The best action to follow this weekend
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Saturday
? The Final of the 141st edition of the English FA Cup takes centre-stage this weekend with Chelsea lining up against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium. The Reds are, of course, still hunting a possible quadruple whilst the Blues are looking to salvage something from what has been a chaotic season off the pitch.
The occasion also marks the 150th anniversary of the World’s oldest tournament and Chelsea would love to end their two-season run of losing in the final. A win for Thomas Tuchel’s side would be the ninth in their history but defeat would see Liverpool draw level with them on eight.
??????? Back in English league action, the three divisions below the Premier League are now in to the play-offs. And the day’s main focus will be the semi-final, first leg between Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest. Both are former top flight sides desperate to get back in the big time – Forest in particular having last been relegated way back in 1999.
?? We’ve reached the final round of the Bundesliga, with all 10 games kicking-off at the same time on Saturday afternoon. First, second and third may already be decided but we still have a two-way battle for the last Champions League place. And consequently, two other clubs waiting to see if they can earn a place in UEFA’s other major tournaments.
RB Leipzig are in the box seat and a point, away at Arminia, would be enough for them to take fourth. Freiburg go to Leverkusen (already guaranteed third) with the aim of at least maintaining their position in the Europa League spot. Union Berlin (home to Bochum) hold the Europa Conference League place but FC Köln (away at Stuttgart) will be looking to capitalise on any slip-ups above them.
For their part, champions Bayern travel to Wolfsburg whilst Borussia Dortmund end their campaign at home to Hertha.
?? It’s a similar story in France’s Ligue 1 where Marseille can claim the second automatic Champions League place with a win at Rennes in their penultimate game of the season.
L’OM currently hold a three point advantage over Monaco, who in turn, are in danger of being caught by the sides directly below them – Nice and Rennes. The team who finishes third will go in to the Champions League qualifiers, with the others dropping in to the Europa and Europa Conference Leagues.
Monaco play mid-table Brest. And Nice entertain Lille – coach Christophe Galtier’s former club. Unsettled champions PSG end with a trip to Montpellier.
? Saturday should also see the CAF Champions League’s record winners, Al Ahly, reach yet another final in the competition. Led by South African coach Pitso Mosimane – the Egyptian giants are four goals up going into the away leg of their semi-final at Algerian side ES Sétif.
Al Ahly have lifted the title in both of the last two years and they’ll relish the chance of an unprecedented hat-trick against the victors of the other semi-final between Petro Atlético and Wydad Casablanca.
Sunday
?? The Champions League places are already decided in Serie A so it’s a good job we’ve still got a bonafide title-race to get excited about! With two games to go Milan lead arch-rivals and defending champions Inter by two points.
Inter – who lifted the Coppa Italia with a dramatic extra-time victory over Juventus, in midweek, therefore need to win their game against Cagliari to take the title to the final round. That might not be an easy task with their opponents looking to claw their way out of the relegation zone.
Milan‘s game against Atalanta comes earlier in the day so the Rossoneri will be going all out for the three points that’ll edge them closer to a first Scudetto since 2011.
??????? There’s also two games to play for the majority of sides in the Premier League. And plenty left to decide – the title, the fourth Champions League place, the other UEFA qualification spots plus the last of three relegation places.
Sunday is consequently a busy day with seven fixtures lined up. Manchester City can take a six point lead at the top should they beat West Ham – that would leave Liverpool playing catch-up with their penultimate game coming at Southampton on Tuesday.
The other key games come at fifth placed Spurs who face relegation-threatened Burnley. And then the matches that involve the other two sides battling to avoid the drop – Leeds host Brighton whilst Everton entertain Brentford.
? Staying in England, it’s also FA Cup Final weekend in the Women’s game. Chelsea take on Manchester City with the sides having just finished the WSL season in first and third place, respectively.
Chelsea then, are on for a double (or a triple of sorts – should their men’s team lift the trophy a day earlier). The same could be said for City as they also earned the League Cup title back in March.
Emma Haye’s Chelsea won this final last season with City triumphant the year before and with over 50,000 tickets sold for the game at Wembley, we should be in for a cracker.
?? In La Liga, Sunday’s biggest game comes between the sides sitting third and fourth in the table. Atlético Madrid locked down their place in next season’s Champions League with their midweek win at Elche but opponents Sevilla still need the points to secure their entry.
Sevilla’s arch-rivals Betis are the side lurking just below, looking for any chance to leapfrog them – starting with a positive result in their game against Granada.
Elsewhere, don’t expect champions Real Madrid to ease up ahead of their appearance in the Champions League Final when they take on Cadíz. Carlo Ancelotti’s men smashed six past Levante on Thursday evening and looked hungry for more! And finally, Barcelona can guarantee a runners-up finish by beating Getafe.
?? Lastly, this preview would be lost without mention of at least one major derby from off the beaten track. And this weekend it’s a big one with the final of the Bulgarian Cup coming between Levski Sofia and their cross-city nemeses CSKA Sofia. The latter are now led by Alan Pardew who infamously enjoyed a dance on the touchline during a similarly big final with Crystal Palace.
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Cover Image from IMAGO