There’s plenty of European football to look forward to this weekend, so here’s a selection of games not to be missed from La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1 and more.
La Liga
Real Madrid could be crowned La Liga champions this weekend, depending on a couple of results on Saturday.
Carlo Ancelotti is likely to heavily rotate for the visit of Cádiz, given that this fixture falls in-between the two legs of los Blancos’ Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich, earning a credible 2-2 draw in Bavaria on Tuesday.
In La Liga, los Merengues sit 11 points clear with just five games remaining, so will secure a 36th title if they win and Barcelona do not win later on.
Well, this is entirely possible, given that Barça face Catalan rivals Girona on Saturday evening, the same side that humiliatingly defeated them 4-2 at Montjuïc in December.
Xavi’s side beat Valencia 4-2 on Monday night, Robert Lewandowski bagging a hat-trick, a result that lifted the Blaugrana back up to second, two points clear of their opponents this weekend.
Girona have qualified for UEFA competition for the first time in their entire history, with Míchel’s men also on the cusp of securing a Champions League spot.
Given that Blanquivermells have won 13 of 16 home matches this season, including each of the last four, they’ll very much fancy their chances of completing a league-double over their Catalan counterparts.
Rounding-out a bumper Saturday, Atlético Madrid are now almost there as they seek to rubber stamp a top four position, following last weekend’s 3-1 win over fifth-placed Athletic Club at the Metropolitano.
On the road however, Atleti continue to be terrible, losing ten of their 13 away matches since the start of December, so will Diego Simeone’s side address this horrendous record against Mallorca?
In the race for Europe, Villarreal are making a late surge as they seek to sneak into the top seven, winning six of their last eight, needing another three points to close the gap when they visit Celta de Vigo.
Following their 1-1 draw in el Gran Derbi, Real Betis remain in the Conference League spot, but Manuel Pellegrini’s team are in danger of relinquishing seventh, so can they beat Osasuna at El Sadar?
Almería’s relegation has already been confirmed and Granada will join them in the Segunda División if they are beaten by Sevilla on Sunday night and others have been victorious in earlier fixtures.
Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals
Girona vs Real Madrid
Real Madrid to win
Real Madrid vs Cádiz
Under 2.5 goals
RCD Mallorca vs Atlético Madrid
Real Sociedad to win
Real Sociedad vs Las Palmas
Over 2.5 goals
Celta de Vigo vs Villarreal
Rayo Vallecano to win
Rayo Vallecano vs Almería
Sevilla to win
Sevilla vs Granada
At 19/1, a £10 bet would return £200.72!
La Liga acca of the week
Serie A
In Serie A, with at least eight, potentially nine, European spots up for grabs, the focus is very much on the fight to get into UEFA competition.
Tonight, at the time of writing, three Italian clubs are in European action, with Atalanta and Roma competing in the Europa League, while Fiorentina are seeking to reach back-to-back Europa Conference League Finals.
Thus, given that they’re facing run-away Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen, a Sunday night clash with Juventus is far from ideal timing for Roma, as the big games just keep on coming in the Eternal City.
Daniele De Rossi also cannot prioritise one competition over another, given that I Giallorossi are currently fifth, thereby occupying the last Champions League spot, but with Atalanta and Lazio in hot pursuit.
La Lupa have not competed in the Champions League since 2018/19, something José Mourinho failed to deliver, but there is a danger that they miss out both via the league and Europa League, derailed by being involved in both.
If Romanisti are looking for encouragement, then the fact visitors Juventus, who kick off just six points better off, have won only two of their last 13 Serie A games suggests the home side should be capable of victory.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side are winless in seven away games in league and cup, dating back to 21 January, with la Vecchia Signora rather limping towards the end of the season, despite having a Coppa Italia Final to come.
Elsewhere, in-between their two-legged tie against Marseille, Atalanta are fortunate that they’re facing already relegated Salernitana, likely to cruise to victory at Stadio Arechi in Monday’s early kick off.
On Friday night, Bologna will be looking to take another huge step towards Champions League qualification when they visit a Torino team still in contention for Europe themselves.
Internazionale Milano had their Scudetto winning parade last Sunday, with around 500,000 Interisti congregating at Piazza del Duomo after I Nerazzurri had clinched the title in a Derby della Madonnina.
So, it’ll be interesting to see how focussed Simone Inzaghi’s side are when they travel to Sassuolo on Saturday night while, in stark contrast, this is a huge game for the hosts, given that they are second bottom, five points from safety, with I Neroverdi running out of time to save themselves.
Udinese are the other team in the drop zone, sacking Gabriele Cioffi as head coach last week, with Fabio Cannavaro earning a credible 1-1 draw with Bologna during his first full game in charge.
On Monday night, I Bianconeri take on a Napoli team currently occupying the last guaranteed European spot, despite having won just one of their last seven, so Udinese might just fancy their chances of an upset.
Empoli and Frosinone, the two teams level on points in 16th and 17th, go head-to-head at Stadio Carlo Castellani on Sunday, with both targeting a victory that would drag them towards safety.
Under 2.5 goals
Roma vs Juventus
Inter Milan to win
Sassuolo vs Internazionale Milano
Napoli to win
Udinese vs Napoli
AC Milan to win
AC Milan vs Genoa
Over 2.5 goals
Salernitana vs Atalanta
Under 2.5 goals
Torino vs Bologna
At 14/1, a £10 bet would return £147.04!
Serie A acca of the week
Bundesliga
Once again the main storyline in the Bundesliga will continue to be Bayer Leverkusen’s extraordinary unbeaten run.
Xabi Alonso’s team travel to Roma for the first leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday but, irrespective of how that goes, are still seeking to become the Bundesliga’s first-ever Invincibles.
At the time of writing, die Werkself are still unbeaten 48 matches into this season, following last weekend’s 2-2 draw with Stuttgart, in which they fought back from 2-0 down, with Robert Andrich lashing home a 96th minute equaliser.
This weekend, die Schwarzroten travel to Eintracht Frankfurt for, undoubtably, their toughest remaining league fixture, so will the Bayer unbeaten bandwagon roll on at Waldstadion?
On Saturday, second takes on third and expect a party atmosphere in Stuttgart given that, this week, die Schwaben have mathematically qualified for next season’s Champions League.
This is a remarkable achievement, not least because die Roten only survived in the relegation play-offs 12 months ago, but will now be back in UEFA competition for the first time since 2013, most-recently featuring in the top-tier tournament 15 years ago.
In this season’s Champions League, Bayern Munich are in the middle of their semi-final showdown with Real Madrid, held to a 2-2 draw at Allianz Arena on Tuesday, meaning they must now win at the Bernabéu.
Given that Thomas Tuchel’s team have nothing tangible to play for in the Bundesliga, Sebastian Hoeneß, who’s father Dieter and uncle Uli are both Bayern royalty, will fancy his chances of beating them on Saturday.
We could be set for another all-German Champions League Final at Wembley on 1 June, witnessing a repeat of the 2013 edition at the same venue between the same two clubs.
Borussia Dortmund are currently holding up their end of the bargain, beating Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 on Wednesday night, with the often maligned Niclas Füllkrug the only scorer at Westfalenstadion.
This result confirmed that the Bundesliga will earn a bonus Champions League spot for next season, which is great news for die Schwarzgelben who, unlikely to finish anywhere other than fifth, will be the beneficiaries.
Given that the travel to Paris on Tuesday, Edin Terzić is likely to heavily rotate for the visit of Augsburg.
Elsewhere, if Bayer Leverkusen beat Kaiserslautern in the DFB-Pokal Final later this month, which they almost certainly will, than eighth would be enough to secure European football.
Thus, we have an interesting race on our hands with Augsburg (currently eighth) and Hoffenheim both on 39 points, while Werder Bremen and top-flight debutants Heidenheim both a mere two behind.
Hoffenheim would climb up to seventh if they earn any sort of positive result on Friday, although this is unlikely, given that RB Leipzig, unbeaten in eight, winning seven of them, are the visitors to Rhein-Neckar-Arena.
At the bottom, Darmstadt are down and Köln’s relegation will also be confirmed if die Geißböcke are beaten by Freiburg on Saturday evening and then Mainz win at Heidenheim on Sunday night.
Earlier on Sunday, Union Berlin and VfL Bochum, who are both just two points clear of the relegation play-off place, meet in a massive game at Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
Just a quick word on the Zweite Bundesliga because, on Friday evening, St. Pauli will be promoted back to the top-flight after 22 years away, should they beat fierce rivals HSV in the Hamburger Stadtderby.
Hamburg are one of Germany’s biggest clubs, but have been rooted in the second-tier for six seasons now, with die Rothosen currently four points below the play-off spot with only three games left to play.
Well, the city of Hamburg could be represented in the top division next season, but by the smaller of the area’s two clubs, so can St. Pauli secure promotion with a victory at Volksparkstadion, the home of their fiercest rivals, potentially ending HSV’s dreams of going up in the process?
Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals
VfB Stuttgart vs Bayern Munich
Bayer Leverkusen to win or draw and both teams to score
Eintracht Frankfurt vs Bayer Leverkusen
Over 2.5 goals
Augsburg vs Borussia Dortmund
RB Leipzig to win and over 2.5 goals
Hoffenheim vs RB Leipzig
Wolfsburg to win
VfL Wolfsburg vs Darmstadt
Both teams to score
Heidenheim vs Mainz
At 15/1, a £10 bet would return £157.69!
Bundesliga acca of the week
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 is once again operating with a slightly reduced fixture schedule, with Nice vs Paris Saint-Germain and Reims vs Olympique de Marseille both having been pushed back to 15 May, allowing PSG and OM to focus on their respective UEFA semi-finals.
Nevertheless, after all 18 top-flight French clubs scored last weekend, the first time that had happened since 1976, there’s still plenty to look forward to, although not on Sunday.
Due to the Catastrophe de Furiani in 1992, that saw 18 people killed and over 2,300 injured, no football matches are played in France on 5 May, this made a law in 2021, hence why there’s no Sunday action.
Thus, the most eye-catching fixture comes on Monday night, an unusually time slot for Ligue 1, as LOSC Lille and Olympique Lyonnais go head-to-head in a key battle in the race for Europe.
Les Dogues could end the weekend second should they claim victory, very much aiming to get into the Champions League directly, rather than entering the third qualifying round, as whoever finishes fourth will do.
Lyon meanwhile were in the relegation zone as recently as 26 January, but have won nine of 12 matches subsequently, meaning Pierre Sage’s side sit eighth, just outside the European positions.
Elsewhere, the side currently second are Monaco, and they can take a big step towards a Champions League return, assuming Adi Hütter’s team beat bottom of the table Clermont Foot at Stade Louis II.
Stade Brestois meantime were involved in, possibly, the game of the season anywhere in the world last Sunday, beating local rivals Stade Rennais 5-4 at Roazhon Park, with Lilian Brassier scoring a 97th minute winner.
As a result, Brest will feature in Europe for the first time in their entire history next season but, with Eric Roy’s team currently third, they’d love this to be in the Champions League.
Les Pirates welcome Nantes to Stade Francis-Le Blé and, given that Antoine Kombouaré's canaries as just three points and two places above the drop zone, a home win appears likely.
This is also the case in the Friday night fixture, with Lens confident of beating second-bottom Lorient.
Rennes have now lost four of their last five, following that aforementioned 5-4 reverse last time out, meaning Julien Stéphan’s side have slipped down to ninth.
If les Rouge et Noirs are going to get into Europe for a seventh successive season, they need wins, starting in Saturday’s trip to Metz, a team also in need of points, given that les Grenats occupy the relegation play-off spot.
Should László Bölöni’s team earn anything there, Le Havre could end the weekend in the bottom three, with Luka Elsner’s team taking on Strasbourg earlier on Saturday.
Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals
LOSC Lille vs Olympique Lyonnais
Monaco to win and over 2.5 goals
Monaco vs Clermont Foot
Brest to win
Stade Brestois vs Nantes
Both teams to score
Metz vs Stade Rennais
Lens to win
Lens vs Lorient
Both teams to score
Toulouse vs Montpellier
At 19/1, a £10 bet would return £204.81!
Ligue 1 acca of the week
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