SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

Arsenal v Man City Sunday 16:30, Sky Sports Main Event. Match Odds: Arsenal   5.00 , Man City  1.60 , The Draw  4.50 . City looking to bounce back Manchester City suffered a shock defeat to Wigan Athletic on Monday evening, but have the opportunity to bounce back here to win their first trophy under  Pep Guardiola  in the League Cup final at Wembley. Guardiola made a couple of changes for that FA Cup defeat, but will name his strongest side here. That means a return for Kevin De Bruyne and Kyle Walker, who combine so dangerously down the right for City. Arsenal, meanwhile, have just three days to recover from that shock Europa League defeat at home to Ostersunds. Although having led 3-0 from the first leg, Wenger was able to rest some of his star names, it was nevertheless a surprisingly strong side with the tie already won, so the benefit of City's extra rest shouldn't be entirely dismissed. Guardiola sometimes has specific plans for big games, but...

James Eastham picks out the smartest selections across France's top division this weekend.... Back classy Monaco to overcome Toulouse Toulouse v Monaco  (16th v 2nd) Sat, 16:00 GMT Live on Betfair Live Video In-form Monaco should have too much class and attacking quality for Toulouse at Le Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Leonardo Jardim's visitors have developed a real taste for the fight for 2nd place behind PSG in recent weeks so will go into this game pumped-up and determined to win. It's a sign of Monaco's determination as well as strength as depth that they've won 4-0 in each of their last two Ligue 1 fixtures even though 17-goal top scorer Radamel Falcao missed both games through injury. Monaco were 4-0 winners at Angers in their last away game and ran out winners by the same scoreline at home to Dijon last weekend. Keita Balde and Stefan Jovetic have deputised effectively and Monaco will be confident they have enough firepower even if Falca...

Stuttgart v Eintracht Frankfurt Saturday 24 February, 14:30 Live on Betfair Live Video I haven't quite started wolfing down the humble pie, but I must admit  Tayfun Korkut  has made a much better start at Stuttgart than I thought he would. The Stuttgart native has picked a bold formation with two strikers, and both  Mario Gomez  and Daniel Ginczek have made their mark in recent games. Stuttgart have collected seven points from Korkut's three games, and they have only conceded one goal in the process. To be fair to Korkut, creative solutions like using Holger Badstuber to screen the defence from a deep midfield position have worked out so far. Eintracht Frankfurt showed in Monday's win over RB Leipzig that they are the real deal, and could well grab a top-four finish this term. With all hell breaking loose off the pitch (Frankfurt fans blew vuvuzelas, crowded the goal at the home end and threw hundreds of tennis balls on the pitch to protest the staging of games ...

Real Madrid v Alavés Saturday, 15:15 Live on Betfair Live Video Four wins on the spin, 16 goals scored... for the first time this season, we might just be able to return declare the return of the real Real Madrid with some level of confidence. It's been carnivalesque at times, with the defence still a long way from stable, but  Los Merengues do finally seem to have found their attacking groove , which is good news for neutrals. They played their game in hand in midweek, coming from behind to beat Leganés, and  climbed back into third place in the standings . Now Alavés pitch up at the Bernabéu, looking to extend their own impressive run of form. The Basque side looked down and out when Abelardo pitched up in December, but he has engineered a stunning turnaround:  they've won 11 of their last 16 in all competitions , and leapt out of the relegation zone in La Liga. Even when they have lost, they have impressed, as against Atlético Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona -...

Mike cut Adam's lead at the top of the Battle last time out, while Joe landed a good winner leaving him just a couple of quid behind Harry. Here's where their tenners are headed as the Premier League returns this weekend... Evrton to suffer another miserable away day Adam Baylis Back Watford to win v Everton at   2.34 Saturday, 17:30 Live on BT Sport Watford's dramatic downturn in form after Everton's courting of  Marco Silva  has been well documented and I have a feeling the Toffees' management will be casting eyes at the new man in the Vicarage Road dugout, Javi Gracia, when this one finishes on Saturday evening. The Hornets' form has been a little in-and-out since that saga, but the standout result under the Spaniard came in their sole home match of his reign when they put four past Chelsea. Season-wide, for all that they've only picked up four wins at Vicarage Road, that has mainly come down to defensive failings,  conceding no less than 26...