We are down to the final matchday in Germany, France and the Netherlands and there is a FA Cup final with USMNT implications this weekend as well, so despite a slow start on Friday there’s a lot of action on Saturday and Sunday as all the major leagues are still in action before the summer break. Here’s what we’re watching:
Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v Holstein Kiel – 9:30a on ESPN+
Gio Reyna was an unused substitute again last weekend and has appeared just once in league play since early March. His Dortmund side enter the last weekend of the Bundesliga season within a point of Freiburg for fourth place. Freiburg’s 2-1 victory last weekend relegated Holstein Kiel and John Tolkin with a week remaining.
Borussia Monchengladbach v Wolfsburg – 9:30a on ESPN+
Joe Scally did not start last weekend but came on as a halftime substitute as Borussia Monchengladbach fell to Bayern Munich 2-0. Gladbach are in tenth place heading into their finale against Kevin Paredes’ twelfth place Wolfsburg though it appears that Paredes has been shut down for the season.
St. Pauli v Bochum – 9:30a on ESPN+
James Sands remains out but his St Pauli teammates need just a point to guarantee that they will be in the Bundesliga again next season when Sands returns to the field. They face a Bochum side that are set to finish dead last in the Bundesliga table.
Crystal Palace v Manchester City – 11:30a on ESPN+
Chris Richards and Crystal Palace will be heavy underdogs on Saturday but have a chance to take home a trophy as they face Manchester City in the FA Cup Final. Richards scored in Palace’s last meeting with Man City, just a month ago, but City came back to thump Palace 5-2 in the league match.
Olympique Lyon v Angers SCO – 3p on beIN Sports
Tanner Tessmann and Lyon have lost their last two and three of their past four to fall out of the spots for European competition next season. To pull into the top six Lyon will need to defeat thirteenth place Angers and will need a loss from at least one of Nice, Lille, or Strassbourg in the last week of the season.
Lens v Monaco – 3p on beIN Sports
Folarin Balogun was out injured again last weekend as Monaco defeated Lyon 2-0 to clinch their top three finish and a Champions League spot next Fall. Monaco will now face Lens in the final weekend of the season with neither team able to make significant moves up or down the table, though Monaco could still overtake second place Marseille.
Saint-Etienne v Toulouse – 3p on beIN Sports
Mark McKenzie and Toulouse are in twelfth place heading into their final match, clear of the relegation scrum but unlikely to break into the top ten either as the season closes out. McKenzie returned to the starting lineup last weekend following his two match red card suspension and he has appeared in 29 of 33 matches for the Ligue Un side this season.
Sunday
Sparta Rotterdam v PSV Eindhoven – 8:30a on ESPN+
Malik Tillman, Sergino Dest and PSV defeated Heracles Almelo 4-1 on Wednesday with Tillman scoring twice and adding an assist and Dest assisting on the other goal. The victory, combined with yet another Ajax draw, pulled PSV into first place in what is an incredible comeback for the league title, thanks in no small part to Ajax’s meltdown. Ajax have failed to win in their past four matches, dropping ten points to allow PSV to retake the league lead heading into the final weekend. Eindhoven travel to Rotterdam controlling their own destiny and will clinch the league title with a win over the eleventh place side which they defeated 2-1 at home in October.
Brentford v Fulham – 10a on Peacock
Antonee Robinson was not included in the squad last weekend as Fulham fell to Everton 3-1. That makes two of the past three league matches in which Robinson did not appear which is quite unusual for a player who has been so consistent, logging just under three-thousand league minutes this season. Fulham are in eleventh place going into the final two weeks of the season and will face eighth place Brentford who are four points ahead of them in the table.
Atletico Madrid v Real Betis – 1p on ESPN+
Johnny Cardoso and Real Betis drew with Rayo Vallecano on Thursday and are now four points behind fifth place Villarreal with two matches to play. Betis can do no worse than their current sixth place position and qualifying for Europa League next fall but they will need some help over the next two weeks if they are going to catch Villarrreal for the coveted Champions League spot. Betis will have their hands full this weekend as well as they take on third place Atletcio Madrid. Betis won the first matchup between the clubs this season, 1-0 back in October with Betis hosting the match.
Cagliari v Venezia – 2:45p on Paramount+
Gianluca Busio and Venezia defeated Fiorentina 2-1 last weekend to pull a point ahead of Lecce and they now control their own destiny in the fight to avoid relegation. They will face fourteenth place Cagliari this weekend before finishing the season against a Juventus side that are fighting to remain in the top four. Venezia are just a point ahead of both Lecce and Empoli with the latter easily having the easiest remaining schedule of the three as they face last place Monza this weekend before finishing with 15th place Hellas Verona next Sunday. Venezia do hold the tie-breaker over Empoli should the teams end even but Lecce hold the tiebreak advantage over Venezia.
Juventus v Udinese – 2:45p on Paramount+
Tim Weah and Weston McKennie both started and went the full 90’ last weekend with Weah feeding Weston to setup the go ahead assist. Unfortunately, Juventus would play down a man the final 30’ after Pierre Kalulu was sent off with a straight red and Lazio would tie up the match late in stoppage time. The two teams remain tied for fourth place and the final Champions League spot with Juventus holding the tiebreaker advantage thanks to their 1-0 win in October. Juventus now face twelfth place Udinese who are coming off a 2-1 loss to last place Monza.
Roma v Milan – 2:45p on Paramount+
Christian Pulisic and AC Milan fell to Bologna midweek in the Coppa Itallia and will need help to pass at least two teams to make any European competition next Spring. They are within three points of Roma and a win this weekend would give them the tiebreaker but they will still need help as they remain two points behind Bologna in league play and four points behind fourth place Juventus and fifth place Lazio. Yunus Musah did not appear midweek in the Coppa Itallia and saw just a handful of minutes off the bench last weekend in Milan’s 3-1 Serie A win which was also against Bologna. Roma are coming off a 2-1 loss to third place Atalanta and still have hopes of cracking the top four though they will also need help as they trail by a point.
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