It was difficult to pick out five fixtures for this weekend, as there are so many enticing encounters across the soccer landscape over the next couple of days. But in my eyes, here are the best five contests.

There’s a bit of everything in there. A massive derby, title defining contests and financial juggernaut taking on unbeaten pretenders. Enjoy!

All kick off times are Eastern Time

Manchester City vs Everton. Saturday, 7:45am, NBCSN

The Premier League weekend gets underway at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, as Manchester City play host to unbeaten Everton.

Manuel Pellegrini’s side will be hoping to bounce back from two straight defeats, but Roberto Martinez’s side have proven a tough nut to crack this season and will be going into the game on the back of three straight league victories themselves.

Everton have also been something of a bogey team for Manchester City down the years. Under previous boss David Moyes, the Merseyside outfit have won on four of their last six visits to the Etihad. And with confidence clearly high in the Everton ranks, Toffees supporters will be hoping they can make the short trip back to Merseyside with at least a point to show for their efforts.

City have been stuttering away from home as of late in the Premier League, but on their own patch they remain an imperious outfit (aside from being on the end of a Bayern Munich masterclass). Their previous home outing in the Premier League was the 4-1 demolition of Manchester United, and they will be keen to get back to winning ways here.

Bayer Leverkusen vs Bayern Munich. Saturday, 12:30pm, GolTV

If there were any doubts as to how Pep Guardiola might improve this Bayern Munich team, they were dispelled on Wednesday night. The world was watching as Die Bayern took Manchester City to pieces on their own patch: relentlessly hunting the ball, passing with incisive purpose and showcasing a real killer instinct in front of goal.

They get back to domestic action at the BayArena on Saturday in a contest that is shaping up to be a crucial fixture. Bayern trail Borussia Dortmund on goal difference, who have started the season in superb fashion too. But Die Borussen have a tough game themselves, as they travel to Borussia Moenchengladbach.

So potentially, it could be a weekend where Bayern can pull ahead of their title rivals. And you feel opportunities will be limited for Guardiola’s side to do so in a league that is looking increasingly duopolistic.

But that said, Leverkusen will be no pushovers for the European Champions, as they sit just one point behind the top two in the Bundesliga standings. They too sampled midweek success in Europe and have an excellent home record to boot. Joachim Löw is expected to attend the game to run the rule over Bayer’s Stefan Kießling, so expect the prolific front-man to be right up for this one after already netting five times so far this season.