Arsenal FC vs Chelsea FC
Carabao Cup: 2nd Leg (2-2)
Emirates Stadium, London, England
Wednesday, January 24th, 2018 3:00PM EST ESPN3
Alexis who? That’s what the home supporters at the Emirates will hopefully be saying come Wednesday, as this fixture will mark the start of the post-Alexis era for the Gunners. On the surface, one would think Arsenal would have been desperate to have Sanchez available for this match. However, him leaving could be just what the doctor ordered inside the Gunners locker room. It had been reported that the squad had grown old of his act and tired of his tirades. Key figures need to step up however, for a positive result. Mesut Ozil needs to continue playing inspired and imaginative football, and the trio of strikers in Lacazette, Welbeck, and Giroud (although who knows how much longer Giroud will be around for) need to step and start scoring consistently.
Speaking of consistent scoring, Chelsea appears to be in dire need of a striker themselves. After splurging on Alvaro Morata in the summer, the Blues thought they’d secured a viable replacement for Diego Costa. Instead, they’ve acquired a player who’s been a shell of his Galactico-self. As Morata miss fires in front of goal time and again, we’ve now seen Antonio Conte luring Roma’s Eden Dzeko into coming to Stamford Bridge. Still, Chelsea, the defending Premier League Champions, must have more offensive weapons than just Morata? The answer is yes, but no one will talk about the rest of Chelsea’s underachieving squad. In particular, no one will speak ill about the golden boy for the London-based club and the Premier League as a whole, Eden Hazard. The Belgian has won three Chelsea Player of the Year Awards and was just voted onto the 2017 UEFA Team of the Year by fans. All theses accolades and more, yet the man has never scored 20 goals in a domestic season, let alone, 30+. Perhaps Hazard needs to stop being just that, and instead start performing at a caliber that is worthy and required of Real Madrid transfer talk (something that’s be stewing for years now). But I digress— this is a London derby with the Gunners holding the advantage on a 2-2 scoreline with two away goals. Essentially this means that the Blues most likely need to win the match outright, so let’s go Hazard and Morata, time to put on your big boy pants, get work, and score some goals.
LSB Prediction: Wth an electric Emirates crowd behind the Gunners, Ozil produces an awe inspiring display en route to a crucial 1-1 draw. 1-1 Arsenal FC (Advances to Carabao Cup final on away goal advantage)
FC Barcelona vs RCD Espanyol
Copa del Rey: 2nd Leg (0-1)
Camp Nou, Barcelona, Catalonia
Thursday, January 25th, 2018 3:30PM EST beIN SPORTS
Leg 1 produced a bit of a stunner as the Periquitos put an end to their city rival’s unbeaten run of 27 matches in all competitions. Despite a well rotated squad for La Blaugrana, Barcelona still had the superior quality on the pitch, including the infamous Lionel Messi. However, as I stated last week, when rivals clash, you can can throw out the records. Why? Because David will give Goliath his all, and then some. That is exactly what Espanyol’s goalkeeper, Diego Lopez, did. The former Real Madrid man produced some brilliant saves, including a Messi penalty kick. In turn, Lopez’s efforts kept Espanyol in the match till the end, where the Periquitos ultimately struck for the match-winner on a counter attack, shocking FCB, Spain, and the rest of Europe.
Fast forward to this Thursday, Espanyol all of a sudden find themselves in a much better position heading the second leg at the Camp Nou. With Barcelona failing to strike an away goal, FCB must win the match by at least two goals to advance to the semifinals, with a 1-0 scoreline being the lone exception and that will simply force extra time. Thus, Espanyol holds a glimmer of hope. Will the light shine through for the Periquitos at the end of the tunnel?
LSB Prediction: Barcelona romped its way to a 5-0 bounce back win over Real Betis last weekend, with both Messi and Suarez bracing in the second half. I deem the 1-0 loss at Espanyol was truly a blip on the radar, rather than a mid-season swoon. Therefore, I foresee La Azulgrana seeing out this two-legged El Derbi tie with Philippe Coutinho striking on his Barca debut and Leo Messi netting a hat trick. 4-0 FC Barcelona