BERLIN: Defender Matthijs de Ligt produced a crucial goal-line clearance before scoring himself as Bayern Munich reclaimed the Bundesliga lead from Borussia Dortmund with a 2-1 win at Stuttgart on Saturday.
De Ligt’s goal came late in the first half just after he prevented Stuttgart from going ahead, with Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting grabbing a second for Bayern midway through the second half.
Stuttgart pulled one back late on through Juan Jose Perea, but Bayern held on to go back above Dortmund on goal difference ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League last-16 second leg against Paris Saint-Germain in Munich.
Bayern picked up where they left off in last week’s 3-0 win over Union Berlin, with Leon Goretzka forcing goalkeeper Fabian Bredlow into two stunning reflex saves in quick succession.
Not content to allow Bayern to turn the screws, Stuttgart kept looking dangerous on the counter through the speed of striker Silas.
Silas’ near-post shot forced a save from Yann Sommer after 36 minutes and the home side almost took the lead from the ensuing corner, with De Ligt desperately clearing a deflected ball off the line.
The Dutch center-back put Bayern in front just a minute later, blasting a low shot under Bredlow from outside the box.
Fresh from inking a one-year extension in Munich on Friday, former PSG striker Choupo-Moting doubled Bayern’s lead by hammering a shot past Bredlow when put through on goal by Thomas Mueller.
With just two minutes remaining, the home side gave their fans hope, Tiago Tomas curling in a superb cross to find Perea, who headed past Sommer.
French winger Tanguy Coulibaly had a chance to equalize in the second minute of injury time when he jumped high to head a cross from Hiroki Ito, but his effort went just wide.
Stuttgart, who have lost five of their past six games, are one of four teams holding up the bottom of the table equal on 19 points.
Earlier on Saturday, Union Berlin missed a chance to keep in touch with Bayern and Dortmund, playing out a scoreless draw at home against Cologne.
Chances were few throughout and despite some late attacking changes from Union manager Urs Fischer, the visitors held firm.
Fischer singled out goalkeeper Frederik Ronnow for particular praise, telling Sky: “Cologne were a bit more dangerous... we can thank our goalkeeper for keeping us in the game.”
The result, Union’s third 0-0 draw in their past five matches, sees the Berliners fall five points behind Bayern, sitting in third place.
Elsewhere, Freiburg missed a chance to overtake RB Leipzig into the Champions League places, drawing 0-0 away to Borussia Moenchengladbach.
France striker Marcus Thuram won Gladbach a second-half penalty but the spot kick was overturned by VAR, which found insufficient contact with the forward’s foot.
Gladbach were reduced to 10 men with three minutes remaining when Algerian wing-back Ramy Bensebaini picked up a second yellow for kicking the ball away in frustration.
At the other end of the table, Schalke boosted their hopes of avoiding a direct return to the second division, winning 2-0 away at fellow strugglers Bochum.
The win, set up by a first-half goalkeeping howler from Bochum’s Manuel Riemann and a clever second-half strike from Marius Buelter, was Schalke’s first away victory in the top flight since November 2019.
Schalke, who had anchored the Bundesliga table since October, are now unbeaten in their last six games ahead of next week’s clash with derby rivals Dortmund.
Mainz lifted themselves to seventh with a hard-fought 1-0 home win over Hoffenheim, thanks to a first-half strike from Leandro Barreiro.
The result was the visitors’ seventh loss in eight matches in 2023, leaving Hoffenheim in grave relegation danger.
Augsburg lifted themselves eight points clear of the relegation spots with a 2-1 home win over Werder Bremen.
De Ligt sends Bayern back on top ahead of PSG tie
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De Ligt sends Bayern back on top ahead of PSG tie
- De Ligt's goal came late in the first half just after he prevented Stuttgart from going ahead
- Stuttgart pulled one back late on through Juan Jose Perea, but Bayern held on to go back above Dortmund on goal difference
Arnold eager to steer Iraq to 2026 FIFA World Cup
- Iraq's only appearance at the tournament was in 1986
- “What is important is we all believe we can win the next two games,” Arnold said
BAGHDAD: Graham Arnold is confident he can help Iraq qualify for the World Cup finals for the first time in 40 years after he was appointed as the country's national coach on Friday.
Asked whether Iraq can make the cut for the 2026 tournament which will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the U.S., the Australian told the federation’s website: "That’s my goal.
“That’s what I want to do. I haven’t come here to not be successful, and everyone in this room has to believe that. We can do it.
Iraq's only appearance at the tournament was in 1986, when they were eliminated after the group phase.
Arnold replaced Spaniard Jesus Casas whose contract was terminated by the local soccer governing body in the wake of a 2-1 loss to Palestine in March.
That result left the Iraqis in third place in the standings in Group B, four points adrift of leaders South Korea and one behind Jordan with two games left.
The top two nations in each of Asia's three qualifying groups advance automatically for the World Cup while the teams in third and fourth progress to another round of preliminaries.
“What is important is we all believe we can win the next two games, that is my first objective for Iraq,” he said.
Arnold's first game in charge will be against South Korea in Basra on June 5. They then face Jordan in Amman five days later.
Bayern Munich celebrate Bundesliga title with last home win for Thomas Müller
BERLIN: Thomas Müller led Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga title celebrations after helping the team beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-0 in his last home game for the club on Saturday.
After being presented with the trophy, Bayern captain Manuel Neuer gave it to Müller to hoist toward the Munich sky and start the confetti-filled celebrations.
There was another outpouring of emotion when Harry Kane got his chance to lift the “salad bowl” — it’s the England captain’s first team trophy after a career of near-misses.
Bayern won the title last weekend and Michael Olize made sure of this win by scoring one goal and setting up the other for Kane’s league-leading 25th of the season to get the party underway in Munich.
Relegation decided
Bochum and Holstein Kiel were relegated while Leipzig’s hopes of Champions League qualification were over after drawing at Werder Bremen 0-0.
Last-placed Bochum lost at home to Mainz 4-1, and Kiel lost at home 2-1 to Freiburg, which consolidated fourth place and were well-placed for Champions League qualification.
Leipzig’s scoreless draw in Bremen left them four points behind Freiburg with one round remaining, meaning they can no longer qualify for Europe’s lucrative premier competition.
Neither Bochum nor Kiel have any possibility of catching third-from-bottom Heidenheim following the latter’s 3-0 win at Union Berlin. Heidenheim made sure of at least a relegation playoff place.
With one game left to play, Bochum had 22 points, Kiel 25, and Heidenheim 29 – just two behind St. Pauli, which had two matches remaining. St. Pauli play their penultimate match at third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.
Bochum needed to avoid defeat and hope for a favor from Union against Heidenheim at the same time. But Mainz were 3-0 up before Bochum scored. Mainz confirmed Bochum’s seventh demotion from the top division.
Bochum were promoted to the Bundesliga as the second division champion in 2021, ending an 11-year absence from the top division.
Bochum defeated Bayern 3-2 away in March, but they were Dieter Hecking’s team’s only win in their last 11 games.
“I’ve been relegated before, it’s anything but nice. You could see it with the lads, tears were flowing,” Bochum captain Maximilian Wittek said. “It’s among the worst things that can happen in football.”
Kiel also gone
Kiel were promoted for the first time only last season and coach Marcel Rapp’s team have quickly returned to the second division.
Kiel scored first but Johan Manzambi equalized before the break and Lucas Höler headed Freiburg toward the Champions League.
Freiburg moved four points clear of Borussia Dortmund, which visit Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday for Xabi Alonso’s last home game as Leverkusen coach. A Leverkusen win would send Freiburg to the Champions League.
Later, Hamburger SV had the chance to be promoted back to the division with a win at home against Ulm in the second division. Thousands of blue-clad fans greeted the team bus on its way to the stadium with songs, flags and flares.
Lazio snatch last-gasp draw with Champions League rivals Juve
- Igor Tudor’s team are level on 64 points with Lazio in fifth
- Randal Kolo Muani netted Juve’s goal in the 51st minute
ROME: Matias Vecino snatched a precious 1-1 draw for Lazio against 10-man Juventus with a stoppage-time equalizer in an enthralling battle between top-four rivals.
Uruguayan Vecino tapped home from close range after a miraculous Michele Di Gregorio save from Valentin Castellanos to spare Lazio from what would have been a painful defeat.
Juventus, who played for over half an hour with 10 men after Pierre Kalulu was sent off for striking out at Lazio striker Castellanos, stay fourth.
But Igor Tudor’s team are level on 64 points with Lazio in fifth, with sixth-placed Roma a point behind ahead of their clash at Atalanta on Monday night.
Randal Kolo Muani netted Juve’s goal in the 51st minute at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, his seventh goal in Italy’s top flight since signing on loan from Paris Saint-Germain in January.
Juve thought they were set to win when they survived a penalty scare moments before Vecino’s leveller, when Di Gregorio brought down Castellanos who was then ruled by VAR to have been offside.
But Vecino stepped up to save a point for Lazio and leave the fight for the final two Champions League spots firmly in the balance.
Man City’s surprising draw at Southampton throws Champions League hopes into doubt
- It could prove to be two crucial dropped points for third-placed City
- Haaland’s return after a six-week absence because of injury couldn’t inspire City
LONDON: Manchester City’s Champions League qualification ambitions were thrown back into doubt on Saturday after a surprising 0-0 draw at already-relegated Southampton, the Premier League’s last-placed team.
It could prove to be two crucial dropped points for third-placed City in a six-team race for the four remaining spots to get into the Champions League, along with champion Liverpool.
Even Erling Haaland’s return after a six-week absence because of injury couldn’t inspire City, which dragged themselves into a better position in the league on the back of four straight wins.
City had two points more than Newcastle and Chelsea — who meet at St. James’ Park on Sunday — and four more than Nottingham Forest, which host already-relegated Leicester on Sunday.
Seventh-placed Villa were a further point back and visit Bournemouth later Saturday.
City’s unprecedented four-year reign as champion was ended by Liverpool this season.
The draw lifted Southampton onto 12 points — one more than the lowest ever points haul in a single season, set by Derby County in 2007-08.
Barcelona ready for Real test after Champions League exit, says Flick
- Barca lead the Spanish top-flight by four points over second-placed Real
- “After the defeat in Milan, everyone knows it’s not easy... but we’re doing things right,” Flick told reporters
BARCELONA: Barcelona’s players have discussed last week’s Champions League elimination and are ready to put their disappointment behind them as they prepare to face LaLiga title rivals Real Madrid, manager Hansi Flick said on Saturday.
Barca, who suffered a 4-3 Champions League semifinal defeat by Inter Milan on Tuesday, lead the Spanish top-flight by four points over second-placed Real.
With four matches left in the season, a home win on Sunday would move Flick’s side one victory away from their 28th Spanish league title.
“We’re doing well. After the defeat in Milan, everyone knows it’s not easy... but we’re doing things right. We’ve talked about what we want to do in these two weeks,” Flick told reporters.
“There are four more games to go. El Clasico is important, we have to show how well we can play. We have to show confidence. The players are doing very well... We’ve been talking about what they are thinking, what they are feeling.
“We had to talk about it as a group. Everyone knows that in a Clasico you have to give 100 percent. You have to be active, intense, dominant. Real Madrid is a very good team, and we need the fans.”
Barcelona have conceded 10 goals in their last four games across all competitions, leading to questions over their solidity and the team’s use of a high line when defending.
Flick, however, is content with his back line.
“When we started, I was clear about the philosophy... There have been games, especially at the beginning, where we saw doubts, but the team has adapted well,” he said.
“They have also been improving and are happy with the style and how we want to play. When you see the quality of the players you are happy.”
Flick also singled out defender Inigo Martinez for praise.
“He likes to play deeper, and it’s unbelievable to see how he’s adapted,” the German said.
“He’s a leader and focuses on winning every game. He works hard in every training session.
He shares his positive feelings with his teammates and he is a fighter. A great leader.”
Flick said striker Robert Lewandowski, returning from a hamstring injury, and full back Alejandro Balde would not start against Real.
“Gerard Martin and the rest of the players are doing very well,” Flick said.
“After this match, we have three more games left. Maybe they (Lewandowski and Balde) will get minutes in the second half, I think Balde is ready for that.”
