23/05/2026

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Four clubs face high-stakes Italian final-day battle

WITH Inter Milan already crowned Serie A champions and Napoli securing a Champions League place, attention now shifts to a dra matic final-round battle for the remaining two spots in Europe’s elite competition. AC Milan and AS Roma occupy third and fourth place respectively on 70 points, but both remain under pressure from surprise package Como 1907 and giants Juventus, who sit just two points behind. Milan appear to have the easier

Five talking points ahead of La Liga

rivals Torino in the Derby della Mole to stay alive in the race. At the bottom, Lecce and Cremonese are locked in a survival battle to avoid joining Verona and Pisa in Serie B. Lecce hold a one point edge, while Cremonese will rely on veteran striker Jamie Vardy, who has scored in consecutive matches during their late survival push. – AFP

Roma, meanwhile, arrive in strong form, unbeaten in six matches and winners of their last four ahead of their clash with already relegated Hellas Verona. Fifth-placed Como, coached by Cesc Fàbregas, must beat relega tion-threatened Cremonese and hope either Milan or Roma slip up. Juventus also remain in conten tion but need victory over local

task at home against 16th-placed Cagliari Calcio, although inconsis tent form – only two wins in their last seven matches – has left their Champions League hopes hanging in the balance. Manager Massimiliano Allegri has stressed that qualification remains the club’s top priority, with failure likely to intensify scrutiny on his future.

season finale Bernabeu departures

Last week Antoine Griezmann, Robert Lewandowski and others bid farewell to Atletico Madrid and Barcelona fans respectively. It will be Dani Carvajal’s turn to bow out tomorrow at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Spain international has won 27 trophies with Los Blancos since rejoining the club from Bayer Leverkusen in 2013, including six Champions Leagues and four La Liga titles. Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa is also expected to be taking charge of his final game, with Jose Mourinho expected to be announced as his replacement next week. In the other Bernabeu dugout, Ernesto Valverde will manage his final game in charge of Athletic Bilbao. Keep an eye out too, for how Real Madrid fans treat striker Kylian Mbappe. Relegation fear Girona, who qualified for the Champions League in 2024 are 18th and face Elche, 17th, knowing the loser will be relegated. Mallorca, 19th, are in grave danger and need to beat already-down Real Oviedo and for other results to go their way to survive. Osasuna and Levante are the other two teams who are still not safe yet. The Pamplona side have a tricky clash with Getafe, who are chasing European football, while in-form Levante, who have suffered just one defeat in their last seven matches, travel to face Real Betis. Final euro spots Celta Vigo, sixth, are guaranteed European football but it has not yet been decided if they will play in the Europa League or the Conference League. Win or draw and they will reach the former, but if they lose against Sevilla, Getafe can claim that spot with a win against Osasuna. This season’s Conference League finalists Rayo, and Valencia, are also still in with a reasonable chance of reaching that competition if results go their way. World Cup concerns Players head into the last round of games with differing concerns ahead of this summer’s World Cup. Many will be hoping to avoid the fate of Barcelona’s Fermin Lopez, injured last weekend and out of the tournament this summer with a foot fracture. Brazil winger Vinicius Junior did not train with Real Madrid yesterday and could miss the clash against Athletic Bilbao. Battle for third The only match not taking place on Sunday’s battle for third-place, between Villarreal and Atletico Madrid. They are level on points going into the final match. Villarreal must win to come third, while a draw would give Atletico that position on head-to-head after they beat the Yellow Submarine in September. If Marcelino Garcia Toral’s side can finish above Atletico, it will mark their highest placement for 13 years. The Spanish coach is also set to depart at the end of the season despite his team’s strong domestic campaign. AFP

Maguire frozen out England boss Tuchel shakes up squad with major omissions ahead of World Cup

A “SHOCKED” Harry Maguire (pic) has been omitted from Thomas Tuchel’s England World Cup squad and British media reported that attacking mid fielders Phil Foden and Cole Palmer have also been left out. Manchester United central defender Maguire has won 66 interna tional caps and been a mainstay of England’s back line at recent tourna ments, but has barely featured since missing out on the last European Championship due to injury. Maguire announced the news in an emotional Instagram post yester day. “I was confident I could have played a major part this summer for my country after the season I’ve had. I’ve been left shocked and gutted by the decision,” the 33-year-old wrote. “I’ve loved nothing more than put ting that shirt on and representing my country over the years. I wish the play ers all the best this summer.” Maguire was considered a shoo-in by many after a resurgent season at United as a key part of his team climbing to third

in the Premier League and clinching a return to the Champions League. His Manchester United teammate Luke Shaw has also been left out of the England squad, according to reports. Foden and Palmer, like Maguire, were called up by Tuchel for the March friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, in which an experimental England side failed to impress. After the 1-0 loss to Japan, Tuchel said Foden could not be sure of going to the World Cup having struggled for game time at Manchester City. Foden has started one Premier League game since while Palmer has failed to replicate the prolific scoring form he showed last season at Chelsea. Ivan Toney has been named in the squad, the reports said, after the 30 year-old former Brentford striker net ted 32 goals in 32 Saudi Pro League games for Al-Ahli this season. Tuchel reportedly made calls yes terday to players who did not make the cut for the tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico, where England face Croatia, Ghana and Panama in Group L. – Reuters

Reds secretly line up Slot’s replacement

Boro to face Hull after ‘spygate’ row

MIDDLE SBR OUGH and Hull will meet in the richest game in world football at Wembley today (10.30pm Malaysian time), competing for a place in the Premier League in a match over shadowed by Southampton’s “spygate” saga. Saints were expelled from the Championship playoffs this week after admitting to spying on opponents’ training ses sions, with beaten semifinalists Middlesbrough reinstated. Boro boss Kim Hellberg said in his pre-match press confer ence yesterday that the spying scandal had taken its toll. Hull manager Sergej Jakirovic told the BBC his team had been “collateral damage” in the drama. He told reporters that Southampton had “crossed a line” but questioned what value they could have got from doing it. Jakirovic has been waiting to find out who his team’s opponents would be due to legal hearings. “When you (the media) told me about ‘spygate’ after the first leg (of the semifinal against Millwall), I started to laugh, because why (would you do it)? “I know everything about every team, and this is my first season here, I know every player – but this is my job.” Football finance experts Deloitte said the team that makes it to the Premier League, alongside already promoted Coventry and Ipswich, stands to earn at least £205 million (RM1.1 billion) over the next three seasons. That could rise to around £365 million (RM1.9b) if the club survives their first season in the Premier League. – AFP

LIVE R POOL have reportedly sounded out Andoni Iraola as a potential Arne Slot replacement, should the Merseysiders pull the plug. The Dutchman guided Liverpool to the Premier League title last season, but heading into the final week end of the campaign, the Reds still haven’t secured a Champions League berth. It was reported earlier in the season that Slot’s job would be safe if Liverpool secured Champions League football, but while very unlikely, there is a chance the 2024/25 champions could miss out on the final day. As such, fresh reports have emerged linking the six-time European Cup winners with a move for the man of the moment: Iraola. That’s because Liverpool’s sporting director, Richard Hughes, was the man who originally brought Iraola to the Premier League during his previous role with Bournemouth. Hughes moved on to join Liverpool, with suggestions the two could be set for a reunion sooner

rather than later. That’s only if Slot is let go by the Liverpool hierarchy, with some rumours suggesting there might’ve been a U-turn from the board. It was claimed yesterday that the ex-Feyenoord manager won’t lead Liverpool into the summer, and the bigwigs will sanction his sack. However, that has been contested by The Athletic , who report the plan is to still push forward with Slot into next season. But that doesn’t mean the pressure isn’t building internally, not least because Liverpool could still drop out of the Champions League spots. When quizzed on his future last week, Slot said: “I don’t think I am deciding that myself alone. I have every reason to believe that I am the Liverpool manager next season. “Plans have been made and talks have been ongoing between the club and new players, and I am involved in that, if that is what you want to know.” – Express Newspapers