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
Tottenham beats Liverpool 1-0 in English cup semis after a serious injury and in-stadium ref call
- Liverpool, the defending League Cup champion, saw its 24-match unbeaten run in all competitions come to an end
Lucas Bergvall’s first goal for Tottenham secured a 1-0 win over Liverpool in the English League Cup semifinals on Wednesday in a first-leg match notable for a serious-looking injury to Rodrigo Bentancur and the first in-stadium announcement by a referee in the English game.
The 18-year-old Bergvall slotted home the winner in the 86th minute following a pass from Dominic Solanke, who thought 10 minutes earlier that he had given Tottenham the lead. That goal was ruled out after a VAR check for offside and referee Stuart Attwell communicated the decision via a wireless microphone to spectators inside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and to TV viewers.
In the sixth minute, Bentancur — the Uruguay midfielder who plays for Tottenham — fell to the ground and lay prone after landing awkwardly when attempting a header from a corner. He was carried off on a stretcher, to applause from around the ground, after receiving treatment during a 10-minute delay.
The second leg is at Anfield on Feb. 6.
Newcastle leads Arsenal 2-0 after the first leg of the other semifinal match.
Liverpool, the defending League Cup champion, saw its 24-match unbeaten run in all competitions come to an end and there was a hint of controversy about only the team’s second loss of the season.
Visiting players and manager Arne Slot were unhappy that Bergvall was on the field to score what proved to be the winning goal after he escaped collecting a second yellow card for a foul on Kostas Tsimikas moments earlier. Indeed, Tsimikas was off the field, waiting to come back on having received treatment following Bergvall’s tackle, when the Sweden midfielder tucked home his finish.
Slot earned a yellow card himself for his protests, though he shook Attwell’s hand after the final whistle.
“It was quite obvious it was going to be a second yellow,” Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk said. “A minute later he scores the winner.
“He (Attwell) made a mistake, in my opinion.”
It was a busy end to the match for Attwell, who took center stage after there was a video review following Solanke’s strike in the 76th minute. After being notified that Solanke was offside, Attwell used the public address system to declare the goal had been ruled out, in an NFL-style announcement.
The League Cup semifinals were chosen to pilot a process in England that has been widely used in other sports, and in soccer at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2023 and other FIFA events.
‘Real Madrid are ready for Mallorca’, says Ancelloti ahead of Spanish Super Cup clash
- Ancelotti stated that his players are well-prepared and looking forward to winning
- Vazquez: ‘Tomorrow’s match is our way to the final’
JEDDAH: Ahead of Real Madrid’s Spanish Super Cup clash with Mallorca in the semifinals on Thursday in Jeddah, Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti told media on Wednesday that he and his squad are happy to play again in Saudi Arabia.
He said: “Having the competition here is good for Spanish football. Firstly, for the teams that play here because they have the opportunity to receive the support of all the fans they have here.”
Asked about Real Madrid’s position if Dani Olmo and Pau Victor take part with Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup, he said: “You can ask about the games only but not this issue.”
He was also asked about Vinicius Junior’s behavior, to which he responded: “The Brazilian player has been insulted so many times. We don’t care what everyone thinks. He is a super player, and we are delighted to have him in all aspects.”
Speaking of tomorrow’s match against Mallorca, Ancelotti stated that his players are well-prepared and looking forward to winning. He said: “We have a lot of respect for their quality and the work of the coach. We have to respect them to the maximum.”
Lucas Vazquez met the press on Wednesday and said: “The Spanish Super Cup is a very good opportunity to win a title.
“We are determined to keep winning. Tomorrow is the first step toward winning the Spanish Super Cup, which is our objective.
“It’s a very good opportunity to win a title. We’re really looking forward to it and tomorrow we want to beat Mallorca to play in the final. We have a year with many challenges and we’re going to take them on with a lot of ambition.”
Asked if he is staying with Real Madrid for next season, the defender said: “It’s too early to know what’s going to happen. I’m happy here, enjoying this season. We’ll see what happens next season. I can’t say anything more.”
Defending LaLiga champion Real Madrid and 2023-24 Copa del Rey runner-up Mallorca face off Thursday at “The Jewel,” King Abdullah Sports City, in Jeddah at 10 p.m. Saudi time.
Lebanese football star awakes from coma she went into after Israeli airstrike
- Celine Haidar’s father says she ‘wants to go back to football once her medical situation allows her’
- Coach Samer Barbary tells Arab News: ‘When I asked if she still wants to play football, she pressed on my hand and moved her right leg’
BEIRUT: Lebanese football star Celine Haidar has awakened from a coma nearly two months after suffering a critical head injury during an Israeli airstrike, her father and coach told Arab News on Wednesday.
“By the grace of Allah she has awakened from coma but she remains in ICU as she cannot speak and still requires a ventilator to help her breathe properly,” said Abbas Haidar, the father of the 19-year-old international footballer.
In mid-November, Haidar, who is a youth international and captains her club, Beirut Football Academy, was injured while fleeing her home in Al-Chiyyah in Beirut’s southern suburbs after an Israeli warning of an imminent attack on their building.
Speaking from Saint Georges Hospital where his daughter is being treated, her father confirmed that Celine awoke a few days ago (without giving a date), saying “she still cannot talk easily, and remains under extensive treatment.”
He expressed his joy “because she has recognized us (her family members),” adding that whenever they want to chat with her, she writes down her replies.
Her coach at BFA, Samer Barbary, revealed to Arab News that he visited her two days ago. “She is still on a ventilator, however, she extended her right arm to shake hands with me … when I asked if she still wants to play football, she pressed on my hand and moved her right leg in an obvious sign of wanting to do so,” Barbary said.
Abbas explained that his daughter’s situation still requires further medical assessment and follow-up. He hopes that she improves soon and starts rehabilitation.
“She still realizes that she is a footballer and wants to go back to football once her medical situation allows her.”
Meanwhile, her coach said: “Her medical treatment and follow-up still requires time and effort … and based on how her medical situation progresses, we hope that she could be back on the green pitch.”
Barbary told Arab News previously: “She is Lebanon’s Sergio Busquets and has got remarkable skills in her position as a central midfielder.”
Her father said in November that their neighborhood had been subject to ongoing threats and bombardment before the family moved to a safer location outside Beirut.
“Celine is a very vibrant and sociable person. She found us the house in Baakline.”
Haidar stayed in Baakline for two days and returned to Al-Chiyyah to attend school and her football training. Her father was notified by phone that she had been injured and admitted to hospital.
Rising star Haidar represented her country as a member of the under-19 women’s national team who won the 2022 West Asia Cup, hosted by Lebanon, and had been selected to play for the senior national team before her injury.
“Celine is one of the best football midfielders in Lebanon … she is consistent, stable and a leader. She played a major role in us winning the 2024 league unbeaten,” Barbary said.
Before joining BFA in 2021, she played for Safa Club and with them won the Lebanese National League.
We will ‘do our best’ for Barcelona’s Saudi fans, says Raphinha ahead of Spanish Super Cup start in Jeddah
- Barcelona face Athletic Club in Wednesday’s first semifinal, with winners tackling either Real Madrid or Mallorca in the final at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah
JEDDAH: Raphinha says Barcelona are determined to repay local fans for their support by winning the Supercopa de Espana in Jeddah.
La Liga runners-up Barcelona and Copa del Rey winners Athletic Club will contest the first Supercopa semifinal on Wednesday at King Abdullah Sports City, with kickoff at 10 p.m. local time.
The winners will face either La Liga champions Real Madrid or Copa del Rey finalists Mallorca in Sunday’s final at the same stadium.
Barcelona have an enormous fanbase in Saudi Arabia, a country with a thriving football culture that has been the hosts of the Supercopa de Espana since 2020.
The Catalans are sure to enjoy the majority of the support in Jeddah on Wednesday evening and Raphinha wants to ensure their fans are treated to a spectacle.
Raphinha, 28, said: “I would like to thank them for the love. We know how difficult it is for fans to be able to go to Barcelona and watch one of our games there, so to be able to come here, play in a semifinal and (possibly) a final is great, it’s exciting. What we can do is appreciate the love and do our best to try and win two matches.”
Raphinha arrives in Jeddah as one of Barcelona’s standout players this season, scoring 17 goals and creating 10 assists in 25 matches in all competitions.
The team, however, enter the Supercopa in mixed form. Following a blistering start to the season, Barcelona have lost three of their last seven matches, including consecutive defeats in La Liga.
Barca’s pedigree in the Supercopa is unrivalled, though, having won a record 14 trophies. They last won the competition in Riyadh in 2023, and Raphinha believes success in Jeddah this week can provide a vital boost for the rest of the season.
“A title gives confidence to any team,” the Brazilian forward said. “We have to be ready to fight for everything. We have the opportunity to win the first title of the year. It will give us a lot of confidence.”
Barcelona manager Hansi Flick echoed Raphinha’s comments by insisting his players are raring to go and are fully focused on achieving more Supercopa success in Saudi Arabia.
Flick said: “I can feel with the team everyone is ready for this tournament. The semifinal against Athletic is a tough match and we focus on that and not think about the days after that, only focus on this match.
“Of course, when you win titles, it’s very good for the club, very good for the team, for every player and also for us coaches, because we all work hard and train hard.”
If Barcelona are to add to their 14 Supercopas, they will need to get past extremely tough opposition, starting with semifinal opponents Athletic Club.
The Catalans edged the Basque club 2-1 in their most recent meeting at the start of the Spanish Liga season, although Athletic enter the tie with the better overall form, going unbeaten in their last 15 matches in all competitions and winning 11.
Athletic have also won their last two Supercopa matches against Barca, claiming a 3-2 victory after extra time in the 2021 final, and a comprehensive 5-1 aggregate win in 2015 before the format was expanded to four teams.
Athletic captain Oscar De Marcos is aware of the task against Barcelona, but insists they are ready for the challenge.
“We’re looking forward to being in another semifinal,” he said. “We know we’re facing a very tough opponent, but whenever you’re close to a title you have the hope of being able to win it. We need a great game to be able to win it.”
Athletic also have stellar Supercopa experience in the dugout. Manager Ernesto Valverde has been in charge for two of Athletic’s three Supercopa triumphs, while he is familiar with the tournament in Saudi having led Barcelona in the inaugural four-team tournament in 2020.
“We are excited about the Supercopa,” the Spanish coach said. “Our intention is to make the most of our chances. We are not favorites from the start, but we have to play like it. We will give everything to win it because we have travelled here for a reason.”
On the fans in Saudi Arabia, Valverde added: “There are more Barcelona fans than our own. That’s for sure. There will be a good atmosphere and we hope people can enjoy a good match. I know it well because it was my last match with Barcelona.”
The Supercopa de Espana is being staged in Saudi Arabia as part of a long-term partnership with the Royal Spanish Football Federation, which will keep the competition in the Kingdom until 2029.
Isak strikes again as Newcastle beats Arsenal 2-0 in League Cup semifinal 1st leg
- Isak struck in the 37th minute to continue his outstanding scoring run with his 14th goal in 15 games
Newcastle moved a step closer to a first major domestic trophy since 1955 with a 2-0 victory over Arsenal in the first leg of the English League Cup semifinals Tuesday.
Goals from Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon at the Emirates Stadium put Newcastle within reach of the final at Wembley Stadium in March. The second leg is at St. James’ Park on Feb. 5.
It was Newcastle’s first win at the Emirates since 2010 and Arsenal’s first home defeat since April.
Isak struck in the 37th minute to continue his outstanding scoring run with his 14th goal in 15 games. The Sweden international was involved in Newcastle’s second in the 51st, when his shot was saved by Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya and the rebound was converted by Gordon.
Despite being bought by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund in 2021, Newcastle hasn’t won a major domestic trophy since lifting the FA Cup almost 70 years ago. But it is close to second League Cup final in three years after losing to Manchester United in 2023.
Newcastle is also pushing for a return to the Champions League after missing out last season — sitting fifth in the Premier League standings and one point outside of the automatic qualifying places for European club soccer’s elite tournament.
Victory against Arsenal was a seventh straight win in all competitions for Eddie Howe’s team, which has been inspired by Isak’s brilliant goal-scoring form.
He fired in off the underside of the crossbar from close range after a long free kick was played into his path by Jacob Murphy.
It was Isak’s seventh goal in his last five games.
Despite in-stadium referee announcements being trialed for the match, an apparent push in the buildup to his goal did not result in referee Craig Pawson reviewing the sideline monitor.
It was Isak’s sharpness that led to Newcastle’s second. His effort from inside the box six minutes into the second half was parried by Raya, but Gordon was the quickest to react at the far post to fire home.
Arsenal was unbeaten in 13 games in all competitions and is second in the Premier League standings.
It had the chance to take the lead when Gabriel Martinelli burst through in the 29th and fired against the post.
Kai Havertz wasted a golden opportunity to pull a goal back when his attempted header from directly in front of goal came off his shoulder and went wide.
Tottenham plays Liverpool in the other semifinal, with the first leg being staged at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday.
