NICHE DERBY: Bologna vs Parma (Feat. Christine Cupo)
The Derby dell'Emilia is a disagreement between two northern Italian towns with good food, medieval cityscapes, and Roman roots.




There are some moderately large matches in the Premier League this weekend, plus El Gran Derbi in Spain, but the lack of a Massive Fixture gives us an opportunity to dig into the niche nooks of football rivalry.
Enter the Derby dell’Emilia, named for a region named after a road—the Via Aemilia—that the Romans built after they took this chunk of northern Italy off some Celtic tribes back in 189 BC. A bunch of towns grew up along the new thoroughfare, and now there are a number of football clubs scrapping over this turf. The two biggest and most decorated are BOLOGNA, from the medieval masterpiece known for its food, architecture, and the world’s oldest university; and PARMA, another ancient town that’s…known for its food. This is Italy, after all.
These two clubs have enjoyed very different histories: Bologna were a big deal in the early decades of Serie A, at a time when Parma were looking up at them from a league (or multiple) below. Then, in the 1990s, the Crociati (Crusaders) of Parma rose to the lofty heights of the Italian league when it was the greatest in the world, fielding a parade of famous names—Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Lilian Thuram, Hernán Crespo, Gianfranco Zola, Juan Sebastian Verón—thanks in part to some very rich and very volatile ownership. When the multinational dairy and food corporation with a controlling ownership stake, Parmalat, collapsed early on in the new millennium, it decimated the club.
You can hear all about that—and how Bologna just played their biggest game in maybe 60 years at Anfield on Wednesday—in this week’s episode with Christine Cupo, reporter and analyst on the CBS Sports Golazo Network:
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SATURDAY

CRYSTAL PALACE vs LIVERPOOL
7:30am ET, 12:30pm UK
The Eagles were the form team in the division behind only Man City and Arsenal at the end of last season, but it’s been a different story to start this new campaign. Oli Glasner’s outfit are in the drop zone, without a win in six games—they even lost to Everton last week!—and they cannot be overjoyed to see Liverpool come to town. The Merseysiders are top of the league, and only a win will do at Selhurst Park as they look to stave off the aforementioned City and Arsenal.
WEST HAM vs IPSWICH
10am ET, 3pm UK
The West Ham faithful could not have envisioned a relegation scrap this season, but new coach Julen Lopetegui has brought some gravitas without results up to this point. Should the East Londoners continue to hover two points above the drop—or worse—the locals might just start to pine for David Moyes once again. Nobody in Ipswich colors will be pining for anybody other than Kieran McKenna, who’s brought them to the promised land, but they still are without a win this season. The Tractor Boys need points, too.
Or, if you’re looking for some higher-brow fare, there’s MAN CITY vs high-flying FULHAM, though a league match at the Etihad doesn’t always scream, “DRAMA AND SUSPENSE!”

EVERTON vs NEWCASTLE
12:30pm ET, 5:30pm UK
Oh, Everton. The team of destiny, if that destiny is the Championship. Yes, the Toffees scratched out a win over Palace last time out, but they somehow look even worse than last season—which was nearly worse than the season before. There are only so many times you can circle the drain without slipping into the pipes, and Newcastle aren’t an ideal outfit to host at the moment. Yes, star striker Alexander Isak remains out, but the Magpies had enough to take a point off City last week and are looking like Top Six contenders again.
REAL MADRID vs VILLAREAL
3pm ET, 8pm UK
Despite a raft of injuries, the Yellow Submarine come to the Spanish capital sitting third in the table, one point off Real Madrid. Gerard Moreno and Juan Foyth and Willy Kambwala were already missing, but the loss of Ayoze Pérez to injury is a big one: he’s got six goals in seven appearances, one behind Liga leader Robert Lewandowski. Madrid’s injury story is just the opposite: Kylian Mbappé made his return off the bench in midweek, one of quite a few Merengues to get back on the pitch in recent weeks.
SUNDAY


BOLOGNA vs PARMA
9am ET, 2pm UK
The Derby dell’Emilia. Get the full preview with Christine above!
ASTON VILLA vs MAN UNITED
9am ET, 2pm UK
If you’re understandably Prem-addicted, there’s a narrative-rich clash kicking off at the same time as our Emilian spectacular. Aston Villa are fresh off a famous win over European giants in midweek, as Bayern Munich left Villa Park empty-handed despite all their possession and classy continental charisma. The Villans are over the moon in Unai Emery’s spaceship, with two wins from two in the Champions League. Four from six in the Premier League—plus a draw at Ipswich last time out—has them two points off the top.
More than anything, they are just finding a way to win matches, getting the goals they need and hunkering down to defend their leads. They have a defined identity and a durable—not inflexible—way of playing, all things that cannot be said of Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United. 13th in the league and fresh off a dismal display against Tottenham at home last weekend, can this club even be considered giant anymore? They’re certainly no Bayern Munich, and they aren’t favorites here. The way things are going, we could look back on this match as a Top Six changing-of-the-guard.
BRIGHTON vs TOTTENHAM
11:30am ET, 4:30pm UK
Is this the battle of two Top Six up-and-comers, or a couple of upper-mid-table occasionally-do-wells? Brighton started well enough under new coach Fabian Hürzeler, but the Seagulls are winless in four and shipped four goals to Chelsea—well, to Cole Palmer—last time out. Tottenham have been consistently inconsistent: a statement win at Old Trafford last weekend built on a shakier W over Brentford a fortnight ago to get Ange Postecoglou’s side back in touching distance of the Top Four. But they need to get into Points Accumulation Mode against Brighton, West Ham, and Crystal Palace before a tricky visit from Aston Villa.

SEVILLA vs REAL BETIS
12:30pm ET, 5:30pm UK
They call it “El Gran Derbi” any time the two teams from the Andalusian capital run into each other, and this one got a bit grander last year when former Real Madrid schemer Isco popped up at Betis following a short and acrimonious spell at Sevilla the previous season. The man from Benalmádena, a town in Andalusia not far from another of his former clubs, Málaga, is a technical genius, a Spanish attacking maestro of the old mold, but he broke his leg in May and missed out on any chance to join in his country’s EURO 2024 success.
He’s not back until the new year, but there are plenty of ballers on show: Dodi Lukebakio and Kelechi Iheanacho and the 38-year-old Jesus Navas for somewhat struggling Sevilla; Giovani Lo Celso, Vitor Roque, and the somehow-still-29 Héctor Bellerín for Betis. Just don’t expect anything out of the Seville derby like we saw in 1918, when Sevilla reportedly won 22-0.⚽︎