HIGHLIGHTED FIXTURES
May 6.
Lille vs MONACO
INTER MILAN vs Empoli
May 7.
Brest vs STRASBOURG
FC KOLN vs Wolfsburg
FRIEBURG vs UNION BERLIN
Hoffenheim vs LEVERKUSEN
CHELSEA vs Wolves
Brighton vs MANCHESTER UNITED
LIVERPOOL vs TOTTENHAM
Benfica vs PORTO
Portimonense vs SPORTING CP
Nice vs Nantes (Coup de France final)
May 8.
Lorient vs MARSEILLE
RB LEIPZIG vs Augsburg
ARSENAL vs Leeds
Leicester City vs EVERTON
Norwich City vs WEST HAM
MANCHESTER CITY vs Newcastle
Hellas Verona vs AC MILAN
AZ Alkmaar vs AJAX
Feyenoord vs PSV EINDHOVEN (De Kraker)
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid (Madrid derby)
FRENCH LIGUE 1 – Race for Champions League football.
From the 2nd to 8th placed team in the French Ligue 1 standings, the dream of a UEFA Champions League qualification is still alive to some extent.
A maximum of 9 POINTS REMAIN for each club.
Marseille’s grip on second place loosened after a 3-0 defeat at home against Lyon, while Rennes found the three points to keep Saint-Etienne in the bottom three.
Monaco is back in contention for second place after marking their 7th successive victory with a 2-0 win over Angers.
Nice joined the party with a narrow win against a relegation-bound Bordeaux.
POINTS
Marseille-65
Rennes-62
Monaco-62
Nice-60
Marseille, Rennes, Monaco, and Nice are all in a position to earn direct qualification to the Champions League but it is Marseille’s position to lose.
Strasbourg must get a win (vs Brest) to stay within reach of a Champions League spot.
Lyon and Lens are mathematically in position for the Champions League playoff rounds. If they miss this round they miss out.
May 6.
Lille vs MONACO
May 7.
Brest vs STRASBOURG
May 8.
Lorient vs MARSEILLE
May 11.
NICE vs Saint-Etienne
Nantes vs RENNES
GERMAN BUNDESLIGA TOP FOUR
Another win will do it for Leverkusen.
It is a must-win for FC Koln and Union Berlin to keep their Champions League dream alive in the Bundesliga race for the ‘top four’.
FC KOLN
FC Koln will be looking for the three points at home against Wolfsburg.
FRIEBURG vs UNION BERLIN
While helping themselves to a ‘top four’ finish, Freiburg will also end Union Berlin’s Champions League dream with a win.
LEVERKUSEN
Leverkusen will guarantee themselves Champions League football if they beat Hoffenheim.
RB LEIPZIG
Getting knocked out from the Europa League on Thursday means a ‘top four’ finish in the German Bundesliga is the only way RB Leipzig will be playing Champions League football next season.
RB Leipzig has lost 3-1 in their last two matches.
A 3-1 defeat to Monchengladbach in the last Bundesliga fixture dropped them out of the ‘top four’ of the league standings.
A 3-1 defeat to Rangers on Thursday knocked them out of the Europa League at the semifinal stage.
To take full advantage of the outcome of the ‘Freiburg vs Union Berlin’ match, RB Leipzig must find three points from home against Augsburg.
May 7.
FC KOLN vs Wolfsburg
FRIEBURG vs UNION BERLIN
Hoffenheim vs LEVERKUSEN
May 8.
RB LEIPZIG vs Augsburg
ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE TITLE RACE
May 7.
CHELSEA vs Wolves
Brighton vs MANCHESTER UNITED
LIVERPOOL vs TOTTENHAM
May 8.
ARSENAL vs Leeds
Leicester City vs EVERTON
Norwich City vs WEST HAM
MANCHESTER CITY vs Newcastle
2022 UEFA Champions League finalist (Liverpool) will host Tottenham this weekend. Their ambitions are not the same but the desperation to win will be. While Liverpool is going for the win to put pressure on Manchester City in the title race, Tottenham is in search of the points to help them secure a place in the top 4 and qualify for the Champions League.
Poor results in recent weeks have dragged Chelsea into the race of a ‘top 4’ finish at the end of the season. Among the prime candidates in that race, Chelsea is the one in the best position to secure the top four. They will need to start by getting a win against Wolves.
Manchester United’s odds of finishing in the ‘top four’ are negligible. But to keep the last bit of hope alive, they will have to find a win at Brighton.
Arsenal is home against a Leeds United side that is battling relegation. Anything but a defeat for Arsenal will officially end Manchester United’s bid for a ‘top four’ finish. A win for Arsenal is needed to take advantage of the ‘Liverpool vs Tottenham’ results. The expectation is that Liverpool will pick up a win so Arsenal will use a win at home to get a bit more comfortable in the ‘top four’.
West Ham is included in the race because of mathematical possibility, and not because of probability. Playing against relegated Norwich City is an opportunity for West Ham to close in on the ‘top7’. West Ham has the games to finish above Manchester United.
To boost their survival odds, Everton must find a win at Leicester. The last fixture between the two clubs ended in a 1-1 draw but the last time Everton was at Leicester, they picked up 3 points from a 2-0 win. Everton can’t afford to drop points.
After their Champions League exit, Manchester City’s season hangs on winning the defending their Premier League title. Up next is Newcastle United.
ITALIAN SERIE A TITLE RACE
May 6.
INTER MILAN vs Empoli
May 8.
Hellas Verona vs AC MILAN
With Inter Milan playing a couple of days before, AC Milan will know the minimum required to remain 2 points in the lead.
The Survival Mark
No one wants to drop down a tier.
As things stand, these are the minimum points needed to be relegation proof.
34 points in the Portuguese Primeira Liga.
36 points in the German Bundesliga and in the Dutch Eredivisie.
39 points in the Italian Serie A
40 points in the French Ligue 1
44 points in the Spanish La Liga
47 points in the English Premier League
DUTCH EREDIVISIE
May 8.
AZ Alkmaar vs AJAX
Feyenoord vs PSV EINDHOVEN (De Kraker)
Nine points left in the DUTCH EREDIVISIE with Ajax having a 4-point lead on PSV Eindhoven in a two-horse race. Both clubs will be away from home on Sunday. Ajax against 5th place AZ Alkmaar, and PSV Eindhoven against 3rd place Feyenoord.
AJAX – 78 points
PSV Eindhoven – 74 points
PSV Eindhoven must keep up the pace with Ajax.
A 4-point lead allows Ajax the thinnest of margins when it comes to dropping points.
DE KRAKER
It’s unlikely at the moment but PSV Eindhoven is {still} on track to win a league double. A victory against Feyenoord is required to push Ajax all the way because a PSV Eindhoven defeat in conjunction with an Ajax victory will make Ajax champions again.
Feyenoord will be riding on a high after becoming a UEFA Conference League finalist.
PORTUGUESE PRIMIERA LIGA
A point against Benfica will seal the deal for Porto to become the 2022 Portuguese Primeira Liga champions.
Because of the league rules, Sporting CP will win the league if they can equal Porto in points. In a nutshell, if Porto loses their next two matches, Sporting CP will use wins from their final two matches to the wins by the league title
The league rules all Sporting CP a mathematical chance to upset Porto. It will demand 100% wins in their remaining two games and Porto losing their next two
PORTO – 85 points
SPORTING CP – 79 points
May 7.
Benfica vs PORTO
Portimonense vs SPORTING CP
COUPE de FRANCE – FINAL
May 7.
Nice vs Nantes
It’s been over two decades since these two 3-time winners of the Coupe de France won another Coupe de France title.
Nice and Nantes are in search of their 4th title at the expense of the other.
Nantes is looking to end a 22-year drought.
Nice is looking to end a 25-year drought.
MADRID DERBY.
May 8.
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid.
For Real Madrid, it is about the bragging rights of winning a local derby
For Atletico Madrid, it is about a lot more.
Champions League football qualification is still on the line for Atletico Madrid.
The last two games for Real Madrid have ended in a celebration of a league title and a celebration for making it to the UEFA Champions League final.
A Real Madrid team that has been inspired by success will take on an Atletico Madrid team that is without a win from their two recent league fixtures, and with just a win from their last 6 matches.
