5️⃣ spicy fixtures you must watch this weekend 🌶 | OneFootball

We made it halfway through January!

Let’s continue those good vibes with a quintet of games that you simply have to watch this weekend.

Orléans v Paris Saint-Germain

The FA Cup holds the crown for the oldest cup competition in the world but the Coupe de France is regularly the best.

Higher ranked teams always play away from home when drawn against lower-league opposition that are more than a division below them in the pyramid.

It has meant that amateur sides like US Quevilly and Les Herbiers have reached the final in the 21st century and upsets are a pretty regular occurrence.

It would be one of the all-time shocks though if third tier Orléans beat Paris Saint-Germain this weekend.

Karim Mokeddem’s side are currently 12th in the Championnat National having won just six games all season and face a capital club who are running away with Ligue 1.

But this is the Coupe de France we’re talking about, so truly anything could happen.

Spice rating: Mild 🌶

Girona v Sevilla

This could be a genuine make-or-break weekend for Girona and their hopes of providing one of the great shocks in European football history.

The Catalan club are currently top of LaLiga after an astonishing first half of the season which saw them lose just one game and score a league-high 46 goals.

Last weekend’s draw at Almería however has set off a few alarms bells.

Míchel’s men were lucky to come away with a point having been thoroughly outplayed and must now take on a wounded Sevilla side who have consistently performed well against the bigger teams this season.

The perma-Europa League champions are enduring their worst season in a lifetime but impressed, even in defeat, in the reverse fixture between these two back in August.

With Real Madrid taking on Alméria on Sunday, any slip up by Girona could prove costly.

Spice rating: Medium 🌶 🌶

Chelsea Women v Manchester United Women

The FA Women’s Super League returns this weekend after its winter break with one game standing out above all others.

League leaders Chelsea host Manchester United with both sides coming into this clash with question marks hanging over their respective campaigns.

Emma Hayes’s team are still reeling from Sam Kerr’s long-term injury which will likely see Mia Fishel playing a larger role in attack.

The American striker was on target last weekend as the Blues needed extra time to beat West Ham in the FA Cup.

United, meanwhile, are still yet to really fill the Alessia Russo-shaped hole from the summer with Ella Toone providing most of the creativity in the final third.

Marc Skinner’s side are slowly falling behind the top three so a win is an absolute must here.

Spice rating: Hot 🌶 🌶 🌶

Roma v Verona

The post-José Mourinho era begins in earnest at Roma this weekend.

The (formerly?) Special One was sacked on Tuesday after the Giallorossi’s third defeat in five games left them languishing in ninth place in Serie A.

Reports of a rift between Mourinho and some of his key players were rife after his departure although plenty of players, including Paolo Dybala and Tammy Abraham, thanked their former coach on social media.

Whatever the atmosphere Mourinho has left, club legend Daniele De Rossi will have to pick up the pieces.

The capital club take on a Verona outfit this weekend who are in the relegation zone but impressed last time out with their win over Empoli.

Spice rating: Fire 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶

RB Leipzig v Bayer Leverkusen

It’s a blockbuster clash in the Bundesliga this weekend as fourth place RB Leipzig host arguably Europe’s best side so far this term, Bayer Leverkusen.

Xabi Alonso’s men picked up where they left off last weekend as they won against Augsburg to extend their unbeaten run under the Spaniard to 26 games.

The result did slightly mask the performance however, with Die Werkself struggling to break down their stubborn Bavarian opponents and only getting a winner in the 94th minute.

One train of thought is that winning despite playing badly is a sign of champions, another is that Leverkusen could be on the slide.

Leipzig will be hoping it’s the latter as they look for the three points that will see them leapfrog Stuttgart and go into third.

This is going to be a cracker.

Spice rating: Insane 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶