Liverpool travel away to face in-form Arsenal
The faltering champions meet the in-form challengers on Thursday evening, as Arsenal welcome Liverpool to the Emirates Stadium for a Premier League blockbuster.
The Reds come into the heavyweight clash on a longer unbeaten run than the Gunners, but victory will take Mikel Arteta‘s men a whopping 17 points clear of the holders, with 17 games remaining.
Arsenal have focused on their own matters with maximum effectiveness and are now on a seven-match winning run across all tournaments, including each of their last five in the Premier League.
The Gunners may have only triumphed in two matches by more than one goal in that time, but grinding out results when not playing at 100% is often a sign of champions; it is still too early to call the crown the Gunners’ to lose, though.
Nevertheless, Arteta’s men are firm favourites to get the better of Liverpool at a ground where they have won a sensational 14 of their 15 matches this season – including each of the last 12 in a row – and a new slice of history could be written for the men in red and white.
Arne Slot‘s side are also just one game away from going 10 unbeaten, but maintaining their ongoing streak without defeat would have come as little consolation to disgruntled fans, who may now feel that the visitors’ previous winning run just papered over cracks.
No side has beaten Arsenal more times in the Premier League than Liverpool, who have got the better of their hosts on 26 occasions, but all the signs are pointing towards a glorious Gunners evening on Thursday.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Atletico, Real clash in Supercopa Madrid derby
City rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid will renew hostilities when they meet in today’s Spanish Super Cup semi-final in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Atleti are bidding to win their fourth Spanish Super Cup, while Los Blancos are aiming to lift it for the 14th time in their illustrious history.
Atletico may be unbeaten in five competitive games, but they would have been frustrated with Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Real Sociedad at the Reale Arena.
Atleti’s realistic hopes of winning the league title for the first time since 2020-21 appear to be gone at the halfway stage of La Liga, meaning that the Spanish Super Cup, Copa del Rey and Champions League will take on extra importance if they want to end their five-year wait for silverware.
Atletico, who are in the Super Cup as a result of last season’s third-placed finish, will head to Saudi Arabia with hopes of clinching the trophy for the third time in their history after previously lifting it in 1985 and 2014.
Real Madrid, who were heavily beaten by Barcelona in last season’s Super Cup final, have lifted the trophy in three of the six seasons of the four-team format – most recently in 2024 when they recorded a 5-3 extra-time win over Atletico before they hammered Barcelona 4-1 in the final.
Real Madrid will be looking to get revenge for September’s heavy league defeat against Atletico, and while they may be without Mbappe, Saturday’s win over Betis proved that the team still has an array of attacking talent at their disposal.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
AC Milan welcome Genoa to the San Siro
On a quest to reclaim the Scudetto, AC Milan will aim to extend their long Serie A unbeaten streak when they welcome Genoa to San Siro today.
Battling it out with reigning champions Napoli and city rivals Inter Milan for top spot in the standings, Milan last lost a league game back in August.
Since suffering a shock loss to newly promoted Cremonese in their opening fixture, Milan have avoided defeat in 16 top-flight matches, posting 11 wins along the way.
Now closing in on their best Serie A unbeaten streak this century – which stands at 19 – the Rossoneri have proved particularly tough to beat under Massimiliano Allegri, with their only other loss coming in the Coppa Italia.
Keeping the pressure on their closest rivals, Allegri’s men took maximum points from their first outing of 2026, following up a post-Christmas win over Hellas Verona by edging out Cagliari.
Having won three of their last four home games, keeping a clean sheet on each occasion, Milan must fancy their chance of beating relegation-threatened visitors today.
Although Genoa have actually drawn their last two away games against Milan, they have won just one of the previous 15 league meetings overall.
Indeed, considering results against both Milanese clubs, the Grifone have lost on 14 of their last 18 visits to San Siro.
Current form also suggests they may need a minor miracle to prevail this week, after claiming just one point from four games since mid-December.
Genoa are also inconsistent up front, so finding a way past clean-sheet specialist Maignan may prove beyond them.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
PSG, Marseille compete for the Trophee des Champions
For the first time since 2020, arch-rivals Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille will compete for the Trophee des Champions, with the final taking place on Thursday at Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait.
The reigning Ligue 1 and Coupe de France champions captured this event last year, beating Monaco 1-0, while OM are here on account of finishing second in the league table last season.
PSG can lift their second trophy of the campaign on Thursday as they prepare to compete in the final of the Trophee des Champions yet again.
Luis Enrique’s men are on a five-match unbeaten run across all competitions heading into this contest, winning their first match of 2026 last weekend over Paris FC (2-1).
They are not only experienced in this pivotal game but have also been successful, winning 11 of their previous 12 appearances in the final of this competition.
The previous time they were on Asian soil, they came away with a narrow 2-1 extra-time victory in Qatar over Flamengo to capture the Intercontinental Cup for the first time.
Les Parisiens have won five successive matches versus Les Olympiens as the home team, including a 2-1 triumph the last time these teams met for this trophy in Lens in 2021.
PSG should have no trouble fielding a squad prepared to take on this challenge, and given their experience in this game we trust they will get the job done against a Marseille side that have been hot and cold throughout the campaign.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
FIXTURES
Atletico Madrid 19:00 Real Madrid
