What Football Should I Watch This Weekend?

Liverpool have won it. The three teams that came up have gone straight back down. Even the fight for the Champions League places seems like a somewhat foregone conclusion.

The Premier League is more or less tied up, but that doesn’t mean there’s a shortage of football to watch for the rest of this season.

Barcelona vs Real Madrid (11th May)

Hardly a niche pick, but when a potentially title-deciding El Clasico is a couple of weeks away, it’s certainly worth talking about.

Hansi Flick has three wins in three encounters with Real Madrid this season – including their theatrical victory in the Copa del Ray final over the weekend.

This game alone embodied everything great about El Clasico. It was so clearly an amalgamation of some of the world’s best: every goal came from a moment of quality.

Pedri’s perfectly struck opener set the tone for Jules Kounde’s extra-time winner. Vinicius Jr. failed to convert from six efforts at goal, and Kylian Mbappe couldn’t save his side from the subs bench.

It was a game that ebbed and flowed beautifully – 1-0, 1-2, 2-2, 3-2.

Add into the mix that Barcelona have just a four-point gap over Carlo Ancelotti’s side at the moment, and with Los Blancos experiencing their most difficult season in a few years, both stakes and tensions will be high in Barcelona during the second week of May.

Frankfurt vs Freiburg (17th May)

The Bundesliga title-race is like the Premier League’s: a non-entity. But their Champions League battle is extremely close.

As it stands, Frankfurt are comfortable on 55 points in third place, Freiburg have 51 in fourth, with RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund hot on their heels on 49 and 48 points respectively.

The interesting part though, is that third play fourth on the final day – which has a high chance of opening the door for one of Leipzig or Dortmund to sneak into the Champions League places.

All four teams have similarly difficult finishes: playing a mix of top sides and ones they’d be favourite to beat. The only meeting between the four comes on the final day.

Frankfurt, despite enduring a wobble in form, will go into the game as favourites. Hugo Ekitike is one of Europe’s most promising strikers, and with next season’s Champions League potentially on the line, would be expected to turn up for the occasion.

But Freiburg are by no means a small threat. Despite not featuring in Europe’s premier competition this century, they have won three games in a row and have hit form at the right time.

Julian Schuster has implemented a tactically-dynamic system at Freiburg, with his side looking to utilise short-passes and cut-backs to create high-quality chances. They employ a 4-4-2 midblock out of possession – not dissimilar to how Arsenal set up when their press is beaten.

The fact remains though, that both these teams are still in the driving seat to finish top four. The impetus will be on Dortmund and Leipzig to win their games from now until the last day, to give themselves a fighting chance based on the outcome of this game.

Inter vs Lazio (18th May)

Serie A boasts, beyond doubt, Europe’s most interesting title race. Despite Napoli pulling three points clear due to Inter's 1-0 defeat to Roma, the title looks bound to go to the last day.

Both sides have some potentially tricky encounters in the weeks that remain, but Antonio Conte’s blues certainly have an easier run in than the Nerazzurri.

It is either Napoli’s visit to relegation-battling Lecce or final-day hosting of barely-surviving Cagliari that carry the most jeopardy, with these games carrying real weight in the at both ends of the table. Their other fixtures are against mid-table teams with very little to play for in the weeks that remain.

Cagliari could be in need of a result to stay up on the final day, and Lecce’s terrible recent run of form could see them dragged into the bottom three if they don’t get a result against the current second-placed team.

Inter visit Cesc Fabregas’ exciting Como outfit on the final day but host Champions League-chasing Lazio a week prior.

Despite being eliminated from the Europa League by Bodo/Glimt, Lazio will pose a threat to Simone Inzaghi’s men.

They dismantled title-hopefuls Atalanta at the start of the month, and with the advantage of being able to focus on the league until the end of the season (whereas Inter may have a Champions League final on the horizon), Marco Baroni’s side will be well-rested and entirely focused on finishing in Italy’s top four.

That said, Inter will no doubt go into this game as favourites. Lazio are renowned for firing hot or cold in big games, and Inzaghi’s players have been coached meticulously to be one of the hardest teams to beat in the world.

Their 3-5-2 is so brilliantly fluid, with the team’s roles being so meticulously drilled into each player. Their midfielders and centre-backs constantly rotate in build-up to allow deep-lying playmakers Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolo Barella the space to utilise their passing range.

Any Inter game is worth watching purely for the tactical intrigue they bring. When the Scudetto is on the line, it becomes a must-watch.