It’s the weekend! We’ve got the battle for the title in Montenegro, the clubs trying to make it big in Japan and the next generation of Latin American youngsters. Vamos!
(All times are in CET local time)
Amateur (Like this goalkeeper)
What? Mladost Podgorica – Rudar Pljevlja (Montenegrin Prva Liga)
When? Saturday, 14:30
Where? Stadion FK Mladost, Podgorica
Why? It's the first match of the season between the two leaders who are fighting for the national title. Mladost are currently in 1st place, dreaming about their first ever title and reigning champions Rudar are 2nd, just 1 point behind.
Key Players: Marko Šćepanović is the main player for Mladost and has scored 6 goals in 6 matches. Rudar are thankful to their goalkeeper, Miloš Radanović, who has had 5 clean sheets, while the team has the best defensive record in the league.
National revival: Montenegrin football wasn't dominant before the country’s independence. Budućnost, the leading club in Montenegro, reached the Yugoslav cup final twice and were twice defeated by Croatian sides, Dinamo Zagreb in 1965 and Hajduk Split in 1977.
Professional (like this guy)
What? Sanfrecce Hiroshima – Kawasaki Frontale (Japanese J1 League)
When? Saturday, 07:00
Where? Hiroshima Big Arch, Hiroshima
Why? The Japanese league has a new system this year. There are two stages, while the champions of each stage qualify for the play-offs alongside the two best teams. In the second stage, Sanfrecce Hiroshima is leading with 28 points and Kawasaki Frontale are in 5th place with 23 points, so each game might be decisive for the first place.
Key Players: The two top scorers of this stage will be on show and both of them will be trying to impress us. Hiroshima's Douglas has scored 16 goals and Kawasaki's Yoshito Ōkubo has scored 21 goals. Both of them are the second stage top scorers with 10 goals each.
Don't Stop Me Now: Kazuyoshi Miura, holds the Japanese records for both the oldest player and the oldest scorer. Miura is 48 years old, and has played at second division club Yokohama FC since 2005.
World Class (like this guy)
What? Mexico – Argentina (U-17 World Cup)
When? Monday, 00:00
Where? Estadio Municipal Nelson Oyarzún Arenas, Chillán
Why? After the U-20 World Cup in New Zealand, Chile will host the U-17 World Cup to give some more superstars of the next generation shine. Group C will be the group of death, Australia and Germany have been drawn with another two teams that have plenty of talent. These two teams are Mexico and Argentina, both of which have a great history in the competition.
Key Players: When Mexico won the CONCACAF U-17 title, Pablo López of Pachuca was one of the team’s leading players and even was the tournament MVP. In Argentina everyone will be looking out for San Lorenzo's Tomás Conechny, who led Argentina to the second place in the South American championship.
I Believe I Can Fly: Well, apart from being our key player, Tomás Conechny has some more stories. During the South American championship, Conechny was playing the FIFA video game with his friends. He was so excited, that he fell out of the window. Thankfully, the 10 foot fall ended with only a broken leg.