Laurens weekend preview: Manchester derby, Real Madrid redemption?

Every Friday, I will pick the best or most exciting weekend games that you should not miss in the world of football. From derbies to top-of-the-table, six-pointers to world-class players going head-to-head, or exciting tactical battles, there will be something for everyone to enjoy.

This week, we take you to England, Spain, France, Germany and Morocco for big derbies, top-of-the-table clashes, league debuts on the benches, and the grand final!

A battle between East French clubs
Strasbourg vs. Metz

Ligue 1, match day 18
Kickoff: Sunday, 9 am ET / 2 pm GMT

The East of France derby is back! Metz, who were promoted to the top flight last summer, will be greeted by rivals Strasbourg and a more hostile crowd on Sunday.

Back in August, Strasbourg won away from home, but they are a different team now, with ex-Wolves boss Gary O’Neil replacing Liam Rosenior on the bench (after leaving Chelsea) and star striker Emmanuel Emegha missing due to injury. And there are many chances that we will see the back four of Strasbourg instead of Rosenior in the back three.

It’s a new era starting, but it will still be toxic and I expect many protests against the ownership of BlueCo, who continue to strengthen Chelsea by weakening the French club. Strasbourg is in seventh place in the table, six points ahead of fifth place and eight points behind the UEFA Champions League positions. They must win this game before the tough games come with a trip to Lille, then Paris Saint-Germain, AS Monaco (in the Coupe de France), and Marseille.

But Metz are the ones who really need the points right now. They are sitting at the bottom with only three wins from 17 league games so far. It’s not all bad as they are firmly at the bottom of the table, with just six points between 18 and 13, but a win would go a long way for the confidence of Stephane Le Mignan – a manager under pressure.

MY PIECE: Strasbourg 3-1 Metz. O’Neil’s first league game will go well on Sunday. He will be in good spirits in his Ligue 1 debut and his team will be very good against struggling Metz.

LaLiga, matchday 20
Kick-off: Saturday 8 am ET / 1 pm GMT
Stream LIVE on ESPN+ in the US

Where do we start?

What: What a great start to 2026 for Real Madrid! They lost the Spanish Supercopa final to Barcelona, ​​sacked Xabi Alonso, and were humiliated by second-placed Albacete in the Copa del Rey under new manager Alvaro Arbeloa. The past few days have been amazing. So you’d say it’s a good time to face struggling Levante, but is it really?

Levante will make it difficult for the home team, even though they are not a defensive team. However, despite being second from bottom, with only three wins this season, they have been playing well away from home. They are actually eighth in the away results table (three wins, two draws and five losses). They certainly couldn’t pull this off… couldn’t they?

Since Luis Castro took over as manager, Levante have won 3-0 against Sevilla and drew 1-1 with Espanyol at home. But Saturday will be all about Real Madrid and how (or if) they can get out of their little trouble. They are only four points behind Barcelona and could still win LaLiga given the number of games remaining, but they will need to play better and defend better if they are to do so. They cannot afford anything less than that to win, otherwise the problem will deepen.

Making it even more difficult is the fact that Kylian Mbappé will not be back in the lineup ahead of the meeting with his former club Monaco in the Champions League on Tuesday. His current team needs him more than ever.

MY GUARANTEE: Real Madrid 2-0 Levante. It won’t be pretty, but there’s no way Real Madrid won’t beat Levante at the Bernabéu. Losing to Albacete was bad enough, but they wouldn’t have another bad result three days later. They will win but not in a convincing way.

Premier League, Matchday 21
Kick-off: Saturday, 7:30 am ET / 12:30 pm GMT

This is the first game of the Michael Carrick era at Manchester United. It will be a short spell – he has taken over until the end of the season, with no guarantees of anything else — but it starts with a bang and a Manchester derby against title contenders Manchester City.

One would think that Carrick would have preferred to get off to a good start rather than facing the second best team in the league and popular manager Pep Guardiola. It is what it is, though, and he’ll have to give it up eventually and do the best he can.

We’re not sure what to expect from him or United, but let’s hope that the Red Devils play with four players at the back, that Bruno Fernandes is back in his natural number 10 position, that Carrick can tighten things up defensively, and that striker Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo (now back from AFCON) start working well together up front. It’s a lot to ask, especially if you don’t have a lot of time to train, but it’s impossible.

It’s also a great chance to end City’s title challenge and the Old Trafford fans will love that. City haven’t had a good run of form or results recently, with other league struggles preventing them from getting close to leaders Arsenal, but new winger Antoine Semenyo (with two goals in two games) has shown just how impactful he can be.

Erling Haaland’s form is very worrying. Of course he will probably score on Saturday, but he is yet to find a goal in open play now with five consecutive games remaining in all competitions, with one penalty in that time. Rayan Cherki is the one who has untied City recently.

MY GUARANTEE: Man United 1-2 Man City. United have actually done well against the big clubs in the Premier League in recent seasons, despite the turmoil, and will do well again. It just won’t be enough to stop their noisy neighbors from taking the win.

Bundesliga, Matchday 18
Kick-off: Saturday, 12:30 pm ET / 5:30 pm GMT
Stream LIVE on ESPN+ in the US

Can Bayern repeat their almost perfect first half of the season? They begin 2026 with the first of their three most difficult trips: first to Leipzig on Saturday, before traveling to Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen. But for now, they face a team determined to avenge their 6-0 loss earlier in the season.

Leipzig are third and could trouble Bayern’s defence, just as Wolfsburg did in the opening game last weekend before going in and losing 8-1. Apart from Arsenal in the Champions League (3-1), Mainz (2-2) and Union Berlin (2-2), all others lost against Bayern.

They are an incredibly powerful attacking machine; 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 gruesome summer injury.

Leipzig will have to put a lot of pressure into their game, but without making the mistakes that are often punished by this Bayern team.

MY GUARANTEE: 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.

Who can be the best African?
Morocco vs. Senegal

Africa Cup of Nations, Final
Kick-off: Sunday, 2pm ET / 7pm GMT

This is a spectacular final to end the Africa Cup of Nations as arguably the two best teams on the continent — and in this tournament — face off. There will be two big stars on the pitch, in Achraf Hakimi and Sadio Mané, and a lot of excitement and passion from both sets of fans.

The odds are heavily in Morocco’s favor. The countries that will host Afcon have won six of the seven finals in the tournament, while Senegal has never defeated the host team in the knockout stage. Meanwhile, Morocco have won 39 consecutive matches at home in official competitions — their last defeat came in November 2009 against Cameroon during a 2010 World Cup qualifier.

Home advantage will be a big help for Morocco, but the burden of expectation may be too heavy to bear. If the game goes on without Morocco taking the lead, the pressure will be on their shoulders. Senegal has also played and won the AFCON final before. They have great players who have been there before and have done it. They will want to break the team.

However, it is easier said than done. Morocco are a well organized team as we saw in their semi-final against Nigeria, they scored 0.05 expected goals in just 120 minutes!

MY PIECE: Morocco 2-1 Senegal. It’s hard to look beyond the hosts. Statistically they are the favorites and will have incredible home support. Senegal have been very good throughout the tournament, but the odds are against them and they will lose in the final.