Before the last day, the suspense remains in Spain for the title and in England for the European places. Juventus are playing their game for the next Champions League and Robert Lewandowski is chasing a historic record with Bayern, already sacred.
Spain: undecided outcome, Messi too
Madrid’s two neighbors, Atlético and Real Madrid, will battle for the La Liga title on the 38th and final day of the championship, whose matches at stake are scheduled for Saturday at 6:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. GMT).
Diego Simeone’s Atlético move to Valladolid, still fighting for maintenance, while Zinédine Zidane’s men, announced to start, receive Villarreal from Unai Emery.
Sparkling this season, Karim Benzema will be particularly scrutinized four days after his surprise recall to the France team. Before heading for the Euro, the 33-year-old striker has two points behind Atlético.
FC Barcelona, third under the threat of Sevilla FC, moves to the small field of Ipurua, in Eibar, for what could be the last match on the bench of Ronald Koeman, threatened with eviction, but especially the last match at Barça of Lionel Messi … At the end of the contract on June 30 and still undecided, the Argentinian has not yet pronounced on a possible extension.
England: Total suspense for Europe
Who will accompany the two Manchester, City (champion) and United (dolphin), next year in C1? There are two places coveted by Chelsea, Liverpool and Leicester, a trio grouped together in one point before the clap at the end of Sunday (15:00 GMT).
The Blues have their destiny in hand before facing Aston Villa. But Liverpool, hosts of Crystal Palace, are in ambush a unit behind, like Leicester. The Foxes, handicapped by a goal difference lower than the Reds, challenge Tottenham.
If Chelsea are overtaken at the last minute, they will have one last chance to catch the C1 by winning the current edition, on May 29 in the final against City. This scenario would open the doors of the Europa League (C3) to the 6th and 7th of the Premier League; the 8th would go to the Europa League Conference (C4). Otherwise, the 5th and 6th will go in C3 and the 7th, in C4.
Whatever happens, West Ham (6th) is off to a good start in the Europa League, with three points ahead of Tottenham and Everton, traveling to Manchester City, already looking to the C1 final in Porto.
Italy: Last chance for Juve
This is the stake of the last act: the three-way match between AC Milan, Napoli and Juventus for the last two tickets available in the Champions League (the other two are reserved by Inter Milan, champion, and the ‘Atalanta Bergamo).
Milan (3rd) and Naples (4th) are in the lead in the final sprint but Juventus (5th), at one point, will do everything to get back on track. The Turinese, galvanized by their victory in the Italian Cup on Wednesday, have no other choice but to win in Bologna (11th) and hope that at least one of the other two gives up points. A draw will be insufficient at the Bianconeri due to a particular unfavorable difference.
In the event of 5th place, it would be the first time that Juve missed the C1 since 2012.
Naples seems able to ensure the essential victory at home against Hellas Verona (11th). On the other hand, Milan may fear his final trip to Bergamo: Atalanta is certainly already qualified in C1, but it will be keen to finish well after the disappointment in the Italian Cup final. Gian Piero Gasperini is also very keen on 2nd place in the final, which would be the best ranking in the club’s history.
Germany: “Lewy” record holder, contested maintenance
The games being made at the top of the Bundesliga table, the interest of the last day on Saturday (all matches at 3.30 p.m.) will focus on the fight for maintenance and, of course, on Robert Lewandowski who can beat the record with Bayern. Gerd Müller’s record of 40 goals in one season.
Last Saturday, the Pole equaled the mark of the “Bombardier”, established in 1971-1972. He has one game left, at home against Augsburg, to become the all-time top scorer in a season, and his teammates have already pledged to help him.
In the standings, Bayern is assured of the title of champion and Leipzig, of the place of dolphin. The honorary third place will be played between Dortmund, host of Leverkusen, and Wolfsburg, which hosts Mainz. However, the two teams are already guaranteed to play in the next Champions League.
Frankfurt and Leverkusen have also validated their tickets for the Europa League.
At the bottom of the table, where Schalke has long been relegated, Bielefeld (32 pts), Bremen (31 pts) and Cologne (30 pts) will battle it out from a distance to avoid the direct descent (17th place) or the jump-off against the third of D2 (16th place).
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