Weekend predictions: Arsenal, Bayern title bids on the line?playAre Arsenal still favourites to win the Premier League? (1:48)Gab & Juls discuss the Premier League title race between Arsenal and Manchester City. (1:48)Julien LaurensFeb 27, 2026, 05:39 AM ETMultiple Authors
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Every Friday, I will pick the weekend’s best or most exciting games that are not to be missed in the world of soccer. From derbies to top-of-the-table clashes, relegation six-pointers to world-class players facing each other, or interesting tactical battles, there will be something for everyone to enjoy.
This week, we take you to England, France, Scotland, Germany, South America and the U.S. for some big decisive derbies and even a G.O.A.T. sighting.
– MLS team-by-team preview: Why is 2026 your team’s year?
– Haaland, Rice, Semenyo: Who is your Premier League Player of the Year?
– Bayern could effectively end Dortmund’s season with Klassiker win
Another London derby, another must-win game in the title race
Arsenal vs. Chelsea
Premier League, Matchday 28
Kickoff: Sunday, 11:30 a.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. GMT
A week after giving an outstanding response to their critics by demolishing Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby (4-1), Arsenal are back at the Emirates for another London derby and another huge game in their quest for a long-overdue title.
This is the fourth time they will meet Chelsea this season after a pair of Carabao Cup semifinal games — Arsenal have won twice and drawn once. The Gunners have great momentum coming into this game, but Chelsea, who dropped two points at home to second-from-bottom Burnley (1-1) last weekend in a game they could have easily lost and squandered a two-goal lead at home against Leeds United, do not.
Mikel Arteta and his players know that to win the title, they will have to play every game as they did against Spurs, showing the same intensity, structure and movement. They could have easily won 6-0 last Sunday. However, Chelsea will be a much tougher opponent and it will be on Arsenal, in front of a home crowd, to deliver a similar performance, especially from Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyökeres, who were excellent last weekend.
For Chelsea, Liam Rosenior needs to quickly find a way of making this team better than what we saw against Leeds and Burnley. Wesley Fofana is suspended, so we will see yet another new center back next to Trevoh Chalobah (Tosin Adarabioyo? Josh Acheampong? Mamadou Sarr? Reece James?) And he also have to solve the Cole Palmer conundrum. Playing him on the right side of midfield to keep Enzo Fernández as a No. 10 doesn’t make sense, and takes away a lot of what makes the England star special.
Chelsea also need to overturn some recent history, as they have failed to beat Arsenal in their last 11 meetings in the Premier League. They have kept only one clean sheet in their last 11 league matches, and that was against Brentford, who created a lot of chances on that day but failed to convert. There are a lot of questions to answer for Rosenior, and this trip to Arsenal could not come at a worse moment.
MY PREDICTION: Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea. Arsenal will keep their momentum after the win against Tottenham with victory against another one of their London rivals; Chelsea will still score, but overall, Arsenal will be too strong.
Arsenal meet another London rival this weekend in the form of Chelsea. Can they win again to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League? (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)Clash of the French Olympiques
Marseille vs. Lyon
Ligue 1, Matchday 24
Kickoff: Sunday 2:45 p.m. ET / 7:45 p.m. GMT
I can’t remember an Olympico (Olympique de Marseille vs. Olympique Lyonnais) being so significant in recent seasons. After weeks of turmoil, L’OM have changed managers (Habib Beye in, Roberto De Zerbi out), have a new big boss running the club in Medhi Benatia (who was the sporting director before), and a president on his way out (Pablo Longoria) after being downgraded by the owner (Frank McCourt).
There is always drama in Marseille, but now the team are in urgent need of points. They’ve gone four league games in a row without a win and are five points behind Lyon, who are in third place, which would qualify them for the UEFA Champions League next season. Financially, Marseille can’t afford to miss out on the top European competition. They need a massive wake-up call and a big performance on Sunday night at the Stade Vélodrome. However, even the most disenchanted fans will know that the players need their full support as a victory is clearly essential.
Lyon have a different dynamic coming into this game. Before losing 3-1 at Strasbourg on Sunday, they had won 13 games in a row in all competitions. They were not at their best in Alsace last weekend, but Paulo Fonseca and his players have a lot more confidence in their identity as a team than their Marseille counterparts.
Lyon also have an X-factor in Endrick. The teenage striker was not at his best vs. Strasbourg, but he is a phenomenal talent to have in Ligue 1 and these are the kind of games in which he needs to have maximum impact. L’OL know that they would make a massive step towards securing third place with a win as there are just 10 games to go after this weekend.
MY PREDICTION: Marseille 3-2 Lyon. There are always plenty of goals in the Olympico, and Sunday will be no exception. It’s Mason Greenwood against Endrick, and Marseille know how to bounce back as we saw when they beat Lens, then-league leaders, a few weeks ago. They will win again on Sunday.
A Der Klassiker that could decide the Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich
Bundesliga, Matchday 24
Kickoff: Saturday 12:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. GMT
Stream LIVE on ESPN+ in the U.S.
Surely, this is where the German Bundesliga title is going to be decided. Bayern travel to Dortmund with an eight-point lead at the top of the table; it is already a significant gap, but a loss in the Ruhr, and we could potentially have an exciting run-in with 10 games to go.
On paper, it shouldn’t even be a contest. Bayern have been mostly outstanding this season, both domestically and in Europe. However, they have suffered a rare blip in form in recent weeks. Vincent Kompany’s side lost at home to Augsburg (2-1) in the Bavarian derby, dropped points at Hamburg (2-2), and endured a tense last few minutes last weekend against Eintracht Frankfurt (3-2).
Harry Kane is still on fire (28 goals in 23 league matches so far) — he is still very much on track to beat Robert Lewandowski’s record of 41 league goals in a season — as are Michael Olise and Luis Díaz, but we have seen unusual mistakes being made by some of the Bayern players that could cost them if they happen on Saturday evening.
For Dortmund and Niko Kovac, who was sacked by Bayern back in November 2019 despite winning the title the season before, this is their chance. They are in the best domestic run of form across all the big five leagues — 16 league games without defeat. The last time they tasted defeat domestically was in October at … Bayern (2-1). Serhou Guirassy is back to his best (five goals in his last four games) and Dortmund will have to believe in their capacity to beat the leaders and keep their faint dreams of winning the title alive.
MY PREDICTION: Dortmund 1-2 Bayern. I think Dortmund will put in a great performance on Saturday. They have been playing well lately, and that will be the case again. However, Bayern will be too strong, too clinical, and will get the three points.
2:22
Leboeuf & Marcotti clash over late penalty decision for Atalanta
Frank Leboeuf and Gab Marcotti discuss the penalty decision that sent Atalanta to the Champions League knockouts.
Old Firm with a lot on the line
Rangers vs. Celtic
Scottish Premiership, Matchday 29
Kickoff: Sunday, 7 a.m. ET / 12 p.m. GMT
Danny Rohl has done an amazing job since he took over as Rangers manager in October. No one has won more points than Rangers since he arrived, and despite some disappointing results in recent weeks, they have been the better Old Firm team in the last few weeks.
They beat Celtic away back in January and also were too strong for league leaders Hearts two weeks ago at home (4-2); they are now only two points clear of Celtic (who have a game in hand) and four behind Hearts. So this is a must-win game for Rangers. Before the Scottish Premiership table splits into two for the end-of-season playoffs, it would be a massive psychological boost for them to beat Celtic again.
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For the Hoops and their manager, Martin O’Neill, the last few weeks have been frustrating. They had (very) late wins at Kilmarnock (97th minute) and Livingston (91st) — though should have never been in that position — while also losing to Stuttgart in Europe and, more importantly for their league title ambitions, taking a 2-1 loss home from last weekend’s trip to Hibernian. They have to bounce back in this huge Old Firm derby. They drew there 0-0 last August before winning the League Cup final against their archrivals, and losing at home. They need a win to stay in the title race and close to Hearts, who host Aberdeen on Saturday.
MY PREDICTION: Rangers 2-1 Celtic. Despite a few hiccups recently, like the draw at Livingston last weekend (2-2), Rangers are still able to raise their level in big games and I back them to do it again.
Messi and friends looking for first league win
Orlando City vs. Inter Miami
MLS, Matchday 2
Kickoff: Sunday, 7:00 p.m. ET / Monday, 12:00 a.m GMT
The new MLS season didn’t start as expected for Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami teammates. The reigning champions were outplayed 3-0 in Los Angeles by LAFC, with Messi so angered by the referee that he reportedly wanted to confront him after the game. Not great.
It was a poor performance, but one that they can quickly put behind them in this Florida derby. This is the perfect game to launch their season. It was always going to be a difficult start for Miami, with Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba having retired and Luis Suárez being more of a substitute.
That means even more responsibility falls on Messi and, to a lesser extent, on Rodrigo De Paul deeper in midfield. They are the team’s best and most experienced players at 38 and 31. The club’s new signings, striker Germán Berterame and goalkeeper Dayne St.Clair, had poor games last weekend, but much is expected of them moving forward, and Sunday offers an immediate shot at redemption.
Orlando also lost their opening game of this new season, 2-1 at home against the New York Red Bulls and their 17-year-old wonderkid, Julian Hall, who scored a brace. They signed three highly promising, young Brazilians in the transfer window: Midfielder Luis Otávio (18), center back Iago (20) and winger Tiago (20), who scored off the bench on his debut last weekend.
Last season, Orlando finished ninth, but had a poor end of the campaign with just one win in their last 11 games in all competitions. Another loss against Miami and the pressure will really be on for manager Oscar Pareja.
MY PREDICTION: Orlando City 1-3 Miami. This is a great game for Messi and Miami to bounce back after their inaugural defeat. They will do that with a convincing victory, one in which the G.O.A.T will shine again despite not being fully fit yet.
1:00
What went wrong for Lionel Messi and Inter Miami vs. LAFC?
The “Futbol Americas” crew react to Inter Miami’s 3-0 defeat to Los Angeles FC in the MLS.
Must win for Villa’s Champions League aspirations
Wolves vs. Aston Villa
Premier League, Matchday 28
Kickoff: Friday, 3 p.m. ET / 8 p.m GMT
The race for third, fourth and fifth place in the Premier League is heating up at the perfect time for fans. We thought Villa were locked in for a top-five finish, but their recent results (two wins in their last seven Premier League games) have seen Manchester United come back to sit three points behind in fourth, with Chelsea and Liverpool in fifth and sixth, only six points adrift.
It will be a very exciting end of the season all round, but a tense one for the Villa fans. They travel to Wolverhampton on Friday night in a massive Midlands derby, and they badly need all three points.
Villa have massively overperformed their expected goals data. They are struggling to create big chances and rely weekly on individual brilliance from Morgan Rogers, especially on set pieces, where they are very efficient when it comes to winning matches. Defensively, as we saw against Leeds last weekend in their 1-1 home draw, they are still fragile. They have big players missing (Youri Tielemans, Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn) and they need to grind out wins now to make it into the top five, which is vital for them financially.
For Wolves, this is the perfect opportunity to spoil Villa’s party and their quest for the Champions League. Rob Edwards’ players will play for pride in front of their fans and can put more pressure on their rivals’ end of the season sprint. We know what to expect from Wolves: a solid block with a back five and very aggressive players. It worked against Arsenal when they got a point (2-2), and almost worked again at Crystal Palace last weekend, where they lost 1-0 to a late goal after missing a penalty of their own.
MY PREDICTION: Wolves 0-2 Aston Villa. Unai Emery’s team have to bounce back from their recent average form, and will do so in this Midlands derby. It won’t be pretty, and they will keep struggling to create chances, but they will find a way to win.
