• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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BusinessDay

Mourinho returns as European club football resumes

Mourinho-Spurs

After the international football break, European club football returns this weekend with some mouth-watering fixtures in England, Spain and Italy.

English champions Manchester City welcome Chelsea to the Etihad Stadium. The match is a must-win for Pep Guardiola’s boys who must remain defensively solid against a very young and creative Chelsea side.

After losing 3-1 against Liverpool, City will hope to get back on track with a win at home and reclaim 2nd position should Leicester fail to win at Brighton.

Newly appointed Jose Mourinho will look to halt the run of Tottenham’s bad results as he takes over his first game as manager against a West Ham team that is in dire need of a win. Mourinho promised Tottenham fans’ passion and will hope to begin his reign as manager with a win at London Stadium.

In the English championship, former West Ham and Tottenham midfielder, Scott Parker will lead his Fulham side as they continue their quest for Premier League return when they welcome fellow Londoners, Queens Park Rangers this weekend. Fulham comes into the clash on the back of a 1-0 win away to Birmingham City before the international break, a result which leaves the Cottagers in seventh spot and two points off the promotion playoff zone. Scott Parker, who was named permanent manager in May, will be eager to see his side claim another 3 points and strengthen their hope of an immediate premier league return.

In the Serie A, defending champions Juventus visit high-flying Atalanta who sit fifth on the Serie A table. Juventus will hope to continue their unbeaten run in Serie A and extend their lead on Antonio Conte’s Inter with a win at Atalanta. Juventus will hope that their star player Cristiano Ronaldo, coming off the 4 goals scored for Portugal during the international break will inspire them to another Serie A victory.

Another exciting match to look forward to this weekend is AC Milan vs Napoli. 7th place Napoli travels to the Italian capital to face fellow strugglers AC Milan who occupy the 14th position on the table. Napoli will travel with their “rock solid” Senegalese defender, Kalidou Koulibaly who starred for his national team during the international break.

The Naples-based club was tipped to be a formidable challenger to Juventus and a resurgent Inter at the top of the log this season, however that hasn’t been the case as Carlo Ancelloti’s side is currently 13 points behind leaders Juventus. Napoli’s recent struggles have led to speculation of transfers for some of their top players including their prized centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly. The 28-year-old could be tempted to move to the Premier League with Manchester United and Manchester City being possible destinations.

In Spain, Real Madrid will hope for a full 3 points as they square up against a very tricky Real Sociedad side. The capital club sits 2nd on the table with 25 points and will want to maintain the pressure on leaders Barcelona who travel to Estadio Municipal de Butarque, to face bottom side, Leganes. Real Sociedad is fifth and will be out to claim a major scalp in the Spanish capital and boost their hopes of finishing in the European places.