by Tim Stannard

FRIDAY

CHAMPIONSHIP – Wolverhampton 0 - 2 Brighton Hove & Albion 

Brighton to take on giant leap towards Premier League 

It’s business time in the Championship. 

And very much business time for Brighton who face two games in three days to forever change their destiny. From the flatlands of Norwich to the smog of QPR, Brighton and Hove Albion have been a remarkable force of football nature in England’s second tier this season, pushing their way towards the brink of the Premier League. 

But it wasn’t supposed to be this way. After being front runners for much of last season, the Seagulls fell at the play-off hurdle, quite the agony after a 46-match regular campaign, and a trauma that can send lesser clubs into a years-long funks.  But Brighton picked themselves up, dusted themselves down and under Chris Hughton have been outstandingly consistent in the top two Championship places with just seven defeats in 41 games. 

Three wins over the past three matches powered by goals of Glenn Murray and the tactical stylings of the Championship’s version of Antoine Griezmann, Anthony Knockaert, Brighton need just two more victories at most to secure a Premier League place, less if third-place Huddersfield Town drop any points in their final run-in.  

Indeed, a loss for the Yorkshire team on Friday followed by a victory for Brighton who play straight after will all but put the south coast side in the English top flight for the first time since 1983. It’s quite the dream scenario for a team that very nearly folded 20 years ago and spent years without a stadium, and for a while unable to play in the city that bears its name. 

SATURDAY

SERIE A – Inter Milan v AC Milan: Live on beIN SPORTS from 6:25AM ET / 3:25AM PT

Chinatown comes to Milan derby 

Both Milan sides have been at so many cross roads over the past few months it’s as if they are crawling through a particularly congested New York. 

But the visitors to their own stadium on Saturday to take on Inter are at an historically important interchange. After 31 years, Silvio Berlusconi is stepping aside at Milan to make way for a newly installed Chinese investment group who will be looking to give the team as big a facelift as any the former president underwent. Allegedly. 

For those with even a passing interest in Serie A, the story will sound weirdly familiar as Inter was sold to Chinese investors in June, as indicated by the kick-off time very much fixed to an Asian market. 

In terms of the here and now, the game is very much a battle for two sides who now have an overwhelming need to make the European places, places they are currently missing. And there are some very rich people in China who are not going to accept that. 

SATURDAY

LA LIGA – Barcelona v Real Sociedad: Live on beIN SPORTS from 2:45PM ET / 11:45AM PT

An enemy within returns to battle Barcelona 

Well, this is going to be uncomfortable. 

It will be groveling city in Barcelona on Saturday with the once-Camp Nou champs turning into chumps in the space of just a week by losing a huge chance to win La Liga with defeat to Malaga and then almost completely being wiped from the Champions League by Juventus. Not bad going. 

However, there is little time for introspection for the Barcelona players who will need to be all focused and perky for the visit of Real Sociedad if the team are to give themselves half a chance of overcoming Real Madrid at the top of the table with a possible Clasico win in the Santiago Bernabeu next week. 

But the Basque opponents can be tasty on the day, coached by Barcelona’s former ‘B’ team manager and very long-time midfielder Eusebio Sacristan. Real Sociedad are stuffed with talent including Mexican forward, Carlos Vela and are needing to keep on keeping on in the Europa League places with neighbors, Eibar, remarkably nipping at their heels. 

To err once was bad, twice was really bad. But three times? Luis Enrique will not want to find out what that feels like.