Real Sociedad are flying in Spain’s La Liga, sitting comfortably in third and looking good for Champions League football. But, this weekend they face one of their toughest tests in a while. Not only is going away to Rayo Vallecano difficult, with just two away teams having won there all season, but La Real make this trip missing their two most important players.

That’s because the two members of their double pivot, which makes Imanol Alguacil’s system work, are both absent. In the case of Mikel Merino, it’s through injury. In the case of Martín Zubimendi, it’s due to suspension. Losing both these players for the same game is massive and especially against such a strong counter-attacking team as Rayo Vallecano.

It’s not just those two who are out for Real Sociedad, who could also be missing another half dozen players due to various knocks. None are as important as Merino or Zubimendi, but it’s not ideal considering that Rayo Vallecano have everybody minus new signing Raúl De Tomás available.

It should be noted that Antonio Mateu Lahoz is the referee for this game and he has become even more erratic of late, so there could be a curveball thrown into the mix from the man in yellow. But, in theory anyway, ninth-placed Rayo Vallecano have a great opportunity here to take a point or three off third-placed Real Sociedad.

Niko Kovac is one coach that didn’t want the winter break to come. Wolfsburg won four successive Bundesliga games to end 2022, scoring 11 and conceding 1, which included an impressive 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund. Although second and four points behind Bayern Munich, Christian Streich’s Freiburg face a difficult start to 2023 with games against Wolfsburg and Eintracht Frankfurt, two clubs competing against the Black Forest club for a place in the Champions League.

Kovac typically sets up his side in a 4-3-3 which could prove problematic for the midfield duo in Freiburg’s midfield. Wolfsburg are also outscoring their xG metric by 2 (22/24) and only four teams have a better chance conversion that Kovac’s team. Against a low block like Freiburg’s, Wolfsburg may find it difficult but they should see more possession and eventually find a way through. Freiburg also aren’t great away from home, they’ve lost two of their last three Bundesliga games, and the VW Arena is a difficult place to visit, Wolfsburg have lost just once there this season.

Wolfsburg are just two points behind Borussia Dortmund, who occupy the UEFA Europa Conference League spot, but are one of the Bundesliga’s in-form teams. After a difficult start, Kovac has finally got his side playing some exciting, possession-based football and although Freiburg will be difficult to beat, I can see Wolfsburg winning this in a low-scoring affair, and at the very least managing a draw.

The Coupe de France is pitted with potential upsets, with Toulouse’s home encounter against Ajaccio one of those. The hosts rotated heavily in the previous round of the competition and head coach Philippe Montanier has confirmed they will do so again for this fixture against a fellow Ligue 1 club that is decimated by injury problems.

The upshot of this is that the game should be a good deal more entertaining than the 2-0 victory Toulouse secured on the opening day of the year. Indeed, it is a match that is liable to be played out between two teams that look very different.

Toulouse still boast impressive depth in their attacking ranks, which was emphasised as they scored seven times against amateur opponents that is liable to pose problems to an Ajaccio side that conceded seven against Monaco last weekend. That was a miserable defensive display, although their hosts were extremely clinical.

The hosts, meanwhile, are a team that have been involved in a succession of matches that have produced goals. All of their five fixtures since returning to action after the World Cup have seen at least two, with three of these having five or more.

Against Ajaccio, it would be surprising if there was to be such action again, but given the visitors’ wretched position with regards their defensive selection before this game, expect to see more goals than is typical for a match involving the Corsicans. There is value in backing over 2.5 goals.

Salernitana have been the subject of one of the weirder stories of the week and it is one that could have a bearing on how this game with Napoli plays out.

The Granata were beaten 8-2 by Atalanta last weekend and it led to Davide Nicola being sacked by the owner. Just two days later though, he was back in the job and will be in the dugout for Napoli’s trip down the road to Salerno.

This surely cannot have been an optimal week of preparation for Salernitana as they get ready to face a Napoli side that are looking like the clear favourites to win the title in June.

Napoli did suffer a slip-up in midweek after they were knocked out of the Coppa Italia by a Cremonese side that is yet to win a league game this season. The squad was heavily rotated for that match, meaning the best stars will be fresh to start this game against Salernitana.

Napoli have got a point to prove and will have Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia desperate to continue their fine scoring form. That coupled with the fact that Salernitana are in a terrible run of form and have had an unusual week, means that Luciano Spalletti’s side could fill their boots here.

You never know what you’re going to get with either of these teams. Both are capable of producing masterclass performances, such as Werder Bremen’s 3-2 comeback win against Borussia Dortmund, but can also capitulate and lose heavily. Neither Cologne nor Werder Bremen boast particularly impressive defensive records, Bremen (27) have conceded the most goals in the top-half of the table whilst only two teams have conceded more than Cologne (29) this season.

Which leads me to believe this could be an exciting fixture in Saturday’s Bundesliga Topspiel. Cologne recently completed the signing of Davie Selke, which should ease some of the goalscoring burden on Steffen Tigges following the departure of Anthony Modeste, but in defence they’ll be without Luca Kilian, who’s expected to miss the next couple of games. In the Bundesliga, only RB Leipzig’s Christopher Nkunku (12) has scored more goals than Niclas Fullkrug (10) this season, which resulted in the latter making Hansi Flick’s squad for the World Cup. The 29-year-old will prove problematic for a makeshift Cologne defence, but with Florian Kainz, Cologne themselves prove creative in the final third, but just have difficulty converting chances.

The last three meetings between the two teams have all finished with both teams scoring, and I expect this one to be no different. Bremen provide a threat with Fullkrug but at home, Cologne always have magnificent support behind them, spurring Steffen Baumgart’s side on. I would expect this to be low-scoring, but both teams finding the net.

Sevilla vs Cádiz is a relegation six-pointer, with Sevilla currently second bottom and Cádiz third bottom. This is a huge game and everyone at Sevilla seems to know this, with a sell-out expected at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán.

Although they’d struggled at home during the first half of the season, Sevilla then defeated Getafe 2-1 in their only home match since the return from the World Cup pause and they’ll hope the electric atmosphere can inspire them to another three points here.

There is extra reason for Sevilla fans to be excited ahead of this match, and that’s because former fan favourite Lucas Ocampos has returned in the January transfer window. His leadership was underrated when he was at the club and something the team quite clearly missed once he departed. His signing could be a turning point in the season and he is ready to play in this weekend’s game.

As for Cádiz, they make the short trip to Seville with a sense of frustration, after failing to win the other relegation six-pointer they played on Monday, when they were held 1-1 at home by bottom-placed Elche. The goal they conceded that day was objectively offside, leading Cádiz to unsuccessfully petition for the end of the match to be replayed, but the performance as a whole wasn’t great and it’ll be an even tougher challenge at Sevilla, especially with some key absences in central defence and central midfield.

Sevilla have had a poor season by any measure, but there is a reason Cádiz are down in the relegation zone with them. In front of a boisterous Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, Sevilla should be able to secure this important victory.