In Spain, Barcelona will look to put one over Atheltic Club as they hope to stay within distance of Real Madrid who have a game in hand. Los Blancos are ahead on 46 points while the Catalans and Sevilla are a close second with 42. However, Real Madrid are expected to be highly motivated to defeat their opponents, Celta Vigo after the loss at their hands in the Copa del Rey a few weeks back.
The biggest game of the Bundesliga is the one between Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig as the newcomers will attempt to leave their mark at the Signal Iduna Park. In Italy, a rivalry will be renewed as Juventus host Inter Milan, a side who can once again hope to challenge the defending champions on an equal footing and it’s top of the table action in Ligue 1 as Monaco play hosts to second-place Nice on Saturday.
With another weekend’s action just waiting to kick off in Europe, here’s a look at the best statistics going in:
Barcelona vs. Athletic Club
- Undefeated in 31 out of 34 fixtures against Athletic Club in all competitions, Barcelona have always dominated the Lions, especially in the Spanish League. The Blaugrana are currently enjoying a 13-game unbeaten run in the league and have scored at least three goals in each of their previous three home matches against Athletic Club in all competitions.
- Barcelona have scored a total of 52 goals so far this season as opposed to Athletic’s 26 which is exactly half the amount. While the Catalan’s highest scorer, Luis Suarez has 16 goals so far, the opposition’s front man, Aritz Aduriz has scored just seven.
Atletico Madrid vs. Leganes
- Both Atletico Madrid and Leganes are suffering from a poor run of form. Diego Simeone's side have not won any of their last four competitive games and Leganes have failed to win any of their previous eight fixtures in the Spanish league.
- While Atletico have scored 34 goals and conceded 16, 17th place Leganes have scored 15 and conceded 33, making their goal differences +18 and -18 respectively – a tidy piece of statistic.
Celta de Vigo vs. Real Madrid
- Real Madrid may have lost out to Celta Vigo in the quarterfinal of the Spanish Copa del Rey, but the Los Blancos very much have the upper hand in the La Liga. Zinedine Zidane’s side have come out on top in 26 of 31 league games, scoring at least 2 goals in each of those fixtures.
- Former Liverpool player Iago Aspas is both Celta Vigo’s highest scorer and provider with 11 goals and three assists.
- 17 Real Madrid players have scored for the side this season, more than any other team in Europe’s biggest five leagues.
Bayern Munich vs. Schalke 04
- This Saturday's fixture between Bayern Munich and Schalke 04 is set to be Philipp Lahm's 500th appearance for the Bavarians. The Bayern captain has won 20 trophies during that time, lifting 12 as captain of the team.
- Schalke 04, Manuel Neuer’s former club, has made their worst start to a Bundesliga campaign in the past 23 years. The Miners have just earned 21 points from 18 games and haven’t beaten Carlo Ancelotti’s side in 12 games in all competitions.
Borussia Dortmund vs. RB Leipzig
- It’s going to be a case of Young vs. Younger when Borussia Dortmund host Bundesliga debutantes RB Leipzig this Saturday. While the visiting side have the youngest team in the league, Tuchel has used six U-21 players for Dortmund, a season high as of now.
- To describe the atmosphere at the Signal Iduna Park as intimidating would be an understatement which is why only five visiting teams in the history of the Bundesliga have ever won their first game there. Three of those sides were from the 1920s and the now dissolved VfB Leipzig achieved the feat in 1993.
Juventus vs. Inter Milan
- It’s a battle of the forwards as two of the Serie A’s most prolific strikers go head to head. Both Gonzalo Higuain and Mauro Icardi have scored 15 goals each for their respective sides in the league. While the former Napoli forward has a 31% conversion rate (highest in the competition), Icardi has eight assists to boot.
- Juventus have won all of their previous 27 home games in the Serie A. Neither have they drawn any of their previous 33 games, making it the longest run in the league.
Monaco vs. Nice
- Nice may have defeated Monaco 4-0 in the reverse fixture last year, but the league leaders have scored an astounding 65 goals so far as opposed to the visitors’ 38.
- A positive result is absolutely essential for both sides with Paris Saint-Germain just three points behind. The last time there was a draw between Monaco and Nice was 2010 when the game ended 1-1.
