Visitors Borussia Monchengladbach must beat newly-crowned Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich on Saturday at Allianz Arena to keep their European hopes alive.
The Bavarians were held to a 3-3 stalemate by RB Leipzig on May 3, but their points tally of 76 is eight more than second-placed Bayer Leverkusen with two games remaining, whereas the away side are ninth with 45 points and are five points and three places from the division's European spots.
Match preview
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Bayern trailed 2-0 against RB Leipzig by 39th minute but went 3-2 ahead when Leroy Sane netted in the 83rd minute, though his team were made to wait for the title when Yussuf Poulsen scored Leipzig's third in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time.
Vincent Kompany's side claimed their crown when Bayer Leverkusen drew with Freiburg on May 4, with their triumph their 12th title in 13 seasons.
However, having drawn three and lost one of their past eight in the league, the champions were perhaps fortunate that Leverkusen were unable to capitalise on their mixed showings.
The Bavarians conceded 12 goals in that period, but they scored 21 times in those matches and have kept two clean sheets in their past three.
Kompany's team narrowly beat Borussia Monchengladbach 1-0 on January 11 in the Bundesliga, and they have won their last three encounters with the visitors by a cumulative score of 6-2.
The hosts' performances at home in recent weeks have been subpar considering they have been defeated in two and held to a stalemate in one of their past five at Allianz Arena.
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Visitors Borussia Monchengladbach played out an entertaining 4-4 draw with Hoffenheim on May 3, a game in which they led 2-0 and 3-2 but ultimately needed Tim Kleindienst to score a 91st-minute equaliser to avoid defeat.
Their draw with Hoffenheim was the second consecutive match that they conceded four goals in, and they have in fact had to pick the ball out of the net 14 times in their five most recent outings.
Die Fohlen are five points from the division's Conference League spot occupied by sixth-placed RB Leipzig, but even if they fail to qualify for Europe this term boss Gerardo Seoane should be praised for his time at the club given they already have 11 points more than they totalled in 2023-24.
While Seoane can be proud of his work, his side are winless in five games and were beaten three times in that period.
Borussia Monchengladbach have also failed to achieve victory in their last three on the road – losing twice – though they did triumph in their prior four away from home.
Team News
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Bayern will be thankful they have wrapped up the title given they will be missing a number of stars, including defenders Alphonso Davies, Dayot Upamecano, Hiroki Ito and Kim Min-Jae.
In light of the crisis in the backline, the champions may field a back four consisting of Sacha Boey, Eric Dier, Josip Stanisic and Konrad Laimer behind midfielders Joshua Kimmich and Aleksandar Pavlovic.
Though the Bavarians will be without the creativity of attacker Jamal Musiala due to a hamstring injury, they could still utilise a forward line featuring Michael Olise, Thomas Muller, Sane and Harry Kane.
Meanwhile, Borussia Monchengladbach are also dealing with injury issues of their own and will be unable to select goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas or defender Marvin Friedrich.
Shot-stopper Jonas Omlin may be protected by a defence consisting of Joseph Scally, Ko Itakura, Nico Elvedi and Lukas Ullrich.
Considering forwards Alassane Plea and Nathan N'Goumou have been ruled out, perhaps striker Kleindienst will play ahead of forwards Franck Honorat, Kevin Stoger and Robin Hack.
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Neuer; Boey, Dier, Stanisic, Laimer; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Olise, Muller, Sane; Kane
Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:
Omlin; Scally, Itakura, Elvedi, Ullrich; Reitz, Weigl; Honorat, Stoger, Hack; Kleindienst
We say: Bayern Munich 3-2 Borussia Monchengladbach
Bayern may be able to play with a significant degree of freedom given they have already won the title, and Kane could find his way onto the scoresheet.
While there will undoubtedly be opportunities in attack for Borussia Monchengladbach considering Bayern will field a depleted backline, the visitors have struggled in the closing stages of the season, and it would be surprising if they avoided defeat.
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Lewis Nolan
