Utrecht have found goals through both Alarcón and Cathline, with De Wit providing a central outlet. Zwolle have also created chances across two different results, using Mbayo, Oosting and Van Hooijdonk before calling on later runners. QPR can break quickly through Smyth, Poku and Kone, while Swansea can regain the ball and work it left toward Tymon and Idah. These games are shaped by the second attacking route after the first entry is stopped.
Como's Paz and Douvikas can turn possession into central box chances, especially when an opponent's first pass is loose. Sassuolo can answer with Berardi and Lauriente in the space behind advancing fullbacks. Mainz likewise have strong attacking entries through Becker and Amiri, while Bremen can use wide delivery to find Füllkrug. Each match has a clear home attacking route and a visiting side with a working reply.
Sheffield United can attack Derby from the flanks and collect second balls near the area. Derby have already used their replacement back line together, and Morris gives them a direct way out. Aston Villa can press and cross into the box, while Manchester City can create through both wide combinations and a central finisher. These games test whether the first wave of pressure can be repeated and finished.
The Melbourne derby brings two teams that can move the ball but have reached the box in different ways. Victory controlled possession in their league opener, while City created more shots from wider and central supply. At Fratton Park, Portsmouth can build pressure through territory and restarts, with Millwall using a target forward and runners to break out. Both matches turn on whether the home side's pressure becomes repeated clean chances.
Portsmouth can reach attacking areas through Kamara and Segečić, but recent pressure has seldom become repeated central finishes. Millwall have a direct response through Dykes and the next wide runner. In Birmingham, City's sustained pressure and finishing depth meet several live Villa exits through midfield, a direct forward pass and the flanks. The useful question in each match is how the leading side handles the next response.
These two Championship matches are shaped by sides missing what usually carries them. At Bramall Lane, a reactive Sheffield have to take the game to the league's lowest scorers in a wind warning, which points to few clear chances. At Loftus Road, QPR have lost the players who carried the ball and took their penalties, while Swansea's chance-creating machine is intact. In both, the records the market leans on were built by things that will not be on the pitch.
The Melbourne derby hinges on whether Victory's first press disrupts City's central pass before the ball reaches the wings. City reached the box repeatedly against Auckland despite losing, while Victory's possession against Wellington brought only a few clear contacts. In the Japan Series opener, two rested starters and the first move into the bullpens shape the scoring. Both matches are about how often an initial advantage becomes a clean finish.
Cagliari can create before they settle into a deeper block, while Bologna's press can turn a loose central pass into an immediate chance. The heavy Monza defeat concealed several early Cagliari chances. Bologna still have wide supply, but their recent away scoring chain has changed at the first and last contact. The match turns on which side can link that first reception to a finish.
Rayo's pressure should test how Elche replace an important midfield link. Elche have a direct route behind Rayo's advanced defenders as well as a compact shape when they have to defend. Rayo's recent home results came at another ground, and its lead protection has allowed opponents back into matches. This looks like a contest decided by the first clean pass out of pressure and the next box reception.
These two games point in opposite directions for the same reason: who is actually on the pitch this week. In Mainz, both sides name the same players whose defences have been leaking, so the recent goal pattern should carry on. At Lincoln, the players who scored the goals behind both teams' records are missing. Same question, different answers.
Both of these matches turn on the same question: what happens when a side has to carry the ball against an opponent that is happy without it. At The Valley, Norwich's creation has collapsed while Charlton's home block barely concedes, so the game should stay level for a long time. At the London Stadium, Southampton like the ball and West Ham are at their best defending and breaking. In both games the table and the names say less than the roles do.
Two Championship games where the home side's structure fits what the visitors are bringing this week. Norwich's chance creation has dried up just as they meet a Charlton block that is hard to break at home. Derby lose their midfield screen on a windy day at Bramall Lane against a side that plays direct. Neither match should be pretty, and both lean on the hosts' shape.
Both of these matches turn on a team whose usual shape has been hollowed out this week. Aston Villa face City on short rest after a midweek Champions League night, with their full-backs and a key midfielder missing. Hamburg travel to Paderborn without the two players who held their block-and-counter game together. In each case the side with the intact structure meets one that has to improvise.
QPR come into this match without the three players who made their recent home goals happen. Chair carried the ball, Madsen took the penalties and set pieces, and Burrell was the striker in form. Swansea arrive with the same side that controlled their away games, with only the right-back changed. This looks like a game about whether a stripped-down QPR counter can still hurt a possession team.
Galatasaray's serve and middle block give it a clear way to dictate rallies, while Onikisubat has a functioning attack built around Candido. Gebze's established setter and opposite give it continuity against Sungurlu's revised receiving options. Fenerbahce has more attacking alternatives across a match, while Gaziantep already has useful connections among the players in place.
This match is a contest between two different clocks. Mainz do their damage early, through transitions and second balls, while Werder do theirs late, through crosses and set pieces aimed at Fullkrug. The headline about Werder's long absence list does not touch their starting XI. On that reading, the price treats Mainz as a clearer home favourite than the matchup supports.
Galatasaray's serve and block will test whether Onikisubat can keep its opposite supplied under pressure. The promoted side has already shown it can finish a tight set against top-flight opposition. Gaziantep's attack is concentrated around Jeanlys, while Fenerbahçe has more receiving and middle options. Both matches hinge on whether those concentrated attacks can stay close enough to finish a set.
The Japan Series opener turns on whether DeNA converts early traffic against Uezawa before the game reaches its relief innings. SoftBank has several ways to bring runners to its middle order and a recently demonstrated late pitching chain. Gebze and Sungurlu meet again with more rest than in their Cup encounter. Their contest centers on Sungurlu's improved service against a Gebze block that has already troubled its attack.
Gebze have a settled six and Sungurlu are still searching for one. Two weeks ago Gebze's exact starting group beat Sungurlu in the cup by the same wide score in every set, and the same group then won the league opener away from home. Since then Sungurlu have reshuffled half their lineup. Gebze's missing import is a headline, but it isn't new: he wasn't in either of those matches.
This match comes down to Galatasaray's serve against a promoted side's reception that has been tested only once at this level. In that one test Onikisubat held for two sets and then fell apart. Galatasaray have kept their early sets even against the two best receiving teams in the league. Whether Onikisubat take a set depends on how they start, because the pressure builds as the match goes on.
