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In the traditional section we present the five most interesting football matches of the upcoming week.
2013.01.29, Tuesday
England's "Premier" League
21:45 London time "Queens Park Rangers" (20th place) – "Manchester City" (2nd place)
The results of the last five league matches: "Queens Park Rangers" – 1 win, 2 draws, and 2 losses; "Manchester City" – 4 wins and 1 loss.
Harry Redknapp, appointed as the manager of "Queens Park Rangers" a couple of months ago, has already brought some positive vibes to the club. Recently, a contract was signed with French national team striker Loic Remy, who has already made his mark in the Premier League and has the fans very optimistic. It can be said that the striker will be more useful than Djibril Cisse sent to Qatar. The season is already halfway through and QPR should wake up if they don't want to play in the second division of English league next season. Especially since they are just 5 points away from Birmingham's "Aston Villa" in 17th place.
The defending champions of last season "Manchester City" have been on a winning streak in the last 4 rounds. In the last round, their main rivals "Manchester United" lost 2 points away to London's "Tottenham Hotspur" and currently there is a 5-point difference between the Manchester teams. Considering that the "Red Devils" face a tough trip to London and a match with "Fulham", this could be another opportunity for the "City" to get closer to the league leaders.
2013.01.29, Tuesday
Italian Cup "Coppa Italia"
21:45 Rome's "Lazio" – Turin's "Juventus"
These will be the second leg matches of "Coppa Italia" semi-finals. In the 2012/2013 season, the teams played twice and both times neither team could prove their superiority. In the first leg of the semi-final, the teams drew 1:1, and the first-round match in Turin ended goalless.
So anything can happen, and on Tuesday we may see extra time and a penalty shootout. However, Turin visitors will need to score a goal, as if neither team manages to score, the "eagles" will advance to the final with their away goals advantage. Maybe the head coach of "Lazio" Vladimir Petkovičius will choose this tactic?
2013.01.30, Wednesday
England's "Premier" League
21:45 London time "Arsenal" (6th place) – "Liverpool" (7th place)
The results of the last five league matches: "Arsenal" – 2 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses; "Liverpool" – 3 wins and 2 losses.
In this match, the teams fighting for the chance to play in the UEFA Champions League next season face each other. Failure to qualify for this prestigious European football tournament would be considered a failure and could have a significant impact on players' plans to stay in one team or another. London's "Arsenal" recently failed 2 tests against London's "Chelsea" and "Manchester City", losing to them. However, the recent match against "West Ham United" should be optimistic. The attacking quartet of "Arsenal" - Theo Walcott, Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud, and Santi Cazorla - demolished the visitors' defense in the first 12 minutes of the second half. If they can maintain a similar level until the end of the championship and avoid major pitfalls, the London club could be a real contender for fourth or even third place.
A similar situation in the "Liverpool" camp. The club recently acquired talented Daniel Sturridge from London's "Chelsea", who scored 2 goals in 2 matches. Together with Luis Suarez, the "Liverpool" attack looks quite good and could cause trouble even for the league leaders in the future. How "Arsenal"'s sometimes unreliable defense will cope with this attacking machine, we will see in the middle of next week, but it would be very wise to guess that there will be goals.
2013.01.30, Wednesday
Spain's King's Cup "Copa del Rey"
Madrid's "Real" – "Barcelona"
Madrid's "Atletico" – "Sevilla"
You don't have to be a particularly passionate football fan to know what the Spanish "El Clasico" means. And if you still don't know, this is a great opportunity to get acquainted with one of the most anticipated derbies in the world. Both teams have the best players in the world, so we can confidently say that on Wednesday football fans will witness a top-level football spectacle. Both clubs have set a goal before the season to win the league and the King's Cup at all costs. Unfortunately, one of these teams will not achieve this goal.
In the other semi-final, this season's "La Liga" surprise teams Madrid's "Atletico and "Sevilla" meet. "Atletico" has been playing very beautiful football in the championship and managed to push the "royal" Madrid's "Real" to third place.
"Sevilla" has a new coach - recently dismissed Unai Emery from Moscow's "Spartak". A new coach always gives the team additional positive emotions. Will this be enough to overcome "Atletico"? The question is worth considering, but this is the cup and the team is only 2 steps away from the finish. The thirst for victory should motivate the team enough.
