14 May Soccer Insights – May Vol. 2
UEFA Champions League finalists defined, end of regular season in Mexico, Real Madrid slips in La Liga and the first New York derby takes place. Let’s take a look on what soccer left us this past week.
UEFA Champions League
In a shocking turn of events, Juventus got into the Champions League final after a 1-1 score at Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo had put Real Madrid in advantage, but a goal by former Merengue player Álvaro Morata put thing on level and restored Juventus global lead. Madrid was unnable to score again and the Italians secured their place at Berlin.
Barcelona will be the other finalist after surpassing Bayern Munich with a 5-3 global score. The Culés just needed the first half at Munich to settle things thanks to a brace by Neymar. Bayern managed to win the game, but they were short of three goals to make it to Berlin.
Premier League
Results
| Chelsea | 1-1 | Liverpool |
| Manchester City | 6-0 | QPR |
| Crystal Palace | 1-2 | Manchester United |
| Arsenal | 0-1 | Swansea |
| Hull | 0-1 | Burnley |
| Leicester | 2-0 | Southampton |
| Everton | 0-2 | Sunderland |
| Aston Villa | 1-0 | West Ham |
| Newcastle | 1-1 | West Brom |
| Stoke | 3-0 | Tottenham |
Table
| 1 | Chelsea | 84pts |
| 2 | Manchester City | 73pts |
| 3 | Arsenal | 70pts |
| 4 | Manchester United | 68pts |
| 5 | Liverpool | 62pts |
Talking points
- Steven Gerrard received a standing ovation by Chelsea fans, players and staff as he left Stamford Bridge for the last time as a Liverpool player.
- Queens Park Rangers and Burnley got relegated with two games to go. QPR suffered a huge 6-0 defeat to Manchester City, with three goals and one assist by Sergio Agüero.
- Aston Villa, Leicester City, Newcastle and Hull are the clubs battling to avoid the last relegation spot.
La Liga
Results
| Barcelona | 2-0 | Real Sociedad |
| Real Madrid | 2-2 | Valencia |
| Levante | 0-0 | Atl Madrid |
| Celta de Vigo | 1-1 | Sevilla |
| Villarreal | 1-0 | Elche |
| Almería | 1-2 | Málaga |
| Rayo Vallecano | 2-0 | Getafe |
| Granada | 2-0 | Córdoba |
| Ath Bilbao | 1-1 | Deportivo de La Coruña |
| Eibar | 0-2 | Espanyol |
Table
| 1 | Barcelona | 90pts |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 86pts |
| 3 | Atlético Madrid | 77pts |
| 4 | Valencia | 73pts |
| 5 | Sevilla | 70pts |
Talking points
- The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) had announced that all professional soccer competitions would be suspended this weekend following a disagreement with the Spanish League (LFP) and the government regarding the television rights, but an agreement was reached this morning and all the games will be played as scheduled.
- Real Madrid was shocked at home by Valencia, settling a draw that could have defined La Liga’s fate in favor of Barcelona.
- Speaking of Barcelona, they won their game against Real Sociedad in comfortable fashion thanks to goals by Neymar and Pedro.
Bundesliga
Results
| Bayern Munich | 0-1 | FC Augsburg |
| B. Dortmund | 2-0 | Hertha BSC |
| FC Köln | 2-0 | Schalke 04 |
| B. Mönchengladbach | 3-0 | B. Leverkusen |
| Paderborn | 1-3 | VFL Wolfsburg |
| Frankfurt | 3-1 | Hoffenheim |
| Hannover 96 | 1-1 | Werder Bremen |
| Stuttgart | 2-0 | Mainz 05 |
| Hamburger SV | 1-1 | Freiburg |
Table
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 76pts |
| 2 | Wolfsburg | 65pts |
| 3 | Mönchengladbach | 63pts |
| 4 | Bayer Leverkusen | 58pts |
| 5 | FC Augsburg | 46pts |
Talking points
- Bayern Munich lost their third straight match and are full of doubts towards their game against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League, being ultimately knocked-out by them.
- Borussia Dortmund is just two points away of securing their place in next season’s Europa League.
- There are at least seven clubs involved in the relegation battle. All of them are really close in the table and could be an exciting end of the season.
Serie A
Results
| AC Milan | 2-1 | Roma |
| Juventus | 1-1 | Cagliari |
| Lazio | 1-2 | Inter Milan |
| Parma | 2-2 | Napoli |
| Genoa | 5-1 | Torino |
| Chievo Verona | 2-2 | Hellas Verona |
| Cesena | 2-3 | Sassuolo |
| Palermo | 2-3 | Atalanta |
| Udinese | 1-4 | Sampdoria |
| Empoli | 2-3 | Fiorentina |
Table
| 1 | Juventus | 80pts |
| 2 | Roma | 64pts |
| 3 | Lazio | 63pts |
| 4 | Napoli | 60pts |
| 5 | Fiorentina | 55pts |
Talking points
- Milan defeated Roma at San Siro in one of the big games of the weekend. The rosonneri are out of any chances to qualify to an European competition.
- Napoli wasted their chance to get close to Roma and Lazio in the Champions League qualification battle by drawing 2-2 with Parma.
- Juventus tied 1-1 with Cagliari ahead of their game against Real Madrid for the Champions League semifinals, where they got a 1-1 draw and got through thanks ti their 2-1 victory at Italy.
Ligue 1
Results
| PSG | 6-0 | Guingamp |
| Marseille | 2-1 | Monaco |
| Caen | 3-0 | Lyon |
| St Etienne | 5-0 | Nice |
| Lens | 0-1 | Montpellier |
| Bourdeaux | 2-1 | Nantes |
| Evian | 2-3 | Reims |
| Metz | 0-4 | Lorient |
| Rennes | 0-1 | Bastia |
| Toulouse | 3-2 | Lille |
Table
| 1 | PSG | 77pts |
| 2 | Lyon | 71pts |
| 3 | Monaco | 65pts |
| 4 | Marseille | 63pts |
| 5 | Saint-Etienne | 63pts |
Talking points
- PSG practically secured their third straight title after defeating Nice 6-0 with a hat-trick by Edison Cavani and thanks to Lyon’s surprising defeat to Caen.
- Marseille came from behind to win a game thay were losing to Monaco since minute one. This victory keeps their Champions League qualification hopes alive.
- Saint-Etienne is also in the fight for an UCL place, tied in points with Marseille.
MLS
Results
| New York Red Bulls | 2-1 | New York City FC |
| FC Dallas | 2-1 | LA Galaxy |
| DC United | 1-1 | Sporting Kansas City |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | 3-0 | Philadelphia Union |
| Columbus Crew | 3-2 | Seattle Sounders |
| Toronto FC | 1-2 | Houston Dynamo |
| Chicago Fire | 1-2 | Real Salt Lake |
| Colorado Rapids | 1-1 | San Jose Earthquakes |
| Montreal Impact | 1-2 | Portland Timbers |
| Orlando City SC | 2-2 | New England Revolution |
*Mideweek game: DC United 2-1 Orlando City
Tables
Eastern Conference
| 1 | DC United | 21pts |
| 2 | NE Revolution | 18pts |
| 3 | NY Red Bulls | 16pts |
Western Conference
| 1 | Vancouver Whitecaps | 20pts |
| 2 | FC Dallas | 20pts |
| 3 | Seattle Sounders | 16pts |
Talking points
- The first New York derby went for the Red Bulls, who defeated City 2-1 with a brace by Wright-Phillips.
- Montreal Impact returned to MLS action, losing against Portland Timbers.
- Orlando City keeps struggling with finding victory in their games, now drawing with New England Revolution.
Liga MX
Results
| Atlas | 1-2 | América |
| Chivas | 2-3 | Morelia |
| León | 6-2 | Tijuana |
| Veracruz | 1-2 | Pachuca |
| Monterrey | 2-2 | Pumas UNAM |
| Santos | 2-2 | Puebla |
| Cruz Azul | 0-2 | Leones Negros |
| Toluca | 0-0 | Tigres |
| Querétaro | 1-0 | Chiapas |
Table
| 1 | Tigres | 29pts |
| 2 | América | 29pts |
| 3 | Veracruz | 28pts |
| 4 | Atlas | 28pts |
| 5 | Chivas | 26pts |
| 6 | Querétaro | 26pts |
| 7 | Pachuca | 25pts |
| 8 | Santos | 25pts |
Talking points
- Despite defeating Cruz Azul, Leones Negros were relegated due to Puebla not losing against Santos.
- Tijuana, Pumas and Tijuana were the biggest disappointments of this season by failing to qualify to the playoffs.
- Eight teams qualified to the playoffs to fight for the title. The quarterfinals games are: Tigres vs Santos, América vs Pachuca, Verazcruz vs Querétaro.
- The first leg of two of those games were played last night, with Pachuca defeating América 2-1 and Tigres and Santos settling a 1-1 draw.
What to look out for next week
- Premier League – Manchester United vs Arsenal is the big game of the week, a decisive match for the third spot.
- La Liga – Barcelona will play Atlético Madrid on Sunday and secure the title if they win.
- Bundesliga – Wolfsburg and Borussia Dortmund will face each other in a preview of the DFB Cup final.
- Serie A – Inter Milan will play champions Juventus on Saturday.
- MLS – Orlando City will face a huge test against LA Galaxy while they try to win their third game of the season.
- Liga MX – Quarterfinals will continue their way and by the end of Sunday we’ll know who will be the semifinalists.
