Will Cristiano Ronaldo find some form against Atlético Madrid? Photograph: Sergio Perez/Reuters

Ready for some club football? Enjoy these four huge derbies on Saturday

This article is more than 6 years old

The big leagues are returning in style with four big derbies: Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal, Roma v Lazio, Basaksehir v Galatasaray and Atlético v Real Madrid

By Martin Laurence for WhoScored?, part of the Guardian Sport Network

Arsenal v Tottenham, London, 12.30pm GMT

The first North London derby of the season gets the ball rolling again in the Premier League this weekend as Arsenal aim to keep pace with Spurs after the clubs’ fortunes were well and truly reversed last season. While Mauricio Pochettino led Tottenham to their second successive top-three finish, Arsenal dropped out of the Champions League places for the first time under Arsène Wenger’s management.

Home advantage will be a blessing and relief for Arsenal, whose faultless home record – winning five from five – is offset by a terrible return of four points from six games on the road. However, Tottenham have performed well away from Wembley in general this season, with their defeat to Manchester United the only time they have dropped points on the road.

Tottenham are unbeaten in their last six league meetings with Arsenal. Harry Kane has scored in the last five of those derbies, so his fitness will be key. Pochettino may be happy for his team to relinquish possession and play on the counter, the way they did with such success against Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool and Real Madrid, when they scored 10 goals despite averaging just 35% possession.

Roma v Lazio, Rome, 2pm

There promises to be a real power struggle in the Italian capital this season, with both Lazio and Roma harbouring genuine aspirations of contending for the title. Lazio are fourth in Serie A, four points behind leaders Napoli, while Roma are point and a position further back, so defeat on Saturday would be a significant blow to either side.

Lazio have won their last six league matches in a row – a record only beaten by Manchester City (nine in a row) and Valencia (seven) in Europe’s top five leagues. They also possess the most prolific marksman on the continent. Ciro Immobile was unable to find the net for Italy against Sweden but he has been in remarkable form this season, scoring 14 goals and and providing six assists in 11 appearances – more than any other player in Serie A on both counts.

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The last two matchwinners in this fixture have both left for pastures new. Mohamed Salah scored twice in Roma’s 3-2 victory in the Coppa Italia back in April; and Keita Baldé picked up a brace for Lazio in their 3-1 win in the league a few weeks later. Former Manchester City players Aleksandar Kolarov and Edin Dzeko have been in fine form for Roma this season, while ex-Liverpool midfielder Luis Alberto has excelled in an advanced role for Lazio.

Istanbul Basaksehir v Galatasaray, Istanbul, 4.30pm

Emmanuel Adebayor in action for Basaksehir Istanbul against Sevilla in the Europa League. Photograph: Sedat Suna/EPA

It may not be the fiercest derby in Turkey, but Galatasaray’s trip to neighbours Istanbul Basaksehir could be very important in the title race. After 11 rounds of fixtures in the Super Lig, Galatasaray are top of the table, just three points above second-placed Basaksehir.

Galatasaray have enjoyed a strong start to the campaign under Igor Tudor after a busy summer in the transfer market. They have finished sixth and fourth in the last two seasons – below Istanbul Basaksehir – so have invested heavily to ensure they can compete at the top once again. They signed Younès Belhanda for €8m and Badou Ndiaye for €7.5m but former Swansea City striker Bafétimbi Gomis has proved their best bit of business, scoring 11 goals in as many games.

Istanbul Basaksehir, who are undefeated in their last 27 home games, now boast a squad littered with familiar faces, including Gaël Clichy, Gökhan Inler and Emmanuel Adebayor. Adebayor scored a hat-trick in a comprehensive 4-0 victory between the two teams earlier in the year, Basaksehir’s third consecutive win over their esteemed opponents.

Atlético Madrid v Real Madrid, Madrid, 7.45pm

Only goal difference separates the two Madrid clubs but they are both eight points behind table-topping Barcelona. A defeat for either side on Saturday night will surely put them out of the title race, however the odds are stacked against them regardless. No team has ever overcome an eight-point deficit at the top at this stage of a season in La Liga.

Atlético and Real Madrid have become very familiar foes in recent seasons. They have met 12 times since the start of 2015. Real Madrid have only won three of those matches in the 90 minutes – although they have won European Cup finals against their neighbours in extra time and on penalties.

The spotlight on Saturday night will be on the two sides’ floundering strikers. Antoine Griezmann has scored just two goals in nine league appearances this season, while Cristiano Ronaldo has just one in seven. Ronaldo has been as prolific as ever in the Champions League – scoring six goals in four games – but in La Liga he has converted just 2.1% of his shots, the worst conversation rate of any player to have scored a goal in Europe’s top leagues this season.

Both players have fond memories of this fixture though. Ronaldo has scored hat-tricks in two of the last four Madrid derbies, including the three goals that took Real Madrid to the Champions League final earlier this year. For his part, Griezmann has played in 10 Madrid derbies and only lost one of them – and he has scored in three of his last five appearances against Real in the league.