💾 THE SAVES WE MADE OVER THE WEEKEN
🏴 Manchester City stayed as Champions of England.
🇩🇪 Bayer Leverkusen became the first German club to go through a league season unbeaten.
🇩🇪 Bayern Munich did not finish in the top two, they finished third.
🇪🇸 Cadiz confirmed their relegation.
🇩🇪 FC Köln confirmed their relegation.
🏴 Luton Town confirmed their relegation.
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Friday, May 17, 2024
🇷🇺 Igor Denisov turns 40, 🇨🇴 Teófilo Gutiérrez turns 39, 🇵🇹 Rafa Silva turns 31.Friday,
🇮🇹 Fiorentina ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Napoli (italian serie a)
It’s now six league games in a row without a win for Napoli. The defending champions are on track to finish their season in the bottom half of the league standings after a 2-2 draw in Florence against Fiorentina. Napoli gave up an early lead to trail 2-1 by halftime but managed to get even through Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s free kick in the second half.
🇵🇹Rio Ave ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Benfica (portuguese primeira liga)
Benfica ended their season by dropping points in a draw with Rio Ave. This result did not affect their position but opened the opportunity for Sporting CP to win the league title by 10 points.
Saturday, May 18, 2024
🇧🇪 Eric Gerets turns 70, 🇺🇸 Brad Friedel turns 53.
🇩🇪 Bayer Leverkusen ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Augsburg (german bundesliga)
Bayer Leverkusen completed the season unbeaten, with 28 wins and 6 draws.
They became the first team in Bundesliga history to achieve this and are on track to go their entire football season unbeaten, with two finals left to play: the Europa League final and the DFB Pokal final.
🇩🇪 Eintracht Frankfurt ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) RB Leipzig (german bundesliga)
Eintracht Frankfurt recovered from two goals down to avoid defeat at home on the final match day. Frankfurt only needed a result at home against RB Leipzig to maintain 6th place if Hoffenheim managed the improbable feat of defeating Bayern Munich by three goals.
🇩🇪 Hoffenheim ( 4 ) – ( 2 ) Bayern Munich (german bundesliga)
Andrej Kramaric scored a hat trick to see Hoffenheim end their season with a 4-2 victory against Bayern Munich.
A 2-0 lead in the opening six minutes did not prevent Bayern Munich from suffering a defeat on the final day of the season. They went into the break leading 2-1 but conceded three goals in the second half, all from Andrej Kramaric.
Bayern finished third behind Stuttgart in a season where they lost the league title after over a decade of dominance.
🇩🇪 Heidenheim ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) FC Köln (german bundesliga)
FC Köln confirmed relegation.
The best FC Köln could hope for on the final day of the Bundesliga season with a win was the slim possibility of a relegation playoff, which was improbable. FC Köln was away against Heidenheim and was 3-0 down at the end of the first half in a game that ended 4-1.
🇩🇪 Stuttgart ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Borussia Mönchengladbach (german bundesliga)
It was Stuttgart’s final opportunity to finish above Bayern Munich, and they did so with a 4-0 home win against Monchengladbach. Serhou Guirassy scored a first-half brace to take his goal tally in the league to 28.
🇩🇪 Union Berlin ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Freiburg (german bundesliga)
🇩🇪 Werder Bremen ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Bochum (german bundesliga)
🇩🇪 Wolfsburg ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Mainz (german bundesliga)
A win against Freiburg was crucial for Union Berlin to have a chance of moving out of the relegation playoff spot, with Mainz or Bochum as the only other possible recipients of the position.
Bochum or Mainz had to suffer a defeat on the day for Union Berlin to successfully relinquish the relegation playoff spot with a win of their own. Union Berlin picked up the crucial 2-1 win at home against Freiburg to do their part, while Mainz secured their place with a 3-1 win at Wolfsburg. Bochum, on the other hand, was handed a 4-1 defeat in Bremen.
Union Berlin successfully relinquished the relegation playoff spot, which went to Bochum.
🇮🇹 Lecce ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Atalanta (italian serie a)
Atalanta closed the door to a top-five finish for the Rome clubs when they picked up three points from a 2-0 win at Lecce. With this win, the best Roma and Lazio can achieve this season is a sixth-place finish.
🇵🇹 Sporting CP ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Chaves (portuguese primeira liga)
Sporting CP wins the league by 10 points.
Viktor Gyokeres scored a brace, taking his goal tally to 29 goals and helping Sporting CP finish the title-winning season with a 3-0 win over Chaves.
🇵🇹 Braga ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Porto (portuguese primeira liga)
Wenderson Galeno scored the game’s only goal in the 84th minute to grant Porto a win over Braga, allowing them to hold on to third place. Braga and Porto were contending for the third spot. Porto only had to escape defeat, while Braga had to win to seize third place.
🇵🇹 Boavista ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Vizela (portuguese primeira liga)
🇵🇹 Estrela da Amadora ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Gil Vicente (portuguese primeira liga)
🇵🇹 Farense ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Portimonense (portuguese primeira liga)
Portimonense, Estrela da Amadora, and Boavista were locked in a battle to avoid the relegation playoff, with Portimonense occupying the position. For any positional change to happen in the final round, Portimonense had to secure a victory, and either Estrela da Amadora fails to win at home or Boavista suffers a defeat. Portimonense did their part by securing a 3-1 win against Farense, but Estrela da Amadora won at home against Gil Vicente, and Boavista did not suffer a defeat but picked up a 2-2 draw against relegated Vizela. Portimonense finished the season in the relegation playoff spot.
Sunday, May 19, 2024
🇮🇹 Andrea Pirlo turns 45, 🇺🇾 Diego Forlán turn 45.
🇪🇸 Cádiz ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Las Palmas (spanish la liga)
Cadiz needed a win and other factors to go their way to avoid relegation on the day. However, with Celta Vigo and Mallorca avoiding defeat, not even a win would have been enough to save Cadiz from relegation.
🇪🇸 Villarreal ( 4 ) – ( 4 ) Real Madrid (spanish la liga)
It looked like a routine win for Real Madrid when they scored four goals in the first half to take a 4-1 lead into the break. However, Alexander Sorloth scored four goals, including a second-half hat trick, to earn Villarreal a point at home against Real Madrid.
🏴 Arsenal ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Everton (english premier league)
Arsenal got the win they needed against Everton to stand a chance of winning the title on the final day of the season. Unfortunately, West Ham United couldn’t help them with a win against Manchester City. Arsenal had to come from behind to equalize before the break and eventually scored another goal in the final minute of regulation time to win 2-1 against Everton. The goals didn’t come early enough to put any pressure on Manchester City, but a win is always a good thing.
🏴Manchester City ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) West Ham United (english premier league)
Manchester City got off to a great start, going 2-0 up in the opening 20 minutes with Phil Foden scoring both goals. Despite West Ham pulling one back to send the game into the halftime break at 2-1, the feeling was that Manchester City would get the job done after the break. Rodri scored the insurance goal in the 59th minute to secure Manchester City a 3-1 win and another league title.
🏴 Luton Town ( 2 ) – ( 4 ) Fulham (english premier league)
There was little that Luton Town could do to avoid relegation on the day. At the start of the day, they needed a win and somehow had to bridge a 12-goal difference between them and Nottingham Forest to stand a chance. They lost 4-2 to Fulham.
🇮🇹 Sassuolo ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Cagliari (italian serie a)
Matteo Prati entered the game in the 67th minute and scored the winning goal for Cagliari about four minutes later. Gianluca Lapadula converted from the penalty spot in the first minute of added time to double the lead, securing a 2-0 win for Cagliari against Sassuolo. The result confirmed Sassuolo’s relegation and placed Cagliari three points clear of the relegation mark.
🇮🇹 Monza ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Frosinone (italian serie a)
Walid Cheddira’s goal in the 9th minute was enough to give Frosinone a 1-0 win at Monza, a result that allowed them to distance themselves from the relegation zone by two points.
🇮🇹 Udinese ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Empoli (italian serie a)
A late penalty awarded to each side saw Udinese and Empoli share the points in a 1-1 draw. Empoli opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the final minute of regulation time, and Udinese equalized through a penalty kick in the 14th minute of added time. Only one point separates the two teams. Udinese couldn’t capitalize on the support of their home crowd to widen the gap to four points with a win and secure their safety.
🇮🇹 Inter Milan ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Lazio (italian serie a)
🇮🇹 Roma ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Genoa (italian serie a)
In Milan, Lazio was close to leaving with a win against Inter. However, Denzel Dumfries scored in the 87th minute for Inter Milan to cancel out the lead Daichi Kamada had given Lazio in the 32nd minute. In Rome, Romelu Lukaku scored the only goal of the match to hand Roma a 1-0 win over Genoa. These two results, along with Roma’s 10-goal difference advantage, will see Roma finish the season a position ahead of Lazio.
🇫🇷 Metz ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Paris Saint-Germain (french ligue 1)
Metz would have desired to climb out of the relegation-playoff spot, but that was highly improbable, as they would need a victory to overcome an 11-goal difference between themselves and Le Havre. Unfortunately for Metz, their opponent for the final round of the season was Paris Saint-Germain.
🇳🇱 AZ Alkmaar ( 3 ) – ( 3 ) Utrecht (dutch eredivisie)
🇳🇱 PEC Zwolle ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Twente (dutch eredivisie)
Twente retained third place by defeating PEC Zwolle. Any other result would provide an opportunity for AZ Alkmaar to secure third place with a home win against Utrecht, AZ Alkmaar couldn’t beat Utrecht on the day.
🇳🇱 Feyenoord ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Excelsior (dutch eredivisie)
🇳🇱 Heracles Almelo ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Fortuna Sittard (dutch eredivisie)
🇳🇱 PSV Eindhoven ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) RKC Waalwijk (dutch eredivisie)
Excelsior, Waalwijk, and to some extent, Heracles, were striving to avoid participating in a relegation playoff. The goal difference wasn’t favoring Heracles, so they had to avoid defeat at home against Fortuna Sittard to secure safety, which they did. Fortunately for Heracles, RKC Waalwijk and Excelsior were both facing tough away matches against PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord, respectively. As expected, both RKC Waalwijk and Excelsior were beaten on the day. Excelsior will have to go through the relegation playoff.
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THE TITLE RACE IN THE TOP 7 LEAGUES AFTER THE WEEKEND MATCHES:
🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen are champions.
🇳🇱 Eredivisie: PSV Eindhoven are champions.
🇪🇸 La Liga: Real Madrid are champions.
🇫🇷 Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain are champions.
🇵🇹 Primeira Liga: Sporting CP are champions.
🇮🇹 Serie A: Inter Milan are champions.
🏴 Premier League: Manchester City are the champions.
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🇩🇪 BUNDESLIGA
Bayer Leverkusen will be the defending champions next season, while Bayern Munich will have some work to do to get back to the top. Bayer Leverkusen finished the season with 90 points, 17 points better than their closest rival and 18 points better than the defending champions. Bochum will try to win the relegation playoffs to avoid dropping to the second division with FC Köln and Darmstadt.
[🇩🇪 league points]
Bayer Leverkusen (90), Stuttgart (73), Bayern Munich (72), RB Leipzig (65)
Borussia Dortmund (63), Eintracht Frankfurt (47), Hoffenheim (46), Heidenheim (42)
Werder Bremen (42), Freiburg (42), Augsburg (39), Wolfsburg (37)
Mainz (35), Borussia Mönchengladbach (34), Union Berlin (33), Bochum (33)
FC Köln (27), Darmstadt (17)
[🇩🇪 league results]
Bayer Leverkusen ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Augsburg
Borussia Dortmund ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Darmstadt
Eintracht Frankfurt ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) RB Leipzig
Heidenheim ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) FC Köln
Hoffenheim ( 4 ) – ( 2 ) Bayern Munich
Union Berlin ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Freiburg
Stuttgart ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Borussia Mönchengladbach
Werder Bremen ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Bochum
Wolfsburg ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Mainz
🇫🇷 LIGUE 1
Paris Saint-Germain ended their season with a win that helped locked Metz in the relegation playoffs.
Brest moved up a position to take third place from Lille with a win over Toulouse, while Lille dropped points at home in a draw with Nice.
Lyon finished above Lens, with Lyon securing a victory over Strasbourg, while Lens dropped points at home in a draw with Montpellier.
Paris Saint-Germain’s 76 points is the lowest tally for a champion this season.
[🇫🇷 league points]
Paris Saint-Germain (76), Monaco (67), Brest (61), Lille (59)
Nice (55), Lyon (53), Lens (51), Marseille (50)
Reims (47), Rennes (46), Toulouse (43), Montpellier (41)
Strasbourg (39), Nantes (33), Le Havre (32), Lorient (29)
Metz (29), Clermont (25)
[🇫🇷 league results]
Le Havre ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Marseille
Lens ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Montpellier
Lille ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Nice
Lorient ( 5 ) – ( 0 ) Clermont
Lyon ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Strasbourg
Metz ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Paris Saint-Germain
Monaco ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Nantes
Reims ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Rennes
Toulouse ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Brest
🇳🇱 EREDIVISIE
PSV Eindhoven wrapped up the Eredivisie with 91 points, 7 points clear at the top. There were no title-defining positional changes on the final day of the season. Excelsior will have to go through relegation playoffs for a chance to remain in the top flight.
[🇳🇱 league points]
PSV Eindhoven (91), Feyenoord (84), Twente (69), AZ Alkmaar (65)
Ajax (56), NEC Nijmegen (53), Utrecht (50), Sparta Rotterdam (49)
Go Ahead Eagles (46), Fortuna Sittard (38), SC Heerenveen (37), PEC Zwolle (36)
Almere City (34), Heracles Almelo (33), RKC Waalwijk (29), Excelsior (29)
Volendam (19), Vitesse (6)
[🇳🇱 league results]
Almere City ( 1 ) – ( 4 ) NEC Nijmegen
AZ Alkmaar ( 3 ) – ( 3 ) Utrecht
Volendam ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Go Ahead Eagles
Feyenoord ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Excelsior
Heracles Almelo ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Fortuna Sittard
PEC Zwolle ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Twente
PSV Eindhoven ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) RKC Waalwijk
Sparta Rotterdam ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) SC Heerenveen
Vitesse ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Ajax
🇵🇹 PRIMEIRA LIGA
Sporting CP hit the 90-point mark to close out the season.
There were minimal positional changes on the final day, but nothing that defined the season. Portimonense will look to win the relegation playoffs to stay in the top flight, while Vizela and Chaves go down.
[🇵🇹 league points]
Sporting CP (90), Benfica (80), Porto (72), Braga (68)
Vitória de Guimarães (63), Moreirense (55), Arouca (46), Famalicão (42)
Casa Pia (38), Farense (37), Rio Ave (37), Gil Vicente (36)
Estoril (33), Estrela da Amadora (33), Boavista (32), Portimonense (32)
Vizela (26), Chaves (23)
[🇵🇹 league results]
Famalicão ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Casa Pia
Rio Ave ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Benfica
Arouca ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Vitória de Guimarães
Boavista ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Vizela
Estrela da Amadora ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Gil Vicente
Farense ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Portimonense
Moreirense ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Estoril
Sporting CP ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Chaves
Braga ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Porto
🏴 PREMIER LEAGUE
Manchester City crossed the 90-point mark as they became league champions for the fourth year in a row. Arsenal kept pace with Manchester City to get a win but fell a point short of the 90-point mark. The only positional battle of importance in the league was for the top two spots, and nothing changed there as both clubs won at home.
[🏴 league points]
Manchester City (91), Arsenal (89), Liverpool (82), Aston Villa (68)
Tottenham Hotspur (66), Chelsea (63), Newcastle United (60), Manchester United (60)
West Ham United (52), Crystal Palace (49), Brighton & Hove Albion (48), Bournemouth (48)
Fulham (47), Wolverhampton Wanderers (46), Everton (40), Brentford (39)
Nottingham Forest (32), Luton Town (26), Burnley (24), Sheffield United (16)
[🏴 league results]
Arsenal ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Everton
Brentford ( 2 ) – ( 4 ) Newcastle United
Brighton & Hove Albion ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Manchester United
Burnley ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Nottingham Forest
Chelsea ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Bournemouth
Crystal Palace ( 5 ) – ( 0 ) Aston Villa
Liverpool ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Wolverhampton Wanderers
Luton Town ( 2 ) – ( 4 ) Fulham
Manchester City ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) West Ham United
Sheffield United ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Tottenham Hotspur
🇪🇸 LA LIGA
The Catalan clubs were winners while the Madrid clubs dropped points. Barcelona and Girona picked up wins, while Real Madrid took a point from an 8-goal game against Villarreal, and Atletico Madrid was hammered 4-1 at home by Osasuna.
Real Madrid dropped points, but it means nothing to their season at this point. Barcelona will finish the season in second place, Girona will take third, and Atletico Madrid will finish fourth.
[🇪🇸 league points]
Real Madrid (94), Barcelona (82), Girona (78), Atlético Madrid (73)
Athletic Club (65), Real Sociedad (60), Real Betis (56), Villarreal (52)
Valencia (48), Alavés (45), Osasuna (44), Getafe (43)
Sevilla (41), Celta Vigo (40), Las Palmas (39), Rayo Vallecano (38)
Mallorca (37), Cádiz (33), Granada (21), Almería (18)
[🇪🇸 league results]
Alavés ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Getafe
Atlético Madrid ( 1 ) – ( 4 ) Osasuna
Barcelona ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Rayo Vallecano
Cádiz ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Las Palmas
Athletic Club ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Sevilla
Granada ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Celta Vigo
Mallorca ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Almería
Real Betis ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Real Sociedad
Valencia ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Girona
Villarreal ( 4 ) – ( 4 ) Real Madrid
🇮🇹 SERIE A
The round of matches in the Serie A will be concluded on Monday. There are two more matches left in the round, with Bologna and Juventus fighting for third place, while Hellas Verona look for points from Salernitana to confirm their safety.
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Monday, May 20, 2024
🇨🇲 Roger Milla turns 72, 🇪🇸 Iker Casillas turns 43, 🇨🇿 Petr Čech turns 42, 🇦🇷 Gerónimo Rulli turns 32, 🇵🇱 Piotr Zieliński turns 30, 🇩🇰 Robert Skov turns 28, 🇯🇵 Kaoru Mitoma turns 27.
🇮🇹 Salernitana vs. Hellas Verona (italian serie a)
Hellas Verona is on the verge of securing safety. They will face a relegated Salernitana side with very little at stake and consequently no pressure on them. Facing a relaxed Salernitana won’t be an easy task but Hellas Verona will need to secure at least a point from the match.
🇮🇹 Bologna vs. Juventus (italian serie a)
After 36 rounds of the Serie A season, Bologna and Juventus are deadlocked on 67 points. There’s not much at stake except for bragging rights for Bologna, who have the opportunity to finish the season ahead of Juventus. Both teams have already secured qualification for next season’s Champions League.
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MIDWEEK FIXTURES TO TRACK
We’re gearing up for the summer.
The season is completed in five of the seven top leagues, and the two remaining leagues come to an end this weekend. The Spanish La Liga season concludes on Saturday, while the Italian Serie A concludes on Sunday.
The Europa League final will take place on Wednesday, and the Turkish Cup final will follow on Thursday. The English FA Cup final, the German Cup final, and the French Cup final are all scheduled for Saturday, with the Portuguese Cup final set for Sunday.
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THE WATCH LIST
📅 Wednesday, May 22, 2024
🇪🇺 🇮🇹 Atalanta vs. 🇩🇪 Bayer Leverkusen (europa league final)
📅 Thursday, May 23, 2024
🇹🇷 Besiktas vs. Trabzonspor (turkish cup final)
📅 Saturday, May 25, 2024
🏴 Manchester City vs. Manchester United (fa cup final)
🇩🇪 Kaiserslautern vs. Bayer Leverkusen (dfb-pokal final)
🇫🇷 Lyon vs. Paris Saint-Germain (coupe de france final)
📅 Sunday, May 26, 2024
🇵🇹 Porto vs. Sporting CP (taca de portugal final)
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