10 Players to Watch in World Football This Weekend of April 10-13
After another busy midweek of action, our thoughts turn immediately to the weekend games in the world of football, where plenty of critical fixtures take place and key players look set to have a big impact one way or another.
We've assessed all the upcoming matches for the weekend, picked out the most intriguing and important of them from many top leagues around the globe and then selected one player to watch out for who could have a decisive say on the outcome.
Our 10 to watch for this weekend take into account form, position, opposition and more.
Patrick Herrmann, Borussia Monchengladbach
1 of 10
We'll start in Germany, where one of the big games of the weekend sees Champions League probables Borussia Monchengladbach entertain Borussia Dortmund, who suffered defeat to Bayern Munich last time out.
As the home side and the in-form team, Gladbach will look to go on the offensive and pick up more impressive points against another big rival, having beaten Bayern themselves a couple of weeks ago.
Patrick Herrmann has been in blistering form of late, scoring five and assisting one in his last five games for BMG. His pace and direct running, not to mention his purple patch in front of goal, will trouble BVB to no end, and he will be key in the home side taking three points.
Carlos Tevez, Juventus
2 of 10
In Italy's Serie A, Carlos Tevez will likely return to the starting XI for league leaders Juventus, having sat out the Coppa Italia semi-final second-leg win over Fiorentina through injury.
Juve face bottom club Parma away from home and will doubtless believe they can record a comfortable victory, especially if the service to Tevez around the edge of the penalty box is of a good tempo and reliable in its frequency.
The league's top scorer will fancy his chances of extending his one-goal lead over Jeremy Menez by notching a few against the second-worst defence in the league.
Ivan Rakitic, Barcelona
3 of 10
In Spain, one of the top matches of the weekend sees Sevilla host Barcelona, a clash of the two most in-form sides in La Liga.
Ivan Rakitic didn't play much of a part for Barcelona against Celta Vigo, but the indifferent performance of Rafinha should see the Croatian restored to the starting lineup against his former club. With Sevilla comfortable on the counter-attack, his work rate and energy in the middle will be most helpful for Barcelona, who are away from home.
Going the other way, of course, Rakitic remains a big goal threat both through his penalty-box presence and ability to assist others, and he could be the key for another huge three points as Barca look for a title.
Oier Olazabal, Granada
4 of 10
At the opposite end of La Liga, an equally critical game takes place—but with regard to teams' survival hopes rather than silverware, as Almeria take on Granada, 18th versus 19th.
After Granada conceded nine goals against Real Madrid on Sunday, there's only one man we can focus on: Granada goalkeeper Oier Olazabal, who must surely be determined to put the fiasco of that match behind him. He wasn't solely to blame of course, though he committed individual errors for some goals. If there was ever a game to bounce straight back to form, then a relegation six-pointer must be it.
Granada are already three points adrift of safety and simply can't afford to lose this one.
Marouane Fellaini, Manchester United
5 of 10
Fans of seeing just how much football can change from one year to the next, tune in to the Premier League on Sunday and watch Marouane Fellaini dominate Yaya Toure.
The brawny, bushy-haired Belgian has been a complete force in the Manchester United midfield over the past month or so, helping his team control matches from the middle and push forward with menace, aiding both their pressing game and a direct style of switching attacks when required.
For the Manchester derby, United versus City, he will be key to helping the Red Devils take another step back toward Champions League football and leaving City boss Manuel Pellegrini floundering.
Daniel Sturridge, Liverpool
6 of 10
Liverpool's top-four charge is all but over after successive defeats in the Premier League, unless Manchester City implode completely over the remaining month of the season. Even then, Liverpool will need to once again find the winning formula themselves—and that means starting to get Daniel Sturridge scoring chances inside the penalty area.
The striker has had a forgettable season all told, suffering with injuries, not quite finding his best form and being left on the bench more than once—even without another regular striker being on the pitch.
Sturridge needs to get back to being the hard-working, selfless player of last year, as well as the fine finishing machine he has been throughout his Reds career. At home to Newcastle United, who have suffered four defeats in a row, is a good place to start.
Roman Shirokov, Krasnodar
7 of 10
Over in Russia, Zenit beating CSKA Moscow on Sunday means the title is all but certain to be on its way to Saint Petersburg this season, but second place is still up for grabs. FC Krasnodar jumped above CSKA after beating Rubin Kazan on Tuesday, a fourth win in five games, and they face a derby match against Kuban Krasnodar at the weekend.
Roman Shirokov, signed on loan from Spartak Moscow in January, has quickly become an integral part of the Krasnodar team, dominating the centre of the park and playing every minute after overcoming an Achilles injury earlier in the campaign.
He can be the catalyst for a derby win, quickly making himself a favourite with the fans and spurring Krasnodar on toward a Champions League spot for next season.
Bill Hamid, D.C. United
8 of 10
We go outside of Europe now and over to MLS, where the Eastern Conference sees an early table-topping clash as D.C. United host New York Red Bulls on Sunday.
D.C. goalkeeper, 24-year-old Bill Hamid, has only conceded twice in his four games to date, with three clean sheets surrounding D.C.'s sole defeat so far.
He'll likely come under plenty of pressure from NYRB's attack of Lloyd Sam and Bradley Wright-Phillips, so further consistency and saves will be necessary to keep the team's place atop the conference.
Pablo Osvaldo, Boca Juniors
9 of 10
Further south now and into the Argentinian Primera Division, where Boca Juniors have surged to the top of the extended table after six wins from their opening eight matches.
This week, it's top versus almost bottom in the huge 30-team league, as 29th-place Nueva Chicago visit La Bombonera. Boca will no doubt see their attacking line spearheaded by on-loan Pablo Osvaldo, with the temperamental striker having notched three goals in his past four games.
He should see this fixture as a chance to improve on that early strike rate and ease his team to three more points, keeping the gap between themselves and River Plate—whom they face in just two weeks.
Jeremy Menez, Milan
10 of 10
Our final selection comes from Serie A, where AC Milan host Sampdoria on Sunday night.
Milan have won their last two to move back up to eighth place, with top goalscorer Jeremy Menez netting three and creating one of the five goals they have scored in those matches. Sampdoria, challenging for Europe, will present a far tougher challenge—and in truth, it's about time Milan won a match against credible, relevant opposition.
Menez will be key in helping Pippo Inzaghi achieve that as the fallen giants continue to search for the right formula to move up the table, though anything above a seventh-place finish this season is simply unrealistic.
