BERLIN: The closest Bundesliga title race for years ends on the final day of the season on Saturday when Borussia Dortmund or Bayern Munich will be crowned champion.
Dortmund lead by two points and need to beat Mainz at home to be sure of ending Bayern’s 10-year reign, while Bayern will be hoping for a Dortmund slip-up as they visit Cologne at the same time.
Bayern’s goal difference is better than Dortmund’s so a draw won’t be enough for Dortmund if Bayern beat Cologne.
“We have to win once more. That’s all that counts,” Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl said.
It would be Dortmund’s first German league title since Jürgen Klopp led the “black and yellows” to back-to-back triumphs in 2011 and 2012. Bayern have won every season since.
The fact that the Bavarian powerhouse doesn’t have the title already wrapped up means the season will be considered a failure – even if Mainz do Bayern a favor and cause an upset on Saturday.
Bayern’s total of 68 points is the lowest they had at this stage of the season since 2011, when interim coach Andries Jonker led the team to third place after Louis van Gaal was fired.
Bayern also fired their coach this season, when Julian Nagelsmann made way in March because the club felt their targets in the Champions League, German Cup and Bundesliga were in danger. Bayern were subsequently knocked out of the first two under new coach Thomas Tuchel, but he may yet salvage some lost pride if his former team Dortmund fails to beat Mainz – where he started his senior coaching career.
Dortmund’s 70 points are just one more than they managed last season, when they finished 10 behind Bayern. The story of the Bundesliga this season is one of Bayern’s decline, rather than any huge leap made by Dortmund – though the team have developed a new resilience under coach Edin Terzić.
“We’re ready to take the last step together – as a team, as a club, as a city,” Terzić said on Thursday.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Leipzig are assured of third place regardless of their result at home to Schalke, but fourth – the last qualification spot for Europe’s premier competition – is still in contention between Union Berlin and Freiburg.
Both teams are level on points, with Union ahead by four goals’ difference. Union can book their Champions League place with a win at home over Werder Bremen, or by matching Freiburg’s result at Eintracht Frankfurt – provided Freiburg doesn’t score four goals more than Union.
It’s already a remarkable achievement for Union and Freiburg – both clubs of modest resources – to be in this position going into the final round.
EUROPA LEAGUE/EUROPA CONFERENCE LEAGUE
One of Union or Freiburg will finish fifth and qualify for the Europa League.
Sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen and seventh-placed Wolfsburg hope to join, depending on what happens in the German Cup final on June 3 between Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt.
Because the cup winner gets a European qualification spot, Leverkusen and Wolfsburg will be cheering for Leipzig in the final. If Leipzig successfully defends their title, they will free another Europa League qualification spot (sixth in the Bundesliga), because they have already qualified for the Champions League. If Frankfurt win, then the sixth-placed finisher goes to the Europa Conference League.
Leverkusen visit Bochum on the final day. Wolfsburg are just a point behind Leverkusen and can be confident of taking three more against already-relegated Hertha Berlin. Frankfurt, three points behind Leverkusen, have only a slim chance of finishing sixth.
FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL
Augsburg, Stuttgart, Bochum and Schalke are all still playing for survival on the final day. The bottom two are relegated and the team that finish above them goes into a two-leg relegation-promotion playoff against the second division’s third-placed finisher to see which play in the Bundesliga next season.
All of the final round’s matches are played at the same time on Saturday.
Dortmund or Bayern? Bundesliga up for grabs on final day
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Dortmund or Bayern? Bundesliga up for grabs on final day
- Bayern’s goal difference is better than Dortmund’s so a draw won’t be enough for Dortmund if Bayern beat Cologne
- “We have to win once more. That’s all that counts,” Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl said
No alternative to Bayern sackings, says ex-president Hoeness
- "The overall development was simply too unsatisfactory" Hoeness told newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung
- Hoeness revealed "nobody" at the club was consulted about the decision to fire coach Julian Nagelsmann in March
BERLIN: Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness said in an interview published on Friday the club had no alternative but firing chief executive Oliver Kahn and sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.
Hoeness explained the club needed to take action, with news of the sacking becoming known just moments after Bayern won their 11th straight Bundesliga title.
“The overall development was simply too unsatisfactory” Hoeness told newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung, referring to the club’s poor second half of the season.
Nine points ahead of Borussia Dortmund at Christmas, Bayern entered the final round of the season two points behind.
Their 2-1 win over Cologne in the last match of the campaign, along with Dortmund’s 2-2 draw against Mainz, meant they won the title on goal difference.
Bayern sacked Kahn and Salihamidzic on Thursday, but did not tell the players or make the news public until moments after the full-time whistle.
Captain Thomas Mueller found out in a post-match interview, after putting on a t-shirt commemorating the win.
Hoeness, who played for Bayern before running the club in various capacities for decades, revealed “nobody” at the club was consulted about the decision to fire coach Julian Nagelsmann in March.
“Even Herbert Hainer (Bayern president) was informed far too late... and something like that simply doesn’t work.”
While saying that Salihamidzic “remained a good sporting director,” Hoeness said former goalkeeper Kahn had not done enough work in the sporting department.
“Oliver had defined his role for himself in such a way that he largely stayed out of sports. Yet sport is the main task.
“Our product is football” the 71-year-old added.
Inter’s Gosens returns, Gnabry dropped from Germany squad for upcoming friendlies
- Flick returns to a more conventional squad after experimenting with new players for Germany's last round of friendlies in March
- The 26-man squad named Friday contain no new call-ups, though AC Milan defender Malick Thiaw is uncapped despite having been in the March squad
FRANKFURT, Germany: Inter Milan midfielder Robin Gosens is set to return to the Germany team for the first time in nearly a year, while Bayern Munich forward Serge Gnabry was left out as coach Hansi Flick announced his squad for upcoming friendly games Friday.
Flick returns to a more conventional squad after experimenting with new players for Germany’s last round of friendlies in March following a group-stage exit at the 2022 World Cup. Those experiments brought mixed results with a 2-0 win over Peru and a 3-2 loss to Belgium.
The 26-man squad named Friday contain no new call-ups, though AC Milan defender Malick Thiaw is uncapped despite having been in the March squad. Eight players return after not being selected in March, including Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gündogan, who missed Germany’s last friendlies after becoming a father, Bayern forward Leroy Sané and Real Madrid defender Antonio Rüdiger.
Gosens is back for the first time in nine months after his role in helping Inter to the Champions League final, albeit mostly as a substitute. He was listed as a defender in Friday’s announcement, reflecting his usual role for Germany as a left-back, not the midfield role he typically plays for Inter.
Gosens has 14 appearances for Germany and started all four games at the European Championship in 2021, making waves with a goal and two assists in a 4-2 win over Portugal, but has played only once since September of that year.
Gnabry misses out despite a late-season burst of form which saw him score five goals and assist one more in Bayern’s final five games, helping his team to overtake Borussia Dortmund for the Bundesliga title. Others from the March squad who have been dropped include Eintracht Frankfurt’s attacking midfielder Mario Götze and Wolfsburg forward Felix Nmecha. Bayern’s Thomas Müller remains out of the squad and hasn’t been selected since the World Cup.
As the host nation for next year’s European Championship, Germany do not have to play qualifying games. They host Ukraine on June 12 in what the German soccer confederation considers to be the team’s 1,000th game. That will be followed by matches at Poland on June 16 and home against Colombia on June 20.
Germany:
Goalkeepers: Bernd Leno (Fulham), Marc-André ter Stegen (Barcelona), Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt).
Defenders: Matthias Ginter (Freiburg), Robin Gosens (Inter Milan), Benjamin Henrichs (Leipzig), Thilo Kehrer (West Ham), Lukas Klostermann (Leipzig), David Raum (Leipzig), Antonio Rüdiger (Real Madrid), Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund), Malick Thiaw (AC Milan), Marius Wolf (Borussia Dortmund).
Midfielders: Julian Brandt (Borussia Dortmund), Emre Can (Borussia Dortmund), Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich), Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City), Jonas Hofmann (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich), Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen).
Forwards: Niclas Füllkrug (Werder Bremen), Kai Havertz (Chelsea), Leroy Sané (Bayern Munich), Kevin Schade (Brentford), Timo Werner (Leipzig).
Jose Mourinho charged by UEFA for verbally abusing referee at Europa League final
- UEFA said the Roma coach is charged for “insulting / abusive language against a match official” after Sevilla’s victory in Budapest this week
- Footage circulated Thursday of Mourinho approaching referee Anthony Taylor in the garage and calling him a “disgrace” with an expletive
NYON, Switzerland: Jose Mourinho was charged by UEFA on Friday after being filmed aggressively cursing at the English match referee in a stadium garage after the Europa League final.
UEFA said the Roma coach is charged for “insulting / abusive language against a match official” after Sevilla’s victory in Budapest this week.
It was one of a slew of disciplinary charges UEFA opened into incidents at a testy, bad-tempered game that lasted more than three hours on Wednesday.
Footage circulated Thursday of Mourinho approaching referee Anthony Taylor in the garage and calling him a “disgrace” with an expletive.
Later Thursday, Taylor and his family were harassed and verbally abused by Roma fans at the airport in Budapest.
Roma lost to Sevilla in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw that saw players and officials clash on the field and in the technical area.
UEFA charged both teams with improper conduct – typically activated for at least five yellow cards shown – and Roma was charged over crowd disturbances and acts of damage.
Sevilla was also charged because dozens of its fans invaded the field after the match.
UEFA gave no timetable for its disciplinary panel to judge the cases.
Stuttgart beat Hamburg 3-0 in 1st leg of Bundesliga playoff
- The win puts Stuttgart, which finished third from bottom in the Bundesliga, on course to stay in the first division
- Hamburg, the last remaining founding member of the Bundesliga, were relegated in 2018 and have been bidding for promotion since
STUTTGART: Hamburger SV’s five-year wait to rejoin the Bundesliga looks set to continue.
Serhou Guirassy helped to put Stuttgart in a commanding position to keep their place in Germany’s top division with a 3-0 win over Hamburg on Thursday in the first leg of their playoff.
Guirassy had failed to make the most of a one-on-one chance and had a penalty saved in the first half, but the Guinea forward grabbed Stuttgart’s third goal early in the second half.
Hamburg’s task was further complicated in the 69th minute when substitute Anssi Suhonen was sent off minutes after coming on for a studs-up lunge at Josha Vagnoman’s thigh.
The win puts Stuttgart, which finished third from bottom in the Bundesliga, on course to stay in the first division before the second leg of the playoff in Hamburg on Monday. Hamburg finished third in the second division.
There was a minute’s silence before Thursday’s game in tribute to the 15-year-old player who died after a post-match brawl at an international youth tournament in Frankfurt last weekend.
Stuttgart got off to a great start with Konstantinos Mavropanos heading the opener inside the first minute.
The visitors had Daniel Heuer Fernandes to thank for keeping the score down. The Hamburg goalkeeper saved from Chris Führich, then got the better of Guirassy in a one-on-one, and also saved Guirassy’s penalty in the 27th. Two minutes later he produced another save to deflect Führich’s effort away.
Fuhrich effectively created the second goal in the 51st when he eluded two Hamburg defenders and played a perfectly weighted pass for Enzo Millot, who crossed for the unmarked Vagnoman to score.
Guirassy finally scored with a header to a corner three minutes later.
Hamburg, the last remaining founding member of the Bundesliga, were relegated in 2018 and have been bidding for promotion since. They finished fourth in 2019, 2020 and 2021 before finishing third last year for a playoff against Hertha Berlin. Hertha prevailed on that occasion.
Spanish league reaches finish with 6 teams in danger of relegation
- Valladolid are currently in 18th place, the last spot that will tumble along with already demoted Espanyol and Elche
- A victory by the team owned by former Brazil great Ronaldo would be enough to secure salvation
MADRID: Six teams are vying to avoid relegation to the second division as the Spanish league reaches its finish.
Cadiz, Getafe and Valencia each have 41 points, Almeria and Celta have 40, and Valladolid has 39 heading into the final round of games.
Valladolid are currently in 18th place, the last spot that will tumble along with already demoted Espanyol and Elche. But Valladolid have their fate in their hands because they host 14th-place Getafe on Sunday.
A victory by the team owned by former Brazil great Ronaldo would be enough to secure salvation, but a draw could do the trick depending on other results. A draw by Getafe would be enough for the modest Madrid-based club to stay up.
Cadiz, in 14th place, will play at Elche needing only a draw to ensure they survive.
Valencia, which eliminated Espanyol last weekend with a stoppage-time goal, need a draw from their trip to Real Betis, which have already secured a Europa League berth.
A draw would also suffice Almeria at Espanyol.
Celta, which have entered a nosedive in recent weeks, host champion Barcelona needing a victory to control their fate. A draw would leave them depending on other results. Fortunately for Celta, Barcelona have nothing to play for.
Nearer to the top of the standings, Osasuna and Athletic Bilbao are tied on points and both wanting to clinch the Conference League berth that goes with a seventh-place finish.
Osasuna host Girona, while Bilbao are at Real Madrid.
LAST GAMES
Barcelona veterans Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, who have won multiple titles between them, will play their last game for the club.
But Madrid’s game at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium could potentially be the last appearances for the pillars of their multiple Champions Leagues over the past decade.
Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, both Ballon d’Or winners, along with Toni Kroos and Marco Asensio are all on contracts that expire at the end of June. The club and players have reportedly been in talks about their futures, but nothing has officially been decided.
