By Tim Stannard (@stannardsports)

Atletico Madrid 5 Real Betis 1 

Before the match: 

The Rojiblancos will look to take advantage of Clasico contest with win against Betis

It’s a footballing Sophie’s Choice for Atletico Madrid on Saturday in the Clasico, all be it with slighter smaller stakes. Does the Rojiblanco massive cheer on Barcelona against Real Madrid – as nature would normally allow – to give Atletico a bit of breathing space against their city rivals, who are just one point behind in third spot. Or should the Vicente Calderon clan go with the flow, take one for the team, and support Real Madrid to allow Atletico to close the gap on Barça at the top of the table to six points?

Or course, this all presupposes the idea that Atletico Madrid defeat Betis early on Saturday afternoon in Spain. Normally, that would be a given with the Diego Simeone’s men being a meat-grinding machine in La Liga with just the single defeat at home – against Barcelona – and taking on a Betis side with only one away win in La Liga in the past eight games and suffering back-to-back defeats against Athletic and Malaga.

However, Atletico are struggling to put together a back-line against Betis with the Uruguayan pair of Diego Godin and Jose Maria Gimenez out-of-action with injury. Taking up the mantel of keeping up the best defensive record in La Liga will be Stefan Savic, the Montenegrin only returning from injury himself and French U-21 international, Lucas Hernandez, who suffered a back injury with France. With doubts over the fitness of Saul and Yannick Carrasco, Atletico’s numbers could be a little stretched.

This might leave some wiggle room in a normally watertight ship at the back for Atletico that Ruben Castro can exploit. The Betis striker has been around the blocks, but the 34-year-old like Ariz Aduriz at Athletic, is proving that age ain’t nothing but a number with 15 strikes in La Liga this season.

Prediction – Atletico will have to dig deep but will come away with three points against Betis

Barcelona 1 Real Madrid 2

Before the Match:

Pride and points at stake in another crucial Clasico clash

The one match that the football world will never, ever grow tired of. Each time the good ship ‘El Clasico’ steams into port, thousands of stories, angles, and hooks disembark to take over the bars, cafés and living rooms of the world. This match is no different with Barcelona hosting Real Madrid in the Camp Nou in the 232nd official edition of this particular rivalry.

Barcelona are very much in the ascendency in this particular slice of time with the Catalan club holding a 10-point advantage over a Real Madrid, a rattled club which is set to be using its third manager in a third successive Clasico clash, with Carlo Ancelotti and Rafa Benitez being jettisoned by Florentino Perez and replaced by former playing legend, Zinedine Zidane.

The jury is still out on the coaching prowess of the Frenchman, but this could be an encounter that defines Zizou’s future at the club. A repeat of a humiliating 4-0 defeat suffered by Benitez in the Santiago Bernabeu in November will be a serious blow to the Madrid manager’s credit line. However, a plucky performance in the Camp Nou and the ending of Barcelona’s incredible unbeaten run of 39 games could give Zidane a shield of invincibility and the credibility needed to reshape a currently unbalanced Real Madrid squad.

With Real Madrid as no real threat to Barcelona’s challenge for the title, the motivation for Luis Enrique’s men is a simple one – squish Real Madrid like a bug and remind the world who the current Mack Daddies of La Liga are. However, the chances of achieving this crushing victory will depend almost entirely on how the MSN respond to the trials and tribulation of some tough encounters with the international teams in the CONMEBOL qualifiers.

Prediction – Whilst the focus will be on the battle of the forward lines, it is Madrid’s back four that will be challenged the most, but be found wanting in another defeat for Madrid 

FRIDAY – QPR v MIDDLESBROUGH: Live on beIN SPORTS from 2.40PM ET

Middlesbrough get off the blocks in promotion sprint with clash against QPR

After a turbulent time on Teesside when it looked like Middlesbrough manager, Aitor Karanka, was going to walk out on the club after falling out with his players, the waters seem considerably smoother on Riverside. A whole bag of trouble had arisen when the determined Spanish coach had reportedly doubted the team’s commitment to the promotion cause. A clear-the-air session after the former Real Madrid number two took a few days away from the squad apparently resolved the problem. At least until the end of the season.

That team-building binge lead to a huge 1-0 win for Boro against Hull City to end a run of two straight defeats and move the promotion chasers to within five points of Burnley at the top, with a match in hand. It’s a strong position to be in with the end of season sprint now kicking off and two places available in England’s second tier to reap the huge financial rewards of a promotion to the Xanadu of the Premier League.

To achieve that mission, Boro are going to have to strap on their goal scoring boots for the remaining nine games of the Championship season, with the Teesiders in possession of the worst tally in the division’s top seven, in terms of popping the ball in between the pipes. The team’s leading marksman is David Nugent with eight, whilst Jordan Rhodes has just the one goal to his name in ten appearances since his winter transfer move from Blackburn for nearly $13 million.

With an 11-point gap between QPR and the play-off zone, the campaign is all but over for Boro’s opponents on Friday with the old football cliché of merely pride being at stake for the Londoners. Although QPR have been under a decent run of form under Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who took over in December with just three defeats in 15, too many of those matches have been draws, with just the six victories in that run. QPR will be looking for forward, Conor Washington, to keep up the luck of the Northern Irish that saw the striker score a winner on his country against Slovenia on Monday. 

Prediction – Two trends to collide at Loftus Road in a draw and a blow to Boro’s promotion hopes

 SATURDAY – SUPERBIKES, MOTO GP: Weekend coverage begins from 6.55AM ET

MotoGP and Superbikes return in a dynamic double-date of brilliant biking action

beIN SPORTS is going to have more fast-paced, thrills and spills motorbike action than a Miami motorway at midnight. But all ours will be quite legal. Both the SBK Superbikes and MotoGP riders will be action this weekend with more than enough horsepower to satisfy the most passionate of motor sports fans.

The SBK Superbikes heads to Europe after an Oceania and Asia adventure and takes to the MotorLand circuit in Aragon, Spain for round three with two races spread across Saturday and Sunday. The mission for the 23 riders will be to once again try to stop the number one, Jonathan Rea. The British rider has picked up three wins from four so far in a repeat of the flying form that made the Kawasaki rider, the Superbikes champion of 2015. Teammate, Tom Sykes, will be pushing hard after a morale-boosting win in Thailand but keep an eye out for the improving Kentucky Kid, Nicky Hayden, who could make a move for podium finish in a fast circuit that is a firm favorite for many of the riders.

MotoGP is back in business once again for round two. The fastest bikes in the world and the fastest riders are heading to Argentina and the Termas de Río Hondo Circuit. All the familiar friends – and sworn enemies – will be back. Jorge Lorenzo on the Yamaha was the firm and steady winner half a world away in Qatar, but was pushed hard by fellow Italian, Andrea Dovizioso, on the Ducati. The battle between one Italian, Lorenzo, the fastest rider and his countryman on arguably the fastest bike should be a furious but fascinating one. Ducati have not won a MotoGP race since 2010, but Argentina could be a turning point.

After already losing ground on the defending champion, the two parts of this often rancorous rivalry – Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez – will not want to fall further behind in what could be a classic on South American soil. Or rather, tarmac.

Prediction – Upset city in both events with new leaders in both standings

SUNDAY – LAZIO v ROMA and Multicalcio: Live on beIN SPORTS from 9.00PM ET

Roma have no room for error in the Eternal City derby

The bar staff have turned on the lights, are gathering up the glasses and are strongly hinting that the patrons should head to their homes. Roma are spending their final minutes in the last chance saloon in the Serie A race for the automatic Champions League places. With Juventus trail-blazing ahead with a 10-point lead, the title itself is as far away as the moon. But with Napoli at seven-points distance, second spot is still within reach. But only just. A win is a huge must for Roma as the Serie A is back in business after the international break.

Roma will not have chosen Sunday’s opponents in this crunch encounter with a trip both simultaneously away and home against city rivals, Lazio, in the Stadio Olimpico. The third-placed outfit may be in sterling form with just one defeat in their past 16 league clashes but derbies have a tendency to mess with the fabric of reality and Lazio are due a win in this clash, with Roma undefeated in nearly three years, over the past five games.

The only motivation in play for a Lazio side that is jammed in mid-table is to mess up Roma’s mojo by taking points off their more successful neighbors. But with just the single Serie A victory from in five, Lazio will have to buck up their ideas if their spoiling dreams are to come true. However, they do have the quality in the squad on a one-off occasion to make a difference.

Whilst that game is underway, beIN SPORTS will be bringing you the latest goals from some other humdingers in Serie A with Multicalcio action as Milan visit Atlanta and Sampdoria try to avoid a slide into a relegation battle with a trip to take on Fiorentina.

Prediction – A victory for Lazio, with a draw against Roma. If that makes sense