Man City vs Arsenal isn’t the only huge game this weekend - here are 4 more

The headlines and the attention of many football fans across these shores will once more be on the return of the Premier League and a potential title-defining clash, with Arsenal heading to Manchester City on Sunday.

But England’s top flight isn’t the only one to have some huge fixtures given top billing across the weekend, with plenty of Europe’s leading divisions seeing crucial match-ups over the coming days - matches which will significantly impact either the title race or the chase for Champions League spots.

Here are four more games outside the Premier League you should be keeping an eye on.

Serie A: Napoli vs Atalanta - Saturday, 11:30am GMT

It all starts in Italy and an early Saturday kick-off for the top four chase, with last year’s champions Napoli currently in seventh but unbeaten in six league games. They’ve still got work to do to edge their way back into the top five, but can make grounds on those above them with a home win over Atalanta - who sit sixth.

Fading form from Atalanta of late has seen them fall from Champions League contention themselves, but if they can revive enough for a victory they’ll be pushing Roma and Bologna once more.

They also have a Europa League quarter-final tie with Liverpool to navigate soon, putting more pressure on them to rediscover a winning touch.

Bundesliga: Bayern Munich vs Borussia Dortmund - Saturday, 5:30pm GMT

This would usually be a match which, around this time of year, might make or break a title fight in Germany - but not this year. And not because Dortmund are merely scrapping it out for a top-four finish, either.

Bayern have been well off the pace and sit ten points behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen, so for them this match is about beating a rival...and preparing themselves for continental challenges too. Harry Kane’s team face Arsenal in the Champions League so will utilise their domestic games to get themselves in the best possible shape for those encounters.

Harry Kane is expected to be fit after missing England’s international friendlies, while former Three Lions teammate Jadon Sancho is back to full fitness and searching for top form with BVB. Despite the lack of a title on the line, this should still be an exciting matchup with both sides capable of scoring plenty.

LaLiga: Real Madrid vs Athletic Club - Sunday, 8pm GMT

In Spain, Carlo Ancelotti’s team are running away with the title eight points clear at the top, leaving them free to attack domestic matches at will and fine-tune their preparations for Europe. Behind them, however, is an almighty scrap.

Barcelona, Girona and Atletico Madrid were for a long time the three in the Champions League spots, but Atleti are suffering something of a collapse - they were beaten in the Copa del Rey semi-finals by Athletic Club and have now been edged out of the top four by them too.

The Basque outfit are on a great run with just one defeat since mid-January and, a week after this fixture, face a cup final against Mallorca - a wonderful opportunity to end their wait since 1984 for a major trophy. They won’t want to head into that game on the back of a big defeat.

Ligue 1: Marseille vs Paris Saint-Germain - Sunday, 7:45pm GMT

Unsurprisingly, PSG are flying clear at the top - they lead Ligue 1 by 12 points. Their matches against Marseille, however, remain typically combustible and intriguing, with OM needing to find some consistency if they’re to gatecrash the European spots - not an insurmountable task despite the fact they sit seventh right now.

Ligue 1 is really tight at the top after PSG, just four points separating fourth from eighth, and even Monaco in third are only a further three points beyond that.

PSG are sharpening up for a Coupe de France semi-final and have two legs against Barcelona on the horizon - they’ll want to sharpen up before those games, as we all remember the Champions League encounter between the two in 2017. Might be time to make amends.