Russian fans are still bored without national football, as the world is the Russian Premier League (RPL) went on winter break. However, international football continues with a number of interesting matches taking place in European leagues this weekend.

Arsenal-Manchester United

In England, the main event of the 23rd round of the domestic championship will be the clash between the leader of the table, Arsenal, and Manchester United. The Gunners could become champions of England for the first time since 2004. The main competitors – Manchester City and Liverpool – are going through a difficult season, but Arsenal do not allow themselves stability either. The next match on Sunday could revive the championship fight or finally open Arsenal’s path to the title.

Manchester United, with its new manager Michael Carrick, has already reserved a surprise: in the last round the Mancunians won the derby against Manchester City (2:0). Will it be possible to do it again? The match will start on January 25 at 19:30 Moscow time. Arsenal are leading with 50 points, Manchester United are fifth (35).

Rome-Milan

In Italy there are two strong signals at the same time. The first is the clash between Rome and Milan. In the national championship there is still the whole fight for the championship. The one between Roma and Milan could be one of the decisive ones. The match will take place on January 25 and will start at 10.45pm Moscow time. Milan are second in the league, 3 points behind leaders Inter. The Romans are in fourth position, 7 and 4 points behind the Milanese respectively.

Juve-Napoli

The second key match of the group will be the one between Juventus and Napoli. The Neapolitans are unbeaten in nine consecutive matches in the tournaments in which they participate, and have already risen to third place in the standings. Juventus is also in good form: the Old Lady has suffered only one defeat in the last nine matches in different tournaments. The club is fifth in the national championship, 4 points behind Napoli.

Real Madrid-Villarreal

The fight for the title is also in full swing in Spain. After Barcelona’s defeat in the last round, its leadership in the standings has significantly weakened. Real Madrid is now one point behind its eternal rival and will play Villarreal on January 25, the match will start at 11pm Moscow time. Real Madrid is slowly coming to its senses after the resignation of Xabi Alonso from the post of head coach and the appointment of another former player of the team, Alvaro Arbeloa, to this position.

Villarreal is a dark horse in the fight to win the championship. The club is in third place in the table, 7 points behind Real Madrid and 8 points behind the Catalans, with a match in hand.

Marseille – Lens

Lens have achieved eight consecutive victories in the French championship and lead the table with 43 points, one point clear PSG. Marseille has scored 35 points and is in 3rd place. In the first round match, Lens won at home with a score of 2:1. The league leaders have conceded the fewest goals in the current tournament (13), while Marseille is the team with the highest score (41 goals).

Le Havre-Monaco

Monaco, with Russian midfielder Alexander Golovin in their lineup, will play away to Le Havre. The Monegasques are doing badly this season and it will be difficult to get into the European Cup zone: the team with 23 points is in ninth place in the French championship. Le Havre is 14th with 19 points. Golovin has played 12 games in the national championship this season, scoring two goals and making one assist.

Changes in the limit of foreign players in the Russian football championship starting from 2028 are inevitable. This was announced by the Minister of Sport RF and head of the Russian Olympic Committee Mikhail Degtyarev at the “Knowledge. State” forum.

“We have tightened the limit. The state has a tool. How many foreigners will be on the field, is it necessary to impose a tax on the participation of foreigners, how will the academies work? The state has a solution – an order. There will be five foreign footballers from 2028, period,” Degtyarev said.

The Russian Ministry of Sports proposes to tighten the limit for foreign players in the Russian Premier League by 2028 according to the scheme “10 foreign players in the application, 5 on the pitch”. According to the current limit, clubs RPL can include 13 foreign players in the application and release 8 foreign players on the field.

“Knowledge. State” is a large-scale educational project of the Knowledge Society for state and municipal employees. The project has been implemented since 2022 and includes lectures and broadcasts from the Knowledge Society’s multimedia studios. For more than two years, more than 30 thousand conferences were held in all regions of Russia, more than 3.5 million people became listeners.