With just three games left this Bundesliga season, Schalke are the only team with their position confirmed, having already been relegated. As such, there is still much to play for in the final matchdays, with the battle for European football next season still being hotly contested.
Matchday 32 kicks off with two blockbuster fixtures on Saturday. League leaders FC Bayern Munich play host to Borussia Monchengladbach, acutely aware that three points will clinch their 30th Bundesliga title, and ninth consecutive league triumph.
That unprecedented success could already be secured by the time that the defending champions take to the field against the Foals on Saturday evening, with RB Leipzig needing nothing short of three points against Borussia Dortmund earlier in the day to keep the title race alive.
A seven-point gap separates the top two with three games to play, but a defeat in their trip to the Signal Iduna Park will put the title beyond RB Leipzig’s reach.
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While Bayern are closing in on their moment of history, Robert Lewandowski is still hunting for what would be his greatest Bundesliga success to date. Bayern’s star man is just four goals shy of tying Gerd Muller’s record of 40 strikes in a single top-flight campaign, with five needed to clinch the record for himself. With three games to play, the Pole will be hoping to cement his name in the history books.
The weekend’s action all kicks off on Friday [tonight] when VfB Stuttgart host FC Augsburg. The home side are still have a slim chance of European qualification in their first season back in the big time, while the away side will be looking to make sure they secure their Bundesliga status for another year.
There are three more games on Saturday afternoon alongside the action in Dortmund as TSG 1899 Hoffenheim host already relegated FC Schalke 04, while SV Werder Bremen meet Bayer 04 Leverkusen – both sides having plenty to play for at either end of the table.
The other fixture sees European chasing VfL Wolfsburg and 1.FC Union Berlin face off at the Volkswagen Arena. The Wolves remain on course for a return to the UEFA Champions League, with a two-point advantage over BVB. Union, meanwhile, are just four points off sixth and could end their second season in the top-flight with a spot in the Europa League. A dream conclusion, to an excellent season.
Sunday sees a triple header of fixtures, with huge implications at both ends of the table. First up, it’s 1.FC Köln hosting SC Freiburg with the hosts stuck in the middle of the relegation battle, alongside three other sides that all see action on Sunday.
Eintracht Frankfurt welcome 1.FSV Mainz 05 next in the Rhine-Main derby. The Eagles, like Wolfsburg, are also on the verge of a historic qualification for the Champions League but have Dortmund breathing down their necks. Mainz are the Bundesliga’s in-form team and facing them away at this late stage will be no easy task.
The weekend’s play is rounded off with Hertha BSC Berlin hosting DSC Arminia Bielefeld. The capital club boosted their chances of survival with a big win over Freiburg on Thursday, meaning there is just one point separating teams in 17th and 14th heading into the weekend.
