Alvaro Arbeloa: A defeat like this is painful (0:53)New Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa has described their Copa del Rey exit to Albacete as “painful.” (0:53)
Battle between East French clubs Strasbourg vs. Metz
Manchester derby between two teams in opposite worlds Manchester United vs. Manchester City
Can Bayern continue their impressive run? RB Leipzig vs. Bayern Munich
Bundesliga, Matchday 18 Kickoff: Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. GMT Stream LIVE on ESPN+ in the U.S.
Every Friday, I will pick the weekend’s best or most exciting games that are not to be missed in the world of football. From derbies to top-of-the-table clashes, relegation six-pointers to world-class players facing each other, or interesting tactical battles, there will be something for everyone to enjoy.
This week, we take you to England, Spain, France, Germany and Morocco for a big derby, a top-of-the-table clash, some league debuts on benches, and a big tournament final!
The East of France derby is back! Metz, who were promoted back to the top flight last summer, will be greeted by arch-rivals Strasbourg and a very hostile crowd on Sunday.
It is a new era starting, but there will still be some toxicity and I expect a lot of protests against the BlueCo ownership, who continue to strengthen Chelsea by weakening the French club. Strasbourg are seventh in the table, six points off fifth and eight points behind the UEFA Champions League positions. They have to win this game before some tough fixtures arrive with a trip to Lille, then Paris Saint-Germain, AS Monaco (in the Coupe de France), and Marseille.
MY PREDICTION: Strasbourg 3-1 Metz. O’Neil’s league debut will go well on Sunday. He will experience a great atmosphere in his first Ligue 1 game and his team will be too good for struggling Metz.
Making it slightly more difficult is the fact that Kylian Mbappé will not be returning to the lineup ahead of a meeting with his former club Monaco in the Champions League on Tuesday. His current team need him more than ever.
MY PREDICTION: Real Madrid 2-0 Levante. It won’t be pretty, but there is surely no way that Real Madrid don’t beat Levante at the Bernabéu. Losing to Albacete was bad enough, but they won’t have another disastrous result three days later. They will win but not convincingly.
This is the first game of the Michael Carrick era at Manchester United. It will be a short spell — he’s taken over until the end of the season, with no guarantees of anything further — but it starts with a bang and a Manchester derby against title-contenders Manchester City.
One can assume that Carrick would have preferred a gentler start than facing the second-best team in the league and legendary manager Pep Guardiola. It is what it is, however, and he will have to throw himself at the deep end and do his best.
We are not sure what to expect from him or United, but let’s hope the Red Devils play with a back four, that Bruno Fernandes is back in his natural No. 10 position, that Carrick can tighten things up defensively, and that forwards Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo (now back from AFCON) start performing well together up front. It is a lot to ask, especially with not much time in training, but not impossible.
It is also a great opportunity to derail City’s title challenge and the fans at Old Trafford would love that. City have not put in great performances or results lately, with some draws in the league preventing them from keeping close to leaders Arsenal, but new winger Antoine Semenyo (who has two goals in two games already) has shown how impactful he can be.
Erling Haaland’s form is more of a worry. Of course he will probably score on Saturday, but he has not found the back of the net in open play now for five games in a row in all competitions, with just one penalty in that time. Rayan Cherki is the one who has been making City tick recently.
MY PREDICTION: Man United 1-2 Man City. United have actually done well against big clubs in the Premier League in recent seasons, despite the chaos, and will do well again. It just won’t be enough to stop their noisy neighbors from taking the win.
Can Bayern repeat their almost perfect first half of the season? They start 2026 with the first of their three toughest away trips: first in Leipzig on Saturday, before they have to go to Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen. But for now, they face a team eager to avenge their humiliating 6-0 defeat at the start of the season.
Leipzig are third and could trouble the Bayern defense, like Wolfsburg did at the start of the game last weekend before imploding and losing 8-1. Apart from Arsenal in the Champions League (3-1), Mainz (2-2) and Union Berlin (2-2), everyone else has lost against Bayern.
They are a machine with incredible attacking power; Harry Kane and Michael Olise are having the seasons of their lives, young prodigy Lennart Karl is shining, and Jamal Musiala is on his way back to full fitness after a horrific injury over the summer.
Leipzig will have to put a lot of intensity in their game, but without making the mistakes that usually get punished against this Bayern side.
MY PREDICTION: RB Leipzig 1-3 Bayern Munich. Bayern will remain unbeaten in the league; Leipzig will put them under pressure, but Kane and company will find a way to stay on top and win again.
This is an amazing final to finish off a great Africa Cup of Nations as arguably the two best teams on the continent — and in this tournament — face each other. There will be two massive stars on the pitch, in Achraf Hakimi and Sadio Mané, as well as a lot of tension and passion from both sets of fans.
However, it is easier said than done. Morocco are a very well-organized team as we saw in their semifinal against Nigeria, who only put 0.05 expected goals in 120 minutes!
Alvaro Arbeloa: A defeat like this is painful (0:53)New Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa has described their Copa del Rey exit to Albacete as “painful.” (0:53)
New Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa has described their Copa del Rey exit to Albacete as “painful.” (0:53)