Pro Sports

Soccer weekend: What to watch in Europe's main leagues

Posted March 02, 2017 6:00 am

By The Associated Press

FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2016 file photo, FC Barcelona's coach Luis Enrique reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between FC Barcelona and Malaga at the Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain. Barcelona coach Luis Enrique will leave the Spanish champions at the end of this season. The coach made the surprise announcement following the team's 6-1 win over Sporting Gijon in the Spanish league on Wednesday March 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File) The Associated Press

What to watch out for in the leading soccer leagues in Europe this weekend:

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SPAIN

Barcelona moved into first place just as the club was plunged into a period of uncertainty with coach Luis Enrique announcing he's leaving at the end of the season.

On Saturday, the two-time defending champions play Celta Vigo, the last team that defeated them in the league before embarking on an 18-game unbeaten run.

Celta's 4-3 win in October wasn't a rare blip for Barcelona against the northwest team. Celta, sitting in 10th place, has beaten Barcelona three times in the last five games, but only one of those victories was at the Camp Nou, where the Catalan club routed Celta 6-1 last year.

Real Madrid, having surrendered the lead for the first time since October but still with a game in hand, now visits Eibar on Saturday. Seventh-place Eibar has won four of its last six matches, including the last three at home. And don't discount third-place Sevilla from the title race, with a home match on Monday against mid-table Alaves.

By Tales Azzoni in Madrid.

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ENGLAND

Liverpool and Arsenal have dropped out of the Premier League title race since the turn of the year. Now they face a struggle to stay in the four Champions League qualification spots. The teams meet at Anfield on Saturday for the standout match in England with Arsenal in fourth place and Liverpool one point and one place behind.

With in-form Manchester United just behind them and at home against relegation-threatened Bournemouth on Saturday, either Arsenal or Liverpool could be in sixth place by Saturday night.

Chelsea, the leader by 10 points, is already looking like the champion-elect and heads to West Ham on Monday. Second-place Tottenham hosts Everton and third-place Manchester City is at last-place Sunderland.

By Steve Douglas in Manchester.

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GERMANY

Two coaches tasked with avoiding relegation are in the spotlight.

Darmstadt's Torsten Frings is returning to former club Werder Bremen for the first time as a coach and Andries Jonker makes his debut at Wolfsburg.

Jonker, who was coaching in Arsenal's academy until this week, starts off at Mainz on Saturday. Wolfsburg is two points above the relegation zone, with Darmstadt 10 points further back in last place.

Relegation rivals Ingolstadt, Hamburger SV and Bremen are sandwiched in between. Ingolstadt visits fourth-place Hoffenheim and Hamburg hosts fifth-place Hertha Berlin on Sunday.

Bayern Munich, which routed Hamburg 8-0 last weekend, visits Cologne on Saturday, while second-place Leipzig plays at Augsburg on Friday.

By Ciaran Fahey in Berlin.

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FRANCE

The French title race is increasingly seen as a straight fight between free-scoring Monaco and defending champion Paris Saint-Germain. But against all expectations, Nice still has a great chance.

Nice was tipped to fade away by now but the team is level on points with PSG and three behind Monaco.

While PSG and Monaco are chasing domestic trebles and are involved in the Champions League, Nice has only the remaining 11 league games to focus on. Nice's hopes, however, rest largely with the unpredictable Mario Balotelli.

With top scorer Alassane Plea out for the rest of the season, Nice needs Balotelli at his brilliant best rather than his erratic worst. The impulsive Italian striker returns from another suspension as Nice travels to play Dijon on Saturday, where Balotelli hopes to score his first away goal of the campaign.

PSG faces struggling Nancy at home on Saturday, while Monaco is at home to mid-table Nantes on Sunday.

By Jerome Pugmire in Paris.

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ITALY

Napoli and Roma will both have to put poor Italian Cup results behind them when they meet in Serie A on Saturday.

Roma lost at city rival Lazio 2-0 in the first leg of the semifinals on Wednesday, while Napoli was defeated 3-1 by Juventus the previous night.

Roma is second in the league, five points above Napoli. Second place in Serie A secures direct entry to the Champions League while the team which finishes third has to go through the playoffs.

Napoli lost for the first time in 14 league matches last weekend when it was beaten 2-0 by Atalanta.

League leader Juventus, which is bidding for a record sixth straight title, has a seven-point advantage over Roma and visits struggling Udinese.

By Daniella Matar in Milan.

FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi, left, duels for the ball against Sporting Gijon's Sergio Alvarez during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between FC Barcelona and Sporting Gijon at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez) The Associated Press

Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Stoke City at White Hart Lane stadium in London, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein) The Associated Press

FILE - In this Oct. 31, 2012 file photo Wolfsburg's assistant coach Andries Jonker reacts during the DFB'Cup soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and FSV Frankfurt at the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg, Germany, Jonker is said to become the new coach of Bundesliga soccer club VfL Wolfsburg after coach Valerien Ismael was fired, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. (Jens Wolf/dpa via AP) The Associated Press

Napoli's Jose Callejon, right, scores a goal during the Italian Cup first leg semifinal soccer match between Juventus and Napoli, at the Juventus Stadium in Turin, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017. (Andrea Di Marco/ANSA via AP) The Associated Press

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