The Euro Preview: Real Madrid and Bayern Munich falling behind early

Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have to start winning again soon … or risk falling behind early in their respective title races.

La Liga

With the international break behind us, Real Madrid return to action on Saturday against 11th-place Levante at the Santiago Bernabeu in a game that has big implications for the Spanish giants. Real are in fourth place and just two points behind second-place Barcelona. While that doesn’t look so dire, two losses in eight games does not indicate a great run of form.

Real Madrid have also lost three of their last four games across all competitions after getting off to what many thought was a good start to the season under new coach Julen Lopetegui. Under the former Spanish manager, Real Madrid are playing a more possession-based style, and according to Spanish journalist Eduardo Inda, the players don’t like the tactic because it resembles Barcelona.

“They consider that there has to be less tiki-taka and more rapid transitions, as has been historically Real Madrid, and not imitate Barca,” he told The Daily Express on Tuesday.

Lopetegui, who was sacked as Spain manager on the eve of the World Cup this summer after he signed with Real and did not notify the country’s FA ahead of time, faces his biggest test at the end of the month when Real visit Barcelona for the first El Clasico of the season.

Real’s slow start, similar to what took place last season, will be highlighted further when Barca play surprise league leaders Sevilla on Saturday at the Camp Nou. Barcelona, also underwhelming this season, must also grab a win this weekend (and play better defense) or find itself close to Real in terms of dropping points so early in the campaign.

In other key games this weekend: Atletico Madrid, currently in third, host 16th-place Villareal on Saturday, while fifth-place Espanyol are on the road Sunday against bottom-dwellers Huesca.

Bundesliga

Like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich is suffering similar woes in Germany. The Bavarian giants, currently in sixth place, visit ninth-place Wolfsburg on Saturday in a must-win match for them. Bayern are now four points behind league leaders Borussia Dortmund after losing twice in seven games.

To put the situation new manager Niko Kovac’s team finds itself into perspective, consider the following: Bayern have lost two Bundesliga games in a row for the first time since May 2015, and have already lost as many games as they did during the entire 2015-16 or 2016-17 seasons.

There is reason to be optimistic, however, given that Bayern hav3 been here before. They have the talent and depth to mount a comeback. The next few weeks will be decisive for Kovac and the club.

While Bayern look to grab three points, first-place Borussia Dortmund play on the road Saturday against Stuttgart, while second-place RB Leipzig also play away that day against 10th-place Augsburg.

Serie A

The Milan derby on Sunday between eternal rivals AC Milan and Inter Milan at San Siro highlights the games in Italy this weekend. While AC Milan struggle in 10th place, Inter Milan have seen a surge in recent weeks and have climbed into third place following a rough patch. The duel between AC Milan’s Gonzalo Higuain and Inter’s Mauro Icardi adds another layer to what remains a classic encounter.

Inter midfielder Radja Nainggolan, who joined the team from Roma this summer, said he’s excited about his first Milan derby.

“I believe it is good to prepare for all the matches in the same way, but I’m curious about my first Milan derby,” Nainggolan told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “These are the challenges I like, where you already know what you’re playing for. Here, some fans stop me and say, ‘Win on Sunday,’ but it’s all quieter, calmer. In Rome, I had team-mates who were constantly firing me up and, if you lost, they remembered it two months later.”

In other matches, league leaders Juventus host 11th-place Genoa on Saturday, while second-place Napoli, six points off the pace, hit the road to face Udinese, who are in 15th place.