On the face of it Rotherham doesn’t exactly sound like the most glamorous location to start your weekend but it may well be worth a look in this Friday as the Millers prepare to host Burnley having parted company with manager Steve Evans at the beginning of the week. Much more glamorous than that is Sunday’s offering of continental football and you will have a tough choice to make between the three fixtures, with all of them kicking off at around the same time.
First up is the biggest game of the Bundesliga season and whilst Dortmund’s two draws last week have taken the edge away from their meeting with Bayern, it still looks like it will be a cracking game of football. Also on Sunday is the Madrid derby and Atletico will be looking to continue their impressive record over their neighbours. They trail Rafa Benitez’s more glamorous troops by two points going into what is potentially the last ever meeting between these two at the Vicente Calderon. Finally we head to France for Le Clasique as Paris St. Germain play host to their bitter rivals from the south; Olympique de Marseille.
- Rotherham United v Burnley – Burnley to win (13/10 at Sky Bet)
- Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund – Bayern Munich to win and both teams to score (2/1 at BetVictor)
- Atletico Madrid v Real Madrid – Match to end in a draw (12/5 at BetVictor)
- Paris St. Germain v Olympique de Marseille – Paris St. Germain to win (2/5 at Bet365)
- See also our Premier League tips for 3rd & 4th October
Rotherham United v Burnley – 2nd October 2015
Burnley travel to the New York Stadium to face Rotherham United under the Friday night lights and we think Burnley will grab a win in this one. Sean Dyche’s side have had a decent start to the season as they adapt to life back in the Championship and they currently find themselves in sixth place on 15 points, although the teams from third place to seventh are only separated by goal difference.
Their opponents Rotherham parted company with Steve Evans after a spell which saw the Millers achieve back to back promotions. We think that the South Yorkshire club will be rocked by the sudden departure of the Scotsman and although they have won their last two matches to lift them out of the relegation zone, our money is firmly on Burnley for this one, with the Clarets sure to be in the promotion mix come May.
Burnley to win – 13/10 at Sky Bet
Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund – 4th October 2015
This game is always an interesting affair and with the sides separated by four points at the top of the Bundesliga, it looks as though this match won’t let us down. Borussia enjoyed a flawless start to the season, winning their first nine competitive matches of the campaign but draws against Hoffenheim and Darmstadt have seen them fall away from Bayern at the top of the table.
As always, Bayern are the team to beat and despite Pep Guardiola declaring that his side have only 14 or 15 fit players, we still think that they have enough about them to get a win at the Allianz Arena. They have a 100% record so far this term and they have scored 14 goals in their last four league matches, with former Dortmund man Robert Lewandowski helping himself to 10 goals so far this season (including five in nine minutes of course!). However, Dortmund have also scored plenty and whilst we can’t see them getting anything from this game, we fully expect them to hit the back of the net.
Bayern Munich to win and both teams to score – 2/1 at BetVictor
Atletico Madrid v Real Madrid – 4th October 2015
El Derbi Madrileno, or the Madrid derby to you and me, is always a special occasion and this one promises to be no different as Real travel to the Vicente Calderon. These two sides faced each other a whopping eight times last season and whilst Real only managed one win over the course of those matches, Benitez’s side are still favourites for this clash.
We however are backing a draw here and these two sides look very well matched. The only teams to get the better of Atleti this season are Barca and an in-form Villarreal side, whilst Real have failed to beat the likes of Sporting Gijon and Malaga so far this season. Diego Simeone knows how to get his players fired up for these fixtures but his side have lacked a little bit of quality at times so far this term and we think that this will be a game in which both sides cancel each other out, with three draws between the great rivals last year.
Match to end in a draw – 12/5 at BetVictor
Paris St. Germain v Olympique Marseille – 4th October
North against south. Rich against poor. High class society against the working class man on the street. Whilst these may well be over simplifications it is such juxtapositions which fuel the “derby” between these two cities and you can bet that this weekend’s offering will be as hard fought as ever, with Marseille making the trip north to face nouveau riche table toppers PSG.
Laurent Blanc’s side have been bang in form so far this season and they currently lead the way in Ligue 1 with 20 points from eight matches, four points ahead of St Etienne, and the Parisians look as though they will take some stopping this year. On the other hand, Marseille languish in the bottom half having seen manager Marcelo Bielsa resign after only a few matches of the campaign. They haven’t really got going at all so far this term and they were beaten 2-1 by Angers last weekend. If there was one match, however, that could snap them out of this rut then it is ‘Le Clasique’ however we think that PSG simply have too much quality for their southern rivals and Blanc’s men should make off with all three points and do so, we expect, with room to spare.
Paris St. Germain to win – 2/5 at Bet365