Soccer Selections: Take RB Leipzig, Leicester, Newcastle in weekend play

Some of the best in-form clubs in European soccer are worth trusting over the next few days.

RB Leipzig rescued itself from a poor start and is now on track to qualify for the UEFA Champions League by way of a top-four finish in the Bundesliga.

RB Leipzig can move one step closer to achieving that with a win over Freiburg on Saturday inside its home arena.

Leipzig's old manager, Jesse Marsch, makes his Premier League debut on Saturday morning against Leicester City, but he could be in for a tough 90 minutes against a Foxes side that is getting healthier by the day.

The other focus in the Premier League is on Newcastle United's run out of the relegation zone. Newcastle is one of four teams in Europe's big-five leagues to record four wins and one draw in its last five games.

Soccer Selections

Overall Record: 113-122

La Liga: Alaves vs. Sevilla (+100) (Friday, 3 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Sevilla can't afford to drop any points in its pursuit of Real Madrid in the La Liga title race.

Sevilla has a single loss in its last eight matches and it has plenty of attacking firepower to take down 19th-placed Alaves on the road.

Sevilla's defense will be the key in this game, as it has allowed a league-low seven goals away from home this season.

Premier League: Leicester (-130) vs. Leeds United (Saturday, 7:30 a.m. ET. USA Network)

Leeds United might get the new manager bump with Jesse Marsch taking over for Marcelo Bielsa, but it may take a few games for Marsch's influence to take over the side.

Leicester City could take advantage of the porous Leeds defense that let in 20 goals over the last five league games.

The Foxes are getting healthier with Jamie Vardy pushing for a return to the starting XI. A Leicester attack with Vardy, Harvey Barnes and James Maddison up top could hurt the Leeds defense as it tries to adapt to Marsch's coaching style.

Bundesliga: RB Leipzig (-165) vs. Freiburg (Saturday, 9:30 a.m. ET, ESPN+)

RB Leipzig is 9-0-3 at home in the Bundesliga.

RB Leipzig comes into Saturday on a four-match winning streak and it can close the gap between itself and Bayer Leverkusen for third place to one point if Leverkusen falls to Bayern Munich.

Domenico Tedesco's side also needs to put distance between itself, Freiburg and Hoffenheim. All three teams have 40 points.

Look for Christopher Nkunku to have a heavy presence up front for RB Leipzig. He has eight goals in his last seven games and is worth a sprinkle at +150 to score a goal.

Premier League: Newcastle United (+180) vs. Brighton (Saturday, 10 a.m. ET, Peacock)

Sometimes you just have to ride the hot hand.

Newcastle United pulled itself out of the relegation zone with four wins in its last five games.

The Magpies conceded two goals in that span and that form can translate into Saturday's home clash with Brighton.

Brighton comes into St. James' Park on a three-game losing streak in which it has not scored a single goal.

La Liga: Valencia (-125) vs. Granada (Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Granada is one of the worst road teams in La Liga.

Granada is 1-6-6 away from home this season in league play and it has a single point from the last six games.

Valencia has the perfect chance to extend its winning streak to three games. It earned back-to-back 1-0 wins over Mallorca and Athletic Bilbao. That defensive form can carry over into Saturday against a Granada side with 10 goals in 13 road games.

Serie A: Fiorentina (+105) vs. Hellas Verona (Sunday, 9 a.m. ET, Paramount Plus)

Fiorentina is one of seven teams in Serie A that conceded 15 or fewer goals at home.

The Viola produced two clean sheets in their last three league games and they held Juventus without a ton of shots in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday before giving up a last-minute own goal.

Hellas Verona is one of six clubs that allowed 25 or more goals away from home and it earned a single clean sheet in its last 12 matches across all competitions.


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