A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Saturday:
ENGLAND
Tottenham was starting to look like a serious title challenger when Jose Mourinho's side beat Manchester City 2-0 in November but the fortunes of both clubs have turned dramatically since then. While City has not lost again, and head into Saturday’s reverse fixture as leader looking to extend its 15-game winning run in all competitions, Tottenham has slipped to eighth place. A three-game losing sequence was broken only by last week’s victory over struggling West Bromwich Albion. Liverpool’s hopes of defending its title look faint after losing to City 4-1 on Sunday to fall 10 points behind. The champion has endured a wretched spell with just two wins in its last nine league matches. Liverpool on Saturday plays Leicester, which is a place and three points ahead. Aston Villa, which survived relegation last season only on the final day, heads to Brighton ninth in the standings. Winning both games in hand over Chelsea and Liverpool could see Dean Smith’s side climb above both clubs and up to fourth. Crystal Palace plays relegation-threatened Burnley looking to climb into the top half of the standings.
SPAIN
Lionel Messi is one game away from matching Barcelona’s club record of most Spanish league appearances held by former midfield great Xavi Hernández. Xavi’s milestone stands at 505 appearances. Messi has made 504 and is expected to play when Alavés visits Camp Nou. Atlético Madrid visits Granada aiming to start another winning streak and strengthen its lead of the league. Atlético will aim to bounce back from drawing Celta Vigo 2-2 that ended an eight-round winning run. Atlético leads second-placed Real Madrid by five points and has two more games to play than the defending champion. Sevilla hosts Huesca seeking a ninth consecutive win overall after it beat Barcelona 2-0 midweek in the opening leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal. Also, Eibar welcomes Valladolid with both in danger of relegation.
ITALY
Serie A leader AC Milan will be hoping to take advantage of a tough weekend for its title rivals when it visits relegation-threatened Spezia. Milan has a two-point advantage over second-placed Inter Milan, which hosts fifth-placed Lazio on Sunday. Nine-time defending champion Juventus goes to Napoli on Saturday. The Bianconeri beat Napoli 2-0 in the Italian Super Cup last month. It will be Spezia’s first match under American ownership after it was bought by the Platek family on Thursday. Spezia is six points above the bottom three. Torino is only one point above the relegation zone and it hosts Genoa, which is moving away from danger under Davide Ballardini.
GERMANY
One win from Borussia Dortmund's last five Bundesliga games leaves the team and interim coach Edin Terzic under heavy pressure ahead of the home game against Hoffenheim. Dortmund is sixth and a win would help to close the gap to the Champions League places and give some energy to a team which was flagging before it fired coach Lucien Favre in December and appointed Terzic. Missing out on the Champions League could force Dortmund to sell more of its promising young players at the end of the season. Bayer Leverkusen is fifth ahead of hosting relegation-threatened Mainz. If last-placed Schalke is to mount an unlikely escape from the relegation zone, it could do with beating Union Berlin. Hertha Berlin visits Stuttgart as it looks for a first win since reappointing coach Pal Dardai. Werder Bremen plays Freiburg.
FRANCE
Paris Saint-Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino is in a difficult position heading into the home game against 13th-placed Nice. With defending champion PSG only third in the league, he can ill afford to rest key players but also has a Champions League game in Barcelona on Tuesday. Neymar is out injured for the next four weeks and midfielder Marco Verratti is recovering from a bruised hip, but goalkeeper Keylor Navas has recovered from an adductor injury and could start. Lyon looks for a sixth straight win and will go to the top provisionally by beating visiting Montpellier, and sixth-placed Lens travels to struggling Reims in the day's other game.
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Saturday:
GERMANY
Bayern Munich can seal a record 10th consecutive Bundesliga title in style with three games remaining with a victory at home over second-placed Borussia Dortmund. Bayern is hoping to continue its strong record against Dortmund after winning their last seven encounters. In Europe’s top five leagues, Bayern is tied for the record of nine consecutive titles with Juventus, which won Serie A every season from 2012 to 2020. For Dortmund, Erling Haaland ended a goal drought by scoring twice against Wolfsburg last week amid speculation over his future. Elsewhere, Leipzig hosts Union Berlin for the second time this week after winning their German Cup semifinal, and Champions League-chasing Freiburg hosts Borussia Mönchengladbach. Bayer Leverkusen visits last-placed Greuther Fürth, Eintracht Frankfurt takes on Hoffenheim, and Cologne plays Arminia Bielefeld.
PSG's Kylian Mbappe, center right, celebrates his goal with teammates during the League One soccer match between Angers and Paris Saint Germain, at the Raymond-Kopa stadium in Angers, western France, Wednesday, April 20, 2022. (AP PhotoJeremias Gonzalez)
FRANCE
Paris Saint-Germain is just one point away from sealing a record-equaling 10th league title. With five matches left to play this season, Mauricio Pochettino’s players have the opportunity to wrap up their dominant campaign in front of their home fans against Lens at the Parc des Princes. PSG has a 15-point lead over Marseille and can be crowned even if it loses against Lens on the condition that Marseille does not beat Reims on Sunday. PSG is set to move level with Saint-Etienne, which won its 10th title in 1981 and is fighting to stay up this season. Only two of PSG's previous titles — in 1986 and 1994 — were conquered before Qatar Sports Investments took over PSG in 2011 with the aim of turning it into a world-class club. Also, Saint-Etienne hosts in-form Monaco and Montpellier travels to Lyon.
ENGLAND
Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola gestures during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Brighton and Hove Albion at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England, Wednesday, April 20, 2022. (AP PhotoDave Thompson)
Manchester City can move four points clear of second-placed Liverpool in the back-and-forth Premier League title race with a home win over relegation-threatened Watford. A victory for City would put pressure on Liverpool ahead of its Merseyside derby against Everton on Sunday. More intrigue this weekend might lie in the race for Champions League qualification, with two candidates meeting at Emirates Stadium when fifth-placed Arsenal hosts sixth-placed Manchester United. Arsenal is tied on points with fourth-placed Tottenham, with United three points back. Tottenham visits Brentford in a match between Christian Eriksen's past and present clubs. Last-placed Norwich is eight points from safety heading into a home match against Newcastle, and Leicester hosts Aston Villa in the other game.
SPAIN
Real Betis and Valencia play the final of Spain’s Copa del Rey in Betis’ hometown of Seville. The match will be at Estadio La Cartuja, a neutral ground where Spain’s national team played its group phase matches for last year’s European Championship. Valencia will be seeking its ninth Copa del Rey after winning No. 8 in 2019. Betis’ second and last cup title came back in 2005. The winner will also earn a Europa League berth.
ITALY
Inter Milan forward Edin Džeko could bring up a century of Serie A goals by scoring twice against his former club as the defending champion hosts Roma. Džeko has a total of 98 goals in the Italian league — 13 for Inter this season and the rest in five years at Roma. A win would send Inter to the top of Serie A, with current leader AC Milan playing at Lazio on Sunday. Inter will also be buoyed after beating Milan 3-0 midweek to reach the Italian Cup final. A win could reignite Roma’s challenge for a Champions League berth. Atalanta has seen its hopes of a top-four finish evaporate following a run of three straight defeats and it visits relegation-threatened Venezia. Two other sides battling the drop, Sampdoria and Spezia, travel to Hellas Verona and Torino respectively.
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
