5 games to watch: Bundesliga title will be decided
By Adam Stocker
Here are five of the best matches from Europe this weekend, headlined by the conclusion of the Bundesliga title race.
Whoever designed the Bundesliga schedule this season deserves a raise. The schedule makers got everything right. On the final day of the season, the title race and races for both the Champions League and Europa League are up for grabs. That will make for an incredible Saturday in Germany. Elsewhere, Portugal’s title race will be decided and in Italy, the race for the final two Champions League spots is a race between five clubs.
5. Porto vs. Sporting — Saturday, May 18, 1:30 p.m. ET (GOL TV)
The Bundesliga title race is not the only championship race that will be determined on Saturday. Portugal’s Primeira Liga will also crown a champion. Benfica enter the weekend with a two-point lead over Porto, who play Sporting in their final game of the season. Benfica, Porto and Sporting have won all but two titles in the history of the league.
4. Napoli vs. Inter Milan — Sunday, May 19, 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
Serie A offers two great games on Sunday. The only problem is that viewers will have to decide between watching Napoli and Inter Milan and Juventus and Atalanta. Both games kick off on Sunday at 2:30 p.m and both games have implications on the race for the top four.
In Naples, it’s second-place Napoli hosting third-place Inter Milan. While Napoli are locked into second place, Inter are still fighting for a top-four spot. With two games remaining in the Serie A schedule, Inter are four points ahead of fifth-place AC Milan. If Inter are able to pick up a point on Sunday, they will qualify for the Champions League again next season. Inter have not lost a game since Mauro Icardi returned to the lineup seven games ago. The Argentine striker leads the club with 10 goals this season. However, since Icardi returned to the lineup, Inter have only picked up 13 of a possible 21 points. For those who like to cheer for chaos, a Napoli victory combined with a Juventus win would make for absolute insanity on the final weekend of the season. It’s possible that five clubs will be alive in the race for a spot in the Champions League.
3. Juventus vs. Atalanta — Sunday, May 19, 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
The top four clubs in Serie A play each other this weekend. For the eighth straight season, Juventus captured the Scudetto. On Sunday, Juve welcome fourth-place Atalanta to the Allianz Stadium, in a game between the two highest scoring clubs in Serie A. Atalanta are three points ahead of Roma and AC Milan with two games remaining. With Milan playing relegation bound Frosinone this weekend, it will be extremely important for Atalanta to pick up at least a point against Juventus. After Juve lost last weekend against Roma, Atalanta could steal a point from a Juventus side that have taken their foot off of the pedal. Atalanta have won four straight games and have not lost a game since the beginning of March. Over their last 11 games, the Goddess have picked up 27 of 33 points.
2. Borussia Monchengladbach vs. Borussia Dortmund – Saturday, May 18, 9:30 a.m. ET (FS1)
It is a simple proposition for Borussia Dortmund: Win and they will give themselves a chance to win the title.
The not so simple part: Dortmund need to beat fourth-place Borussia Monchengladbach inside of Borussia-Park and also have Bayern Munich lose. The Foals are not about to roll over on Saturday, as they are in a closely-contested race for fourth and the final Champions League spot. Gladbach are level on points with Bayer Leverkusen and only one point ahead of Eintracht Frankfurt. A few weeks ago, it looked like Monchengladbach were going to drop out of the top-four race. With their manager leaving at the end of the season and some of their best players also expected to leave, the club have managed to stick around. No matter the outcome on Saturday, it will make for an incredible finish to the Bundesliga season.
1. Bayern Munich vs. Eintracht Frankfurt – Saturday, May 18, 9:30 a.m. ET (FOX)
Bayern Munich were nine points off first place at one point this season. They now need to win their final game at home to clinch the title. A win over sixth-place Eintracht Frankfurt and they’ll be crowned champions for the seventh consecutive season. After thinking he could have been fired over the first half of the season, manager Niko Kovac is thrilled his first season in charge could end in a league double.
However, Bayern had a chance to win the title last weekend and couldn’t get it done. The Bavarians were held to a scoreless draw by RB Leipzig. Eintracht Frankfurt are hoping that they can prevent Bayern from winning the title again and they have everyone outside of Munich cheering for them. Frankfurt are one point behind Monchengladbach and Leverkusen in the race for fourth after losing their second straight game. The Eagles put all of their resources into the Europa League, it could end up costing them a spot in the Champions League next season. Frankfurt’s only chance to finish fourth is to beat Bayern and have Monchengladbach and Leverkusen both lose.