MATCHDAY: Villa-Leeds in Premier League; Napoli hosts Juve

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/01/2023 (616 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Friday:

ENGLAND

Aston Villa hosts Leeds in a match between midtable teams to begin the 20th round of the Premier League. Villa has been inconsistent under new manager Unai Emery, winning three and losing three of its last seven games in all competitions — the last match being an embarrassing 2-1 loss to fourth-tier Stevenage in the FA Cup last weekend. Villa is in 11th place, three spots and five points above Leeds.

SPAIN

Villarreal visits Celta Vigo in the Spanish league looking to keep its momentum and move into the Champions League places with a victory. Villarreal sits in sixth place and has won five of its last six matches in all competitions. Celta won at Elche in the previous round to end an eight-game winless streak in the league. It is in 16th place, one point from the relegation zone after 16 matches. Celta hasn’t beaten Villarreal at home in the league since 2019.

ITALY

It’s first against second in Serie A as Napoli hosts Juventus in a stern test of the Bianconeri’s recent revival. Juventus had a dismal start to the season but has won eight straight matches without conceding a goal. That has seen Massimiliano Allegri’s side rise to second place in the standings, level on points with defending champion AC Milan and seven behind Napoli. Napoli has won its last three home matches against Juventus and another victory would send it 10 points clear at the top of Serie A ahead of Milan’s match at Lecce on Saturday.

___

More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports