5 Must-Watch Games From Around Europe This Weekend

18 September 2020 07:00

Your pulse has gone up, your fantasy football team is in the bin, and you've sworn to never put Spurs in your accumulator ever again. Yep, football is well and truly back.

After the Premier League kicked off in fine fashion, the top flights in Italy and Germany all get in on the act this weekend with some cracking opening games.

Here are five games from around Europe that you should be keeping an eye on.

1. Bayern Munich vs Schalke (Friday 18th, 19:30)

Okay, technically not at the weekend, but come on - it's Bayern Munich.

Hansi Flick's treble winners begin their search of a ninth straight Bundesliga title with a home fixture against David Wagner's Schalke.

Will they be the powerhouse that they were last season? That remains to be seen, but it should be interesting to see how they cope without the Liverpool-bound Thiago.

2. Borussia Dortmund vs Borussia Monchengladbach (Saturday 19th, 17:30)

Looking to put an end to Bayern's reign of terror will be Lucien Favre's Borussia Dortmund, and they begin with a tasty looking fixture against Borussia Monchengladbach.

Having kept Jadon Sancho at the club for now, and adding the likes of Jude Bellingham and Thomas Meunier to their ranks, BVB promise to provide a tougher test for the Bavarians this season. The opener against a very strong Monchengladbach side could give us an idea of the level that they're at.

3. Chelsea vs Liverpool (Sunday 20th, 16:30)

Is it too early to call this one a potential title decider?

Last season's runaway champions visit Frank Lampard's new-look Chelsea side. Neither of the two looked at their best in their openers, but nonetheless managed to come away with the three points.

It's the first time two of the 'big six' meet in the Premier League this season, and all eyes will be watching to see whether the Blues' big money arrivals are enough to launch a serious title charge.

An interesting sub-plot from this game could be centred around German forward Timo Werner, who looked nailed on to join Liverpool before Chelsea swooped in.

4. Juventus vs Sampdoria (Sunday 20th, 19:45)

Italian giants Juventus had to settle for just the one trophy last season, resulting in the sacking of manager Maurizio Sarri. Taking his place is one of the coolest men in football: Andrea Pirlo.

How will he do? Will he be a Zinedine Zidane, or a Gary Neville? Nobody knows, but his managerial debut against Sampdoria should be a good watch.

Not to mention, Cristiano Ronaldo is back on our screens.

5. Real Sociedad vs Real Madrid (Sunday 20th, 20:00)

After dethroning Catalan giants Barcelona last campaign, Real Madrid go in search of their first back-to-back titles since 2008.

With the Blaugrana not kicking off until next weekend, Zidane's men have the opportunity to set the bar with a tricky test against Real Sociedad, who ended the previous term in sixth place. Hopefully they set us up for an enthralling title race.

Source: 90min