four league games, and have already been beaten on four occasions this term. That is more defeats than Atletico and Villarreal already this season. They picked up a hard-fought win in their last game on the road, as Raphael Varane scored a brace in a 2-1 win against Huesca.
It always looked as though it would be a tricky season for Valencia, as they were forced to sell many of their best players for financial reasons. They will not have the consistency to mount a battle for a European place this season, and will be hoping that they have the quality to steer clear of the relegation battle. Valencia are just four points clear of the drop zone at present.
Valencia enjoyed a win against Madrid earlier in the season, but we don’t expect them to repeat that result, as Zidane’s side will claim maximum points in the Spanish capital.
