Category: Football

Liverpool confirmed on Monday that Feyenoord coach Arne Slot will be the new manager of the Premier League club, 24 hours after Jurgen Klopp’s emotional farewell at Anfield.

Liverpool said in a statement that the Dutchman, 45, would take up the position of head coach on June 1, subject to a work permit.

The club did not specify the length of his contract but it was widely reported in the British press that Slot had signed a three-year deal.

The new manager’s arrival was an open secret, with Liverpool reportedly agreeing a compensation deal worth up to £9.4 million ($12 million).

Slot confirmed Anfield was his next destination at his final pre-match press conference at the Eredivisie club on Friday.

Klopp, 56, announced January that the 2023/24 season would be his last at Anfield, and took charge of his final game on Sunday, a 2-0 win against Wolves.

In his farewell speech to the crowd, Jurgen Klopp urged fans to throw their full support behind his successor, leading them in a chant of “Arne Slot, na na na na na”.

“You welcome the new manager like you welcomed me,” he said. “You go all-in from the first day. And you keep believing and you push the team.”

Slot, linked with a move to Tottenham last year, became Feyenoord boss in 2021 after impressing in his first managerial role at AZ Alkmaar.

He led the Dutch giants to the inaugural Europa Conference League final at the end of his first season, which they narrowly lost 1-0 to Jose Mourinho’s Roma.

Arne Slot then delivered just a second league title in 24 years to De Kuip last season before penning a new three-year deal.

“You can see people are genuinely sorry you are leaving,” he said on Friday.

“You can say that with words, but when you see it in people’s faces, it affects me quite a lot.”

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Feyenoord have enjoyed a strong season, winning the Dutch Cup and coming second to an all-conquering PSV Eindhoven side in the league.

Under Slot, Feyenoord have delighted the fans at De Kuip with an attacking brand of football and Slot has won praise from Klopp himself.

“I like the way his team plays football. If he is the one, I like that he wants it,” Klopp said last month.

“It’s the best job in the world, best club in the world. Great job, great team, fantastic people. A really interesting job.”

Liverpool captain and fellow Dutchman Virgil van Dijk has hailed Slot’s attacking mindset, saying it would suit the philosophy at Anfield.

Speaking about the future under the new boss, Van Dijk said: “It is all about sticking together and giving him the chance of showing what he is capable of with the other guys who will come in.

“He probably knows already but everyone knows our expectations are always huge and it is about managing that in the right way and getting the maximum out of all of our players.”

Arne Slot has huge shoes to fill at Anfield after Jurgen Klopp restored Liverpool to the elite of English and European football during his nine-year reign.

Under his leadership, Liverpool won a sixth Champions League crown and a 19th league title, as well as a clutch of other silverware.

Initially, Bayer Leverkusen boss and former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso was the favourite to succeed Klopp at Anfield.

However, Alonso committed to staying at Leverkusen as he led them to a first-ever Bundesliga title.

Liverpool finished third in the Premier League, qualifying for next season’s Champions League, and won the League Cup in Klopp’s final season.

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Pep Guardiola cast doubt over his long-term future at Manchester City on Sunday after winning a historic fourth straight Premier League title, admitting it is difficult to find motivation after so much sustained success.

City’s 3-1 victory against West Ham sealed a sixth top-flight title in seven seasons under the Catalan, who has taken the club to extraordinary new levels since he arrived in 2016.

His tally is exceeded only by Alex Ferguson, who won 13 Premier League titles during his long reign at Manchester United.

In 2019 City became the first club to win the domestic treble of Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup in the same season and last year they emulated Manchester United’s class of 1999 in winning the treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, which they lifted for the first time.

Manchester City are now the first side in English top-flight history to win four titles in a row — surpassing the achievements of the great Liverpool and Manchester United teams from previous eras.

And next week they will attempt to become the first English side to win back-to-back domestic doubles when they take on United at Wembley in the FA Cup final.

Former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola, 53, has a contract at the Etihad until the end of next season but his future after that is unclear.

“The reality is I’m closer to leaving than to staying,” Guardiola told Sky Sports. “It’s eight years, will be nine.

“Right now my feeling is I want to stay next season. We talked with the club, we have time to talk next season because I have to see the players as well (to see) if they follow me, they follow us, for many reasons. I will stay and during the season we will talk when calm.”

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Asked at his post-match press conference whether he felt as though he had “completed English football” and what he felt was left to achieve, Guardiola shrugged his shoulders and said: “I had that feeling last season.

“When we won in Istanbul (in the Champions League final) I said, ‘It’s over, what am I doing here? It’s over, there’s nothing left’.

“But I have a contract, I’m here and still enjoying. Some of the moments I’m a bit tired but some of the moments I love, and after I said ‘OK, we are here’.

“We start winning games, playing good, different players, new players and I start to think about ‘No one has done four in a row, why don’t we try?’ And now I feel ‘It’s done, so what next?’ I don’t know right now.”

He added: “Next season, right now, I’m not able to know exactly what will be the motivation to do it because it’s difficult sometimes to find it when everything is done.”

Pep Guardiola said for now he was enjoying basking in the glow of another Premier League triumph.

“When I moved here if someone had said I would win six leagues in seven seasons I would say you’re insane — no way,” he said.

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Atalanta have a date with history and Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday when the Italians aim to become the first team to beat the new German champions this season and win their first-ever Europa League title.

Gian Piero Gasperini’s side have in the Dublin Europa League final another shot at winning a first trophy in 61 years after losing the Italian Cup final against Juventus last week.

The traditionally small club from Bergamo travel to Ireland in high spirits after securing a spot in next season’s revamped Champions League.

Star forwards Charles De Ketelaere and Gianluca Scamacca secured a 2-0 win at Lecce on Saturday which guaranteed Atalanta at least fifth spot in Serie A and led to a hero’s welcome from supporters after they returned from Italy’s extreme south.

Hundreds of fans waited under torrential rain for their team at the Zingonia training centre outside Bergamo, greeting them with flares, flags and fireworks, loudly expressing their appreciation at another brilliant season under Gasperini which may yet become the best in the club’s 117-year history.

“Qualifying for the Champions League is best we can achieve at Atalanta, it’s not like we can aim to win Serie A,” Gasperini told reporters on Saturday.

“We were a bit tired in the final with Juventus… between now and Wednesday we need to make sure that we’re the very best version our ourselves.”

Atalanta will be missing key midfielder Marten De Roon to a hamstring knock picked up during the Italian Cup final, an injury which Gasperini called the “real loss” of that evening.

Gasperini can, however, count on the brilliant form of Scamacca and De Ketelaere, who will start on Wednesday and potentially the return of defender Sead Kolasinac as the 66-year-old tries to win his first final in his eight-year reign in Bergamo after losing his previous three.

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Belgium forward De Ketelaere has been a revelation since being loaned to Atalanta from AC Milan with a 24 million euro option to buy last summer, scoring 14 goals and setting up eight more as he slotted perfectly into Gasperini’s attack-minded set-up.

“I don’t know if I’ll be in Bergamo next year. I just concentrate on my football and we’ll see what happens,” said De Ketelaere on Saturday.

“Gasperini’s style of play gives me confidence. I’m disappointed that I didn’t do at Milan what I’ve done with Atalanta, but I’ve had a great season here.”

A provincial club playing in the shadow of the Milanese giants down the road, Atalanta have reached new heights, reaching the Champions League four times, since Gasperini took over.

Atalanta have managed to overtake traditionally bigger clubs like Fiorentina and Lazio while maintaining close ties with their local community and are one of the few Serie A teams to own their stadium, whose reshaping into a modern arena should be complete for the start of next season.

And their run through the Europa League knockouts has taken them past Sporting Lisbon, Liverpool and Marseille, all more storied teams with vastly bigger fan bases and at least one European honour in their trophy cabinet.

Atalanta have already experienced their two greatest-ever nights against Liverpool and Marseille as their run to the 2020 Champions League quarter-finals came at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic which devastated Bergamo.

They might start as underdogs in Dublin against another giant-killer in Leverkusen but have almost nothing to lose after going further than anyone ever expected.

READ: Manchester City win historic fourth consecutive Premier League title

Manchester City created English football history on Sunday, beating West Ham 3-1 to win their fourth straight Premier League title and break Arsenal’s hearts as Jurgen Klopp made an emotional Liverpool exit.

Phil Foden scored two early goals — including one after 79 seconds — at an expectant Etihad to lay the foundations for City’s victory.

West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus pulled a goal back with a spectacular overhead kick to give Arsenal renewed hope but Rodri struck just before the hour mark to effectively wrap up the title.

The Gunners, without a Premier League trophy since 2004, came from a goal down to beat Everton 2-1 but had to content themselves with second place for a second straight season after they finished two points behind City’s tally of 91.

The champions’ relentless surge to the finishing line has included 19 wins and four draws since their last defeat in the league, at Aston Villa in early December.

City, who have now won six titles in seven seasons, stand alone as the only English team to have won four straight top-flight titles, eclipsing the achievements of the great Liverpool and Manchester United teams of the past.

“When I moved here, if someone had said I would win six leagues in seven seasons I would say ‘You’re insane — no way’,” said City manager Pep Guardiola.

“All these players for Manchester United and Liverpool and Chelsea, all these teams. Now is our period. We are part of that.”

But while City have set new standards in English football, they remain under a cloud as a result of 115 Premier League charges for alleged financial irregularities, levelled early last year.

Elsewhere on the final day of the Premier League season, Luton’s relegation was confirmed with a 4-2 loss at home to Fulham. They will join Burnley and Sheffield United in the Championship next season.

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Tottenham beat Sheffield United 3-0 to seal the fifth spot and a place in next season’s Europa League while Chelsea guaranteed a sixth-place finish and European football with a 2-1 win against Bournemouth.

Newcastle’s 4-2 win at Brentford condemned Manchester United to an eighth-place finish — their lowest since 1990.

Erik ten Hag’s men, who beat Brighton 2-0 in Roberto De Zerbi’s last game in charge of the south coast club, have a chance to salvage something from a disastrous season in next week’s FA Cup final against City. But if United lose they will miss out on European football.

Foden, 23, has enjoyed his most impressive season yet for City, taking his tally to 27 goals in all competitions on Sunday, together with 11 assists.

The England midfielder opened the scoring on Sunday in the second minute with a vicious left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, settling nerves among the home fans. He then stroked the ball into the net in the 18th minute after an assist from Jeremy Doku.

The title race briefly came alive again when Takehiro Tomiyasu side-footed home to level for Arsenal at the Emirates before Kudus pulled one back for West Ham.

The atmosphere became more subdued at the Etihad but the visitors rarely threatened again in David Moyes’s final game in charge for the visitors and Rodri’s goal in the 59th minute ultimately made the game safe.

Kai Havertz’s late winner for Arsenal proved irrelevant.

Arteta gave a rousing speech to the fans in the immediate aftermath of the match, urging them to crave more.

“All this is happening because you started believing, you started to be patient and started to understand what we tried to do,” he said.

“All the credit has to go to the players and the staff. Don’t be satisfied. We want much more than that and we’re going to get it.”

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Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday became the first team in Bundesliga history to go through an entire season unbeaten after a 2-1 home win against Augsburg extended their undefeated streak in all competitions to 51 games.

Crowned champions for the first time in April, goals from Victor Boniface and Robert Andrich put Leverkusen — who play the Europa League final against Atalanta and the German Cup final this week — on course for victory.

“Totally deserved. It was our goal after winning the title against Bremen. Very proud of the team – very satisfied and very happy,” said Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso. “We can enjoy it just a little bit – and recover tomorrow.”

Elsewhere on the final day of the league campaign, Cologne were relegated after a 4-1 loss at Heidenheim.

Union Berlin scored in stoppage time against Freiburg to win 2-1 and beat the drop, leapfrogging Bochum who will play a two-legged relegation play-off against second-division Fortuna Duesseldorf after losing 4-1 at Werder Bremen.

Leverkusen took the lead after 12 minutes when Amine Adli forced Augsburg goalkeeper Tomas Koubek into an error, winning possession before squaring for Boniface to tap in from close range.

Midfield star Andrich doubled Leverkusen’s lead, backheeling in a rebound after 27 minutes.

Augsburg teenager Mert Komor pulled one back on his first start for the visitors with a stunning strike on the 62nd-minute mark, but Leverkusen held on to win ahead of what could be a historic week.

At the other end of the table, Union — who were playing in the Champions League against the likes of Real Madrid as recently as December — were locked 1-1 at home to Freiburg in stoppage time and headed for a relegation playoff clash with Duesseldorf.

Union had been reduced to 10 men when Michael Gspurning was red-carded with four minutes remaining but won a penalty just into stoppage time.

Kevin Volland missed the spot-kick but Janik Haberer was there to turn in the rebound and save Berlin.

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Bochum, who looked to have secured top-division football with a 4-3 win at Union Berlin two weeks ago, will now need to beat Duesseldorf in a home and away playoff.

The loser will join relegated Cologne and Darmstadt in the second division.

Serhou Guirassy scored a brace as Stuttgart won 4-0 at home against Borussia Moenchengladbach, leapfrogging Bayern Munich, who lost 4-2 to a Andrej Kramaric-inspired Hoffenheim, into second spot.

Despite being without the injured Harry Kane, Bayern were 2-0 up after just six minutes thanks to goals from Mathys Tel and Alphonso Davies.

Maximilian Beier, selected as part of Germany’s Euros squad on Thursday, cut the deficit two minutes later, capitalising on an error by goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to make it 2-1.

Kramaric then scored three goals in 20 minutes to turn the match on its head.

Bayern finished outside the top two for the first time since 2010-11.

“We made a series of a large, individual mistakes and gave the game away. We brought the opponent into the game, defended absolutely inadequately and gave up a 2-0 lead,” outgoing manager Thomas Tuchel said. “This has happened to us far too often.”

Borussia Dortmund veteran Marco Reus signed off in impressive style in his last home match, scoring a goal and laying on another in a 4-0 win over Darmstadt.

In Dortmund’s last competitive outing before June’s Champions League final with Real Madrid at Wembley, Reus set up Ian Maatsen for the opener after 30 minutes, then added one of his own from a free kick eight minutes later.

Julian Brandt and Donyell Malen added second-half goals to seal the win.

Eintracht Frankfurt came from two goals down to draw 2-2 at home with RB Leipzig, while Mainz came from behind to win 3-1 at Wolfsburg.

READ: Manchester City eye Premier League history as Arsenal dare to dream

Manchester City stand on the brink of a historic fourth successive Premier League title, but Arsenal lie in wait hoping for a last-gasp slip from the leaders on Sunday.

Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering team go into the final day of the season with a two-point lead over second-placed Arsenal thanks to an eight-game winning streak.

City, who host West Ham knowing a win will seal the title, are hot favourites to set a new standard for dominance in English football.

Arsenal, at home to Everton in their final game, have been near flawless themselves in 2024, with 15 wins and one draw, away to Manchester City, in 17 league matches.

However, the Gunners’ costly 2-0 defeat against Aston Villa last month looks set to be decisive in a thrilling title race that also involved Liverpool until their recent stumbles.

Not for the first time, Manchester City have been at their relentless best in the intense heat of the run-in.

Guardiola’s men have dropped just six points since mid-December, in draws against Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.

As Manchester City close in on a sixth title in seven seasons under Guardiola, the competitiveness of the Premier League has been questioned.

But the Catalan coach has hit back at suggestions the Premier League has become boring and that City’s dominance is thanks purely to the financial muscle of their Abu Dhabi-based owners.

“It’s not boring, it’s difficult,” Guardiola said, adding that based on spending levels, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal should be matching City.

“They spent as much money in the last five years as us. They should be there. They are not there.”

David Moyes will take charge of West Ham for the final time at the Etihad Stadium.

And the Scot did not offer much encouragement to Arsenal fans when he claimed this week it would be difficult to stop Man City’s “under-14s winning the title” let alone the champions in full flow.

Arsenal, who finished second last year, must beat Everton and hope Manchester City fail to win if they are to end their 20-year wait for the title.

Mikel Arteta’s men have set a club record by winning 27 Premier League games this season, but that still might not be enough to dethrone City.

“We have to give ourselves the opportunity to live a beautiful day on Sunday, where the dream is still alive and is possible,” Arteta said.

“It’s football and once we are there we just have to live the moment.”

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There will be an emotional farewell for Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp at the end of his memorable nine-year reign, but the Reds will finish third regardless of their result against Wolves at Anfield.

“I spoke before about how hard it will be to say goodbye,” Klopp said.

“I love absolutely everything about this place, I do. I take memories with me, fantastic memories, I take relationships with me forever.”

Manchester United are at risk of missing out on European football altogether after a miserable season.

Erik ten Hag’s men sit eighth and must better Newcastle’s result at Brentford when they visit Brighton to avoid finishing outside the top seven for the first time since 1990.

Tottenham visit relegated Sheffield United knowing a point is enough to guarantee fifth spot, while in-form Chelsea would secure a top-six finish with a draw against Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge.

The top six teams will all definitely qualify for Europe, while seventh could be enough as long as Manchester United do not shock City in next week’s FA Cup final.

At the bottom, Luton will be relegated if they fail to beat Fulham or if Nottingham Forest avoid defeat at Burnley.

Even if Luton win and Forest lose, the Hatters’ vastly inferior goal difference means they need a mathematical miracle to survive.

READ: Barcelona coach Xavi set to be sacked: reports

Barcelona are poised to sack coach Xavi Hernandez just weeks after he made a U-turn and decided to stay at the club, Spanish media reported Friday.

Catalan radio station RAC-1 said president Joan Laporta had decided to sack Xavi, with daily newspaper Sport confirming the news, while AS said Barcelona were already deciding who would replace the coach.

In January, Xavi said he would leave at the end of the season but, after a run of strong form, in April he and president Joan Laporta agreed the coach would stay for the next campaign, with his contract expiring in June 2025.

However, Laporta did not travel with the team for their 2-0 win at Almeria in La Liga on Thursday, with Spanish media reporting he was angry with Xavi’s pre-match comments.

The coach had highlighted Barcelona’s financial difficulties in comparison to the strength of new Spanish champions Real Madrid and other European giants.

“Barcelona fans have to understand, we’re not in the same situation (as those clubs),” said Xavi on Wednesday.

The coach stood by his words on Thursday when he was asked about Laporta not attending the Almeria match.

“They haven’t told me anything personally… We travelled with the sporting vice-president, more directors, all normally,” Xavi told reporters late Thursday.

“I said what I think is real, that we will fight for all the trophies, with a lot of hope, with ambition, but that the situation is not easy.

“We are working very well, the club most of all, to change this situation.”

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Barcelona won La Liga last season but were not able to defend the title. They went out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and will end the season trophyless.

Real Madrid thrashed Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final while Athletic Bilbao eliminated them in the Copa del Rey.

In April, Xavi, 44, said he was “full of hope” and that fans, players and “above all the confidence of the president and (sporting director) Deco” was what convinced him to stay.

Laporta said at the time that he was glad Xavi would remain at the helm and that it was good for the stability of the club.

“It’s great news that Xavi is staying,” the president told a news conference. “The team we have, that is (still) consolidating, with very young players, needs that stability.

“Xavi is a reference for young players and we can see that — today I’m especially pleased, and the board have unanimously supported this decision.”

Laporta appointed Xavi, one of Barcelona’s greatest-ever midfielders, to replace Ronald Koeman in November 2021.

As a player, Xavi made 767 appearances for Barcelona, winning four Champions Leagues and eight La Liga titles, as well as the World Cup with Spain.

During his time as Barcelona coach, he lifted the Spanish Super Cup last season, along with the league title.

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The Women’s World Cup will take place in South America for the first time after Brazil was chosen to host the 2027 edition at a FIFA congress on Friday.

After the success of Australia and New Zealand in 2023, which earned a record $570 million in commercial revenue, FIFA chose to continue its push to expand women’s football to new continents.

Delegates meeting in Bangkok voted 119 votes to 78 to send the 10th Women’s World Cup to the land of samba football, which beat a joint bid from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. The decision sparked jubilant celebrations from the Brazilian bid team.

Brazil, home of women’s football great Marta, scored higher than its European rival in FIFA’s evaluation report.

The FIFA inspectors noted the “tremendous impact on women’s football in the region” that South America hosting the Women’s World Cup would have.

Brazil’s bid includes 10 stadiums used for the men’s World Cup in 2014, with Rio de Janeiro’s famous Maracana lined up for the opening match and final.

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But work needs to be done, in particular to the Amazonia stadium in Manaus which has stood almost unused for a decade.

The Brazilian Football Confederation has also been in turmoil with legal challenges to its president.

Unlike their male counterparts, who have won five World Cups, Brazil’s women have never lifted the trophy and made a group-stage exit in 2023.

Last year’s tournament defied fears that increasing the size from 24 to 32 teams would dilute the spectacle, with over 1.4 million fans streaming through the turnstiles to witness a host of shocks, dramatic turnarounds and breakthrough results.

Gone were the lopsided scorelines that were a feature of the previous eight World Cups, reflecting a growth in the standard of women’s football.

Seven teams notched their first World Cup wins and the United States and Germany, who between them had won six of the previous eight tournaments, were both dumped out early.

READ: Fermin Lopez’s brace powers Barcelona to win over Almeria

ALMERIA: Midfielder Fermin Lopez struck twice to power Barcelona to a solid 2-0 victory over bottom-ranked Almeria during the ongoing La Liga 2023-24 at Power Horse Stadium on Thursday.

Almeria, who only managed two victories in the current season and are already relegated, challenged the second-positioned Barcelona. However, the Catalans proved too strong for the home side.

Barcelona are now four points ahead of the third-ranked Girona.

Watch La Liga 2023/24 Live on ARY ZAP

Lopez opened the scoring for the visitors in the 14th minute with a brilliant header from a very close range. This was 6th La Liga goal for the midfielder this season.

Almeria’s Leo Baptistao had an opportunity to equalize eight minutes later when he found Anthony Lozano, but he missed a wide shot, squandering their chance for a comeback.

Lopez then doubled Barcelona’s lead after 67 minutes after meeting Sergi Roberto’s cross at the centre of the box and hitting home safely.

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“I’m happy to help the team with goals but above all for the win,” Fermin Lopez told Movistar after the game. “We will fight for second until the end, it’s our objective now.”

Later, in another La Liga match at Reale Arena, Real Sociedad edged past Valencia, courtesy of a third-minute header by André Silva.

With the victory Real Sociedad jumped into sixth place, a point ahead of Betis, seventh, with the sides meeting in Seville on Sunday in a crunch clash.

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Champions Bayer Leverkusen chase “immortality” in the shape of an undefeated Bundesliga season on Saturday as relegation-threatened Union Berlin face a last-day battle for survival.

Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen can become the first team in Bundesliga history to go through a campaign unbeaten by avoiding defeat against Augsburg. Not even the greatest Bayern Munich sides have managed an invincible season.

That Alonso’s men have done it without losing in any competition — a European record 50-game streak which includes runs to next week’s German Cup and Europa League finals — shows how incredible they have been.

A win against Augsburg would net Leverkusen 90 points from 34 games — the equal second-highest tally in German football history.

Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick said the match was “like a final”, while captain Lukas Hradecky said his team had “immortality” in sight.

Regardless of the result, Leverkusen will hoist the Bundesliga shield on Saturday and Hradecky said he would “be careful” not to hold it upside down, like Stuttgart captain Fernando Meira did in 2007.

In the German capital, Union — who faced Real Madrid in the Champions League in December — need to beat Freiburg and hope for other results to go their way in order to avoid relegation.

Berlin Union won at home on the final day last season to finish fourth and qualify for Champions League football, continuing the team’s rise after their debut promotion in 2019.

Remarkably, Union sat atop the Bundesliga standings after two games this season but then fell to rock bottom after a run of nine straight losses.

In the 16th spot, Union need a point to avoid falling through the trap door.

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Even then, staying in 16th will still mean a two-legged playoff against Fortuna Duesseldorf, who finished third in the second division.

Duesseldorf boast a 52,000-seat stadium and are in incredible form, having not lost in the league since early February.

For Union, even a win will not guarantee safety. Union will only be safe if one of Mainz, who play at Wolfsburg, or Bochum, who travel to Werder Bremen, lose.

Freiburg coach Christian Streich, who signs off from a 14-year tenure at the club against Union on Saturday, said his side were “going to play to win”.

“For Union, it’s about staying in the league. They will certainly do everything they can to stay in it, and we will do everything we can to have a nice finish.”

Champions League finalists Borussia Dortmund host last-placed Darmstadt in Marco Reus’ final game at the Westfalenstadion.

Bayern Munich will guarantee a second spot with probably just a draw against Hoffenheim while Harry Kane requires six goals to beat Robert Lewandowski’s single-season record of 41.

Union Berlin captain Christopher Trimmel extended his deal with the relegation-threatened club by one year until 2025 on Thursday, promising “the story isn’t over yet.”

Trimmel joined Union in 2014 and is the only player remaining from the club’s first-ever promotion, back in 2019.

The Austria defender has tasted the highest of highs with Union, saying “together we have achieved more than I ever imagined. Union fans, I’m staying.”

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