Preview

May

2025

Preview: In form Man City head to basement side Southampton

It’s been seven games since Manchester City lost in the Premier League. They should make it eight against Southampton.

By Ian King

City’s familiar late season uptick

Manchester City arrive for this match having finally woken up. There’s still the chance of silverware in the FA Cup but it was late enough for a round of ‘might Pep quit?’ think-pieces. Their recent run has pushed them up to third in the Premier League and they’re now chasing down Arsenal for second, with three games to go.

Southampton have won twice since 2 November in all competitions. One of those was against a Championship club, and the other was against Ipswich, who will be one again soon. Last week they lost to Leicester. So, their form isn’t great.

Southampton should get past Derby’s record

It looks like the fight over being the worst top-flight team in the entire history of English football could come down to goal difference. In 1890 Stoke got ten points, but that was under two points for a win and they only played a 22-game season. Stoke won more games that season than Southampton have this, by three to two.

In modern times there was, of course, Derby County in 2007/08. They finished the season on 11 with a goal difference of –69. Nice. Southampton’s is –52 with three to play. Southampton should clear that. They haven’t, however, beaten Manchester City in the League since 2020.

Key Players

There are no key players for Manchester City this week, and this is because it’s more or less all of them. They’ve won their last four games in a row, and they’ve had seven different goalscorers in that time, with goals coming from all over the place. Erling who?

Southampton’s key player is Aaron Ramsdale. It seems likely he’ll have a busy afternoon, though since this is his third relegation from the Premier League in the last six years, he’s presumably getting used to it by now.

Team News

Having been out for five weeks, Erling Haaland might just return for this one. He was on the bench for the Wolves game and even warmed up, but he didn’t end up coming on. Rodri and Nathan Aké are both back in training soon, though they won’t be ready for this one.

Southampton are at full strength – whatever exactly that means – bar Charlie Taylor, who may not play again this season.

Prediction

With City this weekend and Arsenal on the final day of the season, it may only be the fact that Southampton have got the goal-shy Everton in between which makes that seventeen goals they’d need to concede to tie with Derby County as the worst team in the history of top-flight football in this country seem unattainable.

And Manchester City ARE ALIVE. They’ve not been spectacular, but getting so comprehensively beaten by Real Madrid in the Champions League seems to have shaken them awake. With Erling Haaland potentially returning on top of the fact that they can produce goals from just about any position regardless, you start to feel fearful for Southampton. 5-0 City. Sorry, Saints.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Chelsea are 90 minutes away from the Conference League final

It’s never smart to deal in certainties but we can say with 99.999999% confidence that Chelsea will be in the Europa Conference League final after their second leg with Djurgården on Thursday.

By Alex Roberts

Enzo Maresca’s lads are 4-1 up after the trip to Stockholm, now the Swedes have to travel to Stamford Bridge, dreaming of pulling off an upset so unlikely, it could turn the fabric of football as we know it upside down.

Teenage dream

Throughout their European campaign, Maresca has taken the opportunity to dish out some debuts, most recently 16-year-old Reggie Walsh. It was so close to being a dream debut as he nearly scored with his only shot of the game.

The young midfielder followed in the footsteps of more established wonderkids Tyrique George and Josh Acheampong, who have both heavily featured in the tournament, becoming Chelsea’s third youngest player ever.

There are 12 other academy stars in Chelsea’s squad and with one eye on qualification for next season’s Champions League, they will doubtless be licking their lips at the chance to make an impression.

Not that Isak

Djurgården didn’t have much to celebrate, if anything, after the first leg but one player gave them a very small glimmer of hope. Isak Alemayehu Mulugeta scored their only goal, although his overall performance did himself and his side proud.

Replacing Santeri Haarala in the 63^rd minute, Mulugeta sprung into life, scoring five minutes after running onto the pitch. Unfortunately for the 18-year-old and his teammates, Nicolas Jackson scored in-between his introduction and goal to effectively kill off the tie.

He only played 27 minutes and with a 100% pass accuracy rate, 3/3 ground duels won, and two touches in the opposition box, he’ll probably play more this time around.

Jadon Sancho loves the Conference League

Sancho’s future at Chelsea is up in the air. The £25 million obligation to buy in his loan contract can be bought out for a fee of £5 million. It’s not exactly a vote of confidence from the West London club.

After an impressive start that saw the winger assist in his first three games at Chelsea, he dropped off a little. Now, in the Conference League, he’s starting to re-discover the form that had fans so excited.

His last four goal contributions have come in the tournament, including the opener in the first leg against the Swedes. If nothing else, showing what his capable of here may put Sancho on the radar of other potential suitors this summer.

Form guide

Chelsea are reaching the end of their season, while Djurgården have only just started theirs. Buoyed by a crucially important win over newly crowned Premier League champions Liverpool, Maresca’s side are finding form at the right time with four wins from their last five games.

Djurgården, on the other hand, are yet to get going domestically. With two wins, two draws, two defeats and three goals scored in their opening six games in the Allsvenskan, they’re all the way down in 11^th.

Prediction

We hate to rule teams out here at FotMob but it really is hard to look beyond Chelsea for this one. We’re going to go with a 3-0 win for the home side.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Europa Conference League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, player ratings, and a new super-intuitive knockout stage bracket. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Spurs head to Norway with one foot in the Europa League final

A late goal in the first leg added an unnecessary furrowing of the brows, but Spurs should still see their way through to the Europa League final.

By Ian King

Form

A 1-1 draw for Tottenham Hotspur at West Ham on Sunday looked like exactly what it was; a local derby between the two worst sides in the Premier League who aren’t the three already cast adrift. It says something for Spurs’ performances that this was an improvement on their previous three League matches.

But Europe has been a different matter. Despite conceding that late goal, Spurs were dominant in the first leg of this tie and 3-1 is a decent lead to take to Norway, especially now away goals have been abolished. Bodø/Glimt haven’t featured since then, but are unbeaten in the four games they have played in their domestic season.

Unchartered territory for Glimt

Bodø/Glimt still have a chance of becoming the first Norwegian club to reach a European final but their record against English clubs remains bad. They’d lost all three of their previous meetings with Premier League sides, and now they’ve lost to Spurs, too. Should Spurs get to the final of the Europa League this season it would be the fourth time they’ve done so, although these all happened so long ago that it was called the UEFA Cup at the time. They beat Wolves in 1972 and Anderlecht in 1984, and lost to Feyenoord in 1974; all over two legs.

Key Players

Brennan Johnson hasn’t scored in his last four Premier League games, but he did in the first minute of the first leg of this tie and Spurs could do with him being on his game in front of goal. Otherwise, Cristian Romero needs to have one of those days when he, well, doesn’t do a Cristian Romero thing.

Bodø/Glimt’s goal in the first leg was scored by midfielder Ulrik Saltnes, who is the closest thing that you can be to a one-club player without being a one-club player. He’s made 389 appearances for them since 2011 – he’s 32 now –and only blotted his one-club copybook by having played one game in the Danish third division for a club called Brønnøysund Idrettslag beforehand.

*Glimt’s top scorers in the Europa League this season*

Team News

For Glimt, captain and midfield lynchpin Patrick Berg, Andreas Helmersen, and Håkon Evjen all return after being suspended for the first leg. Odin Bjørtuft missed the first leg and will be assessed ahead of time.

Spurs’ latest casualty is James Maddison, who’s damaged his knee and will definitely miss this match, and may well be out for the rest of the season. On the up-side, Dominic Solanke and Son Heung-min could be available.

Prediction

On an artificial pitch at a small ground just north of the Arctic Circle is exactly the sort of place where you might expect Spurs to come a cropper, and the realistic among us have to admit that yes, this is a possibility.

But the fact remains that they have saved their absolute best for the Europa League this season, and throwing away a three-goal lead over two legs, even if it was Peak Spurs, seems unlikely. 1-1 and a few nerves, but they should still get fairly safely through.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Europa League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, player ratings, and a new super-intuitive knockout stage bracket. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Man United look to get the job done against Athletic Club

Manchester United are erratic, but their handsome win in the first leg of this match should be enough to see them past Athletic Club.

By Ian King

It’s been a busy week for both sides

As unpredictable as they are at the moment, Manchester United’s 3-0 Europa League semi-final first leg win in Bilbao was a commanding performance. For half an hour they were under siege, but they soaked it up, took their chances when they fell, and came away from the Basque Country with a handsome win. But then they went to Brentford on Sunday, forgot how to defend for an hour, and ended up losing 4-3.

Athletic Club drew their weekend game – a goalless derby at Real Sociedad – and remain fourth in LaLiga, although they’ve now only won five of their last 14 games in the league, with others around them gaining ground.

A match up with a long history

These two have a history going back to the early days of European club football, and their first meeting was a very curious one. The Busby Babes travelled to Bilbao in the European Cup quarter-finals in January 1957 and lost 5-3, but won the second leg 3-0 three weeks later in a match played at Maine Road because Old Trafford didn’t have floodlights installed at the time. Having beaten Athletic 6-5 on aggregate they got them installed for their semi-final against Real Madrid, but lost 5-3 on aggregate.

Key Players

If Manchester United are going to get through to the final of this year’s Europa League, they’ll need a strong defensive performance, and this could mean a busy night for Harry Maguire at the centre of it all. Their lead is a comfortable one, but it can hardly be said that United haven’t got the yips when put under pressure in the past.

The flip-side to this is that Athletic need goals, and the problem there is that they’ve only scored one in their last four games. And with the attacking players they’ll be missing in Manchester, that issue may be critical.

Team News

Matthijs de Ligt had to be withdrawn during their weekend defeat at Brentford and will be assessed before the match. At 17 years and 156 days old, Chido Obi-Martin became the youngest player to start for Manchester United in the Premier League (and their 13th youngest overall) last weekend, but he’s ineligible to play in the Europa League, so Rasmus Højlund should return.

*Harry Maguire still compares well to other centre backs in the top five European leagues*

For Athletic, Dani Vivian is suspended after getting sent off in the first leg, while the Williams Brothers, duel attacking threats Nico and Iñaki have been left at home due to fitness issues, along with top scorer Oihan Sancet.

Prediction

The biggest hurdle that Athletic Club face in this match is pulling back a three-goal deficit when they’ve only scored one in their last four games. An early goal could see the colour drain from United faces and turn the pressure up, while Athletic probably can’t have a worse evening than they did last Thursday. That said, a 2-1 home win should provide a relatively stress-free night at Old Trafford.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

May

2025

Preview: Arsenal head to Paris for season defining second leg

Paris Saint-Germain host Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final second leg at the Parc des Princes, as the Gunners look to overturn a 1-0 deficit against the Ligue 1 champions.

By Matt Smith

In the first leg, PSG secured an important victory by a single goal, with Ousmane Dembélé striking after just a few minutes. Luis Enrique’s side held on to take the advantage heading into the second leg on their own turf.

Team news

Arsenal received a major boost this week with both Martin Ødegaard and Jurrien Timber involved in training ahead of the second leg. Timber missed the Gunners’ game against Bournemouth at the weekend, while Ødegaard suffered a knock against the Cherries.

Dembélé was forced off against Arsenal in the first leg, but the French forward did return to training earlier this week. With the Ligue 1 title already wrapped up, Enrique was able to make 10 changes for their defeat at Strasbourg over the weekend, meaning his squad should be fit and rested for the Champions League fixture.

PSG’s defensive solidity doesn’t get the credit

When discussing PSG in the Champions League this season, Enrique’s attacking quality is regularly praised, and rightly so. The likes of Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Bradley Barcola are frightening options, and as a result, their defensive solidity might not get the credit it deserves.

PSG have conceded just 0.9 goals per game in the Champions League this campaign, with only Arsenal, Liverpool, and Inter Milan managing fewer. The French side will need to be at their best defensively, as the Gunners will be looking to assert control in search of a way back in the tie.

Arsenal almost perfect at both ends

The Gunners have enjoyed an impressive campaign in Europe after struggling to keep up with Liverpool in the Premier League title race. Mikel Arteta’s side are known for their defensive solidity, but they’ve also been scoring for fun on the continent.

*Arsenal top scorers, Champions League 2024/25*

A lot has been said about Arsenal’s need for a striker, but they’ve been spreading goals around the team. Only Barcelona have scored more goals per game in the Champions League, despite no Arsenal player scoring more than five times in the competition.

Mendes vs. Saka battle could be the difference

Bukayo Saka is undoubtedly the danger man for the Gunners, but Nuno Mendes managed to keep him relatively quiet in the opening leg. Shutting down Saka can often be the key to beating Arsenal, and if they do so once again, we could see PSG advance into the final.

Mendes won six out of seven of his ground duels and all of his aerial battles against the Gunners last time out, with Saka able to produce just one shot, a long-distance effort that barely troubled the goalkeeper. Arteta will be desperate to see more from the England international, but Mendes won’t let him have it easy.

Prediction

PSG have looked deadly in transition this season, so setting up to defend and hitting Arsenal on the counter could suit them. We’re going for a 1-0 PSG victory, taking them through to the final with a 2-0 aggregate win.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Champions League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, player ratings, and a new super-intuitive knockout stage bracket. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Inter and Barcelona prepare to go again

After a six-goal first leg, can Inter Milan make home advantage count against Barcelona to make another Champions League final?

By Graham Ruthven

Rivalry resumed

Not for the first time, Barcelona and Inter Milan produced a classic in the Champions League semi-final when they met last week.

In contrast to the 2010 encounter between the same two clubs when José Mourinho edged a cagey, conservative affair against Pep Guardiola’s team, the first leg of this particular semi-final was sheer chaos, finishing in a 3-3 draw.

This leaves Tuesday’s second leg on a knife-edge. Inter will have opportunities to score again. They will look to expose the space in behind Barca’s high line with set pieces another area where they can hurt the Catalans.

Barcelona, however, boast the most fearsome attack in European football. Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Pedri showcased their potency in the first leg and will be influential at San Siro too.

Robert Lewandowski could feature after missing last week’s match through injury. The Polish striker’s return would give Barca an even sharper cutting edge in front of goal, although Hansi Flick already has several goal threats to count on.

Key players

Inter need Lautaro Martínez and Marcus Thuram at their sharpest to get the better of Barcelona and make their second Champions League final in three seasons.

Thuram opened the scoring last week with a wonderful backheel finish. Martínez, however, was forced off early through injury and missed the weekend win over Verona. There are questions over his fitness.

Defensively, Inter have one of the best records in this season’s Champions League. This is down to the quality of players like Alessandro Bastoni and Yann Bisseck with Federico Dimarco and Denzel Dumfries key outlets on the wings.

*The top rated performances in last week’s first leg*

Even by Lamine Yamal’s incredible standards, his performance in the first leg against Inter was remarkable. The 17-year-old registered more shots and dribbles than anyone else on the pitch, scoring an outrageous goal to get Barcelona back into the game at 2-1.

Raphinha also made his mark by assisting Ferran Torres with a neat header at the back post before forcing the Yann Sommer own goal to make it 3-3, smashing a long-range strike off the bar and in off the goalkeeper.

The midfield battle between Pedri, Gavi and Frenkie de Jong and Nicolo Barella, Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Henrikh Mkhitaryan will be key to determining the dynamic of the match.

Team news

Martínez might not be fully fit, but the Argentina forward is expected to start for Inter such is his importance to the Nerazzurri’s chances of making the Champions League final.

However, Benjamin Pavard will definitely miss Tuesday’s semi-final second leg with Valentín Carboni also an injury absentee.

Marc-André Ter Stegen made his return from injury against Real Valladolid on Saturday and will start against Inter. Next to return – Lewandowski will be named on the bench. Jules Koundé, however, will miss the game after coming off during the first leg, as will left back Alejandro Balde.

Prediction

This one could go all the way, and equally, it could go either way, if last week’s intense first leg is any indicator. Overall, though, with Barcelona’s determination and ability to always find a way to win something that has been on display since the turn of the year in particular, we’re going with Barca to edge it. But don’t hold us to it! Inter 1-2 Barcelona (4-5 agg).

(Cover image from IMAGO)

May

2025

Preview: Chelsea vs. Champions Liverpool

The champions will receive their first guard of honour this weekend as Liverpool make the trip to Stamford Bridge to take on Champions League chasing Chelsea.

By Sam McGuire

Arne Slot’s side wrapped up the title last weekend with a 5-1 win over Spurs at Anfield. They’ll hope to end the season on a high still, so expect a full strength team on show on Sunday afternoon, much to Chelsea’s dismay.

Goals change games

Despite spending a lot of money on attackers over recent years, it hasn’t really clicked for Chelsea in attack this term. They’re the sixth highest scorers in the league with 1.7 goals per 90 but they’ve struggled to find the back of the net over recent weeks, with six in their last five outings. It has come at the worst time for the Blues.

The goals have dried up for Enzo Maresca’s side.

Their two top scorers this term are Cole Palmer (14) and Nicolas Jackson (10). Jackson netted his first of 2025 last weekend while Palmer is without a league goal since February.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have 11 goals in their last five outings. They hit five against Spurs last time out. They’re the top scorers in the Premier League with 80. After that, the second highest scorers are Manchester City with 66. The Reds are rampant and it is why they’re the champions. The Blues are struggling in the final third and it is why they’re battling it out for a top five finish now after such early promise.

Records for Mo Salah

The Mohamed Salah farewell tour has been prolonged for a further two years. Still, though, there’s a lot up for grabs in the final few weeks. The former Chelsea winger can break a few records before the campaign comes to an end.

He’s two goals off 30 for the season and two assists away from 20. He’d be the first player in Premier League history to score 30 and assist 20. He’s one goal involvement away from matching the record for the most in a single campaign (47) currently shared by Alan Shearer and Andrew Cole.

Salah scored in his last match against Spurs and has a fairly decent record against Chelsea. In fact, he has a fairly decent record against most sides, doesn’t he? The Liverpool No.11 has five goals and four assists against his former club. He registered a goal and an assist in the meeting between the two teams earlier on in the season.

Form does matter

It’ll come as no surprise to hear that Liverpool have the best away record in the Premier League. Slot’s men have won 11 of their 17 games and lost just once as Fulham claimed a shock 3-2 win a few weeks back.

On the road, the Reds have scored 41 goals and conceded just 19. They’re ruthless on their travels.

Chelsea aren’t quite as ruthless at home. They’ve won 10 of their 17 games at Stamford Bridge and have lost just twice. They’re unbeaten in front of their home fans, in the league, since December and have won six of their last eight. However, their last three wins have been 1-0 and they’ve been far from convincing. They’ll need a much better showing on Sunday if they’re to take maximum points off the champions.

Injury situation

Chelsea could be without Robert Sánchez, Christopher Nkunku and Malo Gusto for the game against Liverpool. Wesley Fofana is definitely ruled out of the clash. His injury record is why the Blues are reportedly keen on adding Dean Huijsen to their ranks this summer.

The Reds are without Joe Gomez but should otherwise have a fully fit squad to pick from. Conor Bradley missed the win over Spurs but has been pictured in training this week. This could give Slot a bit of a dilemma at right-back, does he trust the youngster or start Trent Alexander-Arnold?

Prediction

Liverpool won’t want to end the season on a low, so positive results and performances are on the agenda. We’re backing the champions here to eke out a 2-1 win.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: From Bilbao to Brentford, Man United are on the road again

Brentford and Manchester United both had convincing wins in the week, but both have been inconsistent over the whole season.

By Ian King

Inconsistency Kings

Brentford are the Premier League’s inconsistency champions. They haven’t won, lost or drawn more than two successive games all season, and they’ve only managed two successive anything five times, although that does include a fairly swashbuckling 2-0 win at Nottingham Forest on Thursday night to add to their 4-2 win against Brighton last weekend.

Manchester United are five Premier League matches without a win and went into the weekend 14th in the table, but they continue to show their best selves in Europe, with a convincing 3-0 win at Athletic Club in Bilbao in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final. But that win isn’t necessarily a predictor for how they’ll do in the League the following weekend. After they came from behind to beat Lyon 5-4 in the last round, they lost at home to Wolves the following Sunday.

History

For all the chuckles that they’ve provided over the years, Manchester United’s record has been pretty decent against Brentford, with five wins and one draw from their seven meetings since the Bees’ promotion into the Premier League in 2021. Brentford’s sole Premier League win against United – 4-0 at Griffin Park back in August 2022 – was a handsome one but it was also their first and only since February 1938.

*H2H record since Brentford’s promotion*

Key players

Bryan Mbeumo has 18 Premier League goals so far this season while Yoane Wissa has 17. Bruno Fernandes is Manchester United’s top Premier League goalscorer, with eight. Silence those two, and you’ve gone more than halfway towards silencing Brentford. Fernandes has actually scored more goals in all competitions than Mbeumo, though. While all of the Brentford striker’s goals this season have come in the Premier League (and Wissa only has one cup goal), Fernandes has scored 11 in other competitions, including two on Thursday night, taking him to 19 in total. This doesn’t reflect well on United’s forwards.

Team News

With no new injury concerns as a result of their midweek trip to Spain, it’s very much as you were for Manchester United. Ayden Heaven and Toby Collyer could return, but Diogo Dalot is still at least a couple of weeks off. Joshua Zirkzee and Lisandro Martínez are out for the remainder of the season.

Brentford also came through their trip to Nottingham Forest unscathed, and none of those currently in their treatment room – Vitaly Janelt, Joshua Dasilva, Fabio Carvalho, Igor Thiago and Aaron Hickey – are expected back much before the very end of the season.

Prediction

WIth good midweek wins under their belts, both of these teams can come into this match in a reasonably positive frame of mind. Brentford have outstanding attacking options and Manchester United’s defence can be a little lackadaisical, but then Brentford’s home record has been poor and Manchester United remain in the bottom half of the Premier League on merit. These masters of inconsistency are going to end up cancelling each other out, so let’s go for the 1-1 draw.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Real Madrid take on Europa League chasing Celta Vigo

Real Madrid host Celta Vigo in La Liga as they cling on to their title hopes. Carlo Ancelotti’s side sit second in the table, and they will face a Celta Vigo side who are pushing to finish in the European places.

By Matt Smith

The two sides have faced twice so far this season, once in the Copa del Rey and once in La Liga, with Madrid securing wins in both of those fixtures. Celta Vigo have struggled away at Madrid in recent years, losing their previous five meetings.

Team news

Ancelotti will be without long-term absentees Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, while Ferland Mendy, David Alaba, and Antonio Rüdiger will all be missing and aren’t expected to return this season. Eduardo Camavinga is also out, while Jude Bellingham and Lucas Vázquez are available after suspension.

Carl Starfelt will miss out for Celta Vigo, while Jones El-Abdellaoui is a doubt. Manager Claudio Giráldez should have no injury concerns heading into this one.

Madrid’s battle with Barcelona

Madrid remain in the fight for the La Liga title, but it’s going to be tricky to beat Barcelona in the race. Hansi Flick’s side have enjoyed an unbelievable season, and Ancelotti’s men have simply been beaten in almost every metric.

Madrid are going through a bit of a transition as they look to find the best way to set up their attack after Kylian Mbappé arrived in the summer transfer window. They’ve shown signs of having a deadly attacking recipe, but Ancelotti’s side are falling short in the title race.

*The table situation going in to the weekend*

Celta Vigo difficult to break down

Celta Vigo’s defensive solidity has played a crucial role in their battle to finish in the European places this season. Giráldez’s side have conceded just 35.9 expected goals, the fourth lowest in the division.

Despite that, Celta Vigo have conceded almost 13 more goals than their xG tally, perhaps suggesting that they’ve been quite unfortunate to let in as many as they have this season. A win could see them go five points clear of ninth if other results go their way.

Time for Vinícius to step up

It’s been a tricky period for Vinícius Júnior, who has scored just once in his previous six games for Madrid, producing no assists during that time. If the Spanish giants are going to have any chance of winning the league, they’ll need the Brazilian to step up in the final few games.

Vinícius has produced a phenomenal 33 goals and assists combined in all competitions this season, so it’s not outrageous to be expecting more from him of late. It might look like an uphill task for Madrid to win the league, but they face leaders Barcelona, which could swing things in their favour.

Prediction

Considering Celta Vigo’s recent record away to Madrid, it’s difficult to see Ancelotti’s side dropping points in this one. With the league title on the line, we’re expecting a comfortable Madrid victory: Real Madrid 3-1 Celta Vigo.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from LaLiga with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

May

2025

Preview: Inter Miami looking to get back on track against Red Bulls

After Inter Miami and Lionel Messi were unceremoniously knocked out of the Concacaf Champions Cup by Vancouver Whitecaps, they can now focus solely on retaining their MLS Supporters’ Shield title and timing their season to hit form ahead of the playoffs. They will be looking to get back on track at home to the New York Red Bulls this weekend.

By James Nalton

Bouncing back

It was a disappointing week for Inter Miami as they were defeated 3-1 at home by the Whitecaps in the Champions Cup, losing the semifinal tie 5-1 on aggregate.

They will be looking to bounce back against the Red Bulls, but the continental exit might be difficult to recover from initially.

In addition to the MLS Cup playoffs, which don’t begin until much later in the year, the Champions Cup was one of the big prizes head coach Javier Mascherano, along with Messi and co., were prioritising this season.

They will need to ensure this disappointment doesn’t carry over into their league performances and instead use it as motivation to show their quality in MLS before they break for the Club World Cup in June.

Defensive issues emerge

Inter Miami’s previous MLS game, a 4-3 defeat to FC Dallas, and the 5-1 aggregate defeat to Vancouver, exposed some underlying defensive issues in the team.

It looked like Mascherano had shored them up and made them difficult to beat, but the weaknesses lay beneath the surface, behind the scorelines.

It’s strange that the team with the joint-fewest goals conceded in MLS going into that game against Dallas was still perceived to have a vulnerable defence, but this was often on show during the games themselves.

*Inter Miami have the 16th worst xG conceded figure in MLS*

Their xG-against also goes some way to showing why this is the case. They were conceding chances but those weren’t always converted into goals by the opposition.

Even after conceding four against Dallas, their xG-against of 13.7 is still higher than actual goals conceded (10), suggesting some poor opposition finishing, good Inter Miami goalkeeping, or luck.

What it certainly suggests is Mascherano’s team still need to improve defensively.

Messi contribution expected

Lionel Messi is currently four games without a goal or an assist in all competitions for Inter Miami.

It is his longest such run when starting games since joining the club in 2023, so he will be expected to get back in among the goals, or at least make an assist, in this game.

He has three goals and two assists in the six of Miami’s nine games he has played in this season.

The team and the fans will be looking to him to get them out of this mini slump.

Charging Red Bulls?

The visiting Red Bulls remain one of the most active pressing teams in MLS, which could cause Miami problems during build-up play.

On the whole, though, Sandro Schwarz’s side are yet to convince this season.

Their mid-table position reflects their inconsistent start, and they only scraped past Montréal last week to claim their fourth win of the year. They are yet to pick up a win away from home.

Emil Forsberg could pose a threat to the Miami defence from an attacking midfield position, while Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting is the club’s top scorer with four, despite an indifferent start to life in MLS.

Prediction

Now they only have the league to focus on, Inter Miami should recover from a three-game losing streak in all competitions and get back to winning ways.

(Cover Image from IMAGO)

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