La Liga Fixtures 2016 Week 9: Schedule, Live-Stream Info, Picks and Key Players
Week 9 of the 2016-17 La Liga season will see several clashes between clubs near the top of the table, headlined by Atletico Madrid's trip to Sevilla.
Rivals Real Madrid will host in-form Athletic Club Bilbao, who have won five of their last six, while Barcelona travel to Valencia, who have improved dramatically after a dreadful start to the season.
Week 8 may have been filled with blowout wins for La Liga's top title contenders, but don't expect that to be the case this time around. Here's a look at the schedule, complete with live-stream information and picks:
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| Friday, Oct. 21 | 7:45 p.m. | Osasuna | Real Betis | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Draw |
| Saturday, Oct. 22 | Noon | Espanyol | Eibar | Sky Go (UK) | Draw |
| Saturday, Oct. 22 | 3:15 p.m. | Valencia | Barcelona | BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Barcelona |
| Saturday, Oct. 22 | 5:30 p.m. | Real Sociedad | Alaves | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Real Sociedad |
| Saturday, Oct. 22 | 7:45 p.m. | Granada | Sporting Gijon | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Draw |
| Sunday, Oct. 23 | 11 a.m. | Celta Vigo | Deportivo | Sky Go (UK) | Celta Vigo |
| Sunday, Oct. 23 | 3:15 p.m. | Sevilla | Atletico Madrid | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Draw |
| Sunday, Oct. 23 | 5:30 p.m. | Malaga | Leganes | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Malaga |
| Sunday, Oct. 23 | 5:30 p.m. | Villarreal | Las Palmas | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Villarreal |
| Sunday, Oct. 23 | 7:45 p.m. | Real Madrid | Athletic Club Bilbao | Sky Go (UK), BeIN Sports Connect (U.S.) | Real Madrid |
Here are some players to keep an eye on.
Yannick Carrasco, Atletico Madrid
Yannick Carrasco has scored four goals and added two assists in his last two matches, and he enters Week 9 as one of the most in-form players in La Liga. The Belgian was expected to enjoy a breakout season in 2016-17, and so far, he's delivered.
Blessed with tremendous speed, technical ability and a healthy work rate, he's exactly what manager Diego Simeone looks for in a winger.
Unibet's Dermot Corrigan thinks Los Rojiblancos need to improve his current contract in a hurry:
Carrasco made the difference at FC Rostov with a sharp finish that won his team all three points in their UEFA Champions League match on Wednesday. While the Russians may not be a big name in world football, they came into the match with a phenomenal record at home, per ESPN FC's Michael Yokhin:
Sevilla have a similar record at home―the UEFA Europa League champions usually struggle on the road, both internationally and domestically, but they've turned the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan into an impressive stronghold.
In matches between two disciplined, well-organised teams, moments of individual brilliance often make the difference, and there are few players better at creating an opening out of nowhere than Carrasco.
Expect the former AS Monaco man to take his chances as he's riding a wave of momentum right now.
Toni Kroos, Real Madrid
Athletic Club Bilbao are a bit of an enigma in La Liga―they sit just three points behind the league leaders, despite losing three matches already and scoring just 13 goals while conceding 10 in eight matches.
The Basques have been in incredible form of late, with a 2-1 loss against Malaga the only blip in a lengthy winning streak, but the schedule hasn't been particularly difficult, and they still appear to be a level below the main contenders for the top four.
Per Javier Garcia of Real's official website, manager Zinedine Zidane expects a different challenge compared to the easy Champions League win over Legia Warsaw:
"We can always improve. We took a few risks but the positive thing is that going forward we created a lot of chances. It'll be another match on Sunday, another plan and other players. The important thing today was to win and everyone wants to see us score a lot of goals. We worked very well even if the defensive balance was slightly delicate today
"
Few teams in La Liga have the athleticism to match Los Blancos, but Athletic have plenty of speed out wide and can be effective on the counter. In all likelihood, they'll come out in a compact formation at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu and try to hit their opponents on the break.
Real have struggled to deal with compact, organised defences so far this season, but Toni Kroos' passing range has often made the difference. Per OptaCan, he's been distributing the ball quite well:
The Germany international will likely be the key to unlocking the Basque defence, and if he can find the gaps, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema could have a field day.
