THE SOCCER REPORT
Juventus, PSG clinch league titles; MLS announces expansion to 30 teams
Apr 23, 2019, 8:45 am
THE SOCCER REPORT
Every week brings us closer to the climax of leagues around the world as we also make our way to a summer full of interesting international story lines. Scroll down to catch up on the week in soccer with a watch list of important matches awaiting you at the end.
Top stories:
Juventus, Manchester City, Manchester United and Porto were the latest casualties after failing to advance to the Champions League semifinals. Cristiano Ronaldo's Juve were taken down at home by young Ajax while both Manchester clubs failed to get past Barcelona and Tottenham. Liverpool, who carried a 2-0 first leg win ended up demolishing Porto in Portugal 4-1 for a 6-1 aggregate score. The closest encounter was between Manchester City and Tottenham, a back and forth affair that was decided by video replay in stoppage time.
🗓️ SEMI-FINALS 🗓️ Tottenham v Ajax 🏴 Tuesday 30 April 🇳🇱 Wednesday 8 May Barcelona v Liverpool 🇪🇸 Wednesd… https://t.co/tOWCzc6vV6— UEFA Champions League (@UEFA Champions League) 1555577574.0
The race also continues in Europe's secondary competition to crown a champions, and award with it the coveted Champions League spot for next season. With Arsenal and Chelsea not assured a top four spot in the Premier League, this trophy could serve as insurance.
🗓️ SEMI-FINALS 🗓️ Frankfurt v Chelsea 🇩🇪 Thursday 2 May 🏴 Thursday 9 May Arsenal v Valencia 🏴 Thurs… https://t.co/RQkP06Aid9— UEFA Europa League (@UEFA Europa League) 1555662545.0
How it stands... #PL https://t.co/jU4OxvWioQ— Premier League (@Premier League) 1555967792.0
The race for the title continues between Liverpool and Manchester City while the last two spots for the Champions League are being disputed by four teams.
Top six: 1. Liverpool (88), 2. Manchester City (86), 3. Tottenham (67), 4. Chelsea (67), 5. Arsenal (66), 6. Manchester United (64)
Scoring leader: 19 - Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) / Sergio Aguero (Manchester City) / Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)
Assists leader: 13 - Eden Hazard (Chelsea FC)
Top six: 1. FC Barcelona (77), 2. Atlético Madrid (68), 3. Real Madrid (64), 4. Getafe (54), 5. Valencia (52), 6. Sevilla (52)
Scoring leader: 33 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Assists leader: 13 - Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Top six: 1. Bayern Munich (70), 2. Dortmund (69), 3. RB Leipzig (61), 4. Eintracht Frankfurt (53), 5. Monchengladbach (51), 6. Hoffenheim (50)
Scoring leader: 21 - Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Assists leader: 13 - Jadon Sancho (Dortumund)
3️⃣7️⃣🇮🇹 #W8NDERFUL 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 https://t.co/kWsJ60tJOO https://t.co/yfgYqIzWkl— JuventusFC (@JuventusFC) 1555786421.0
After weeks of prolonging the inevitable, Juventus clinched their 8th straight Italian league title and 37th over all with 2-1 home win over Fiorentina. In the process, Cristiano Ronaldo became achieved a feat made by no other player in becoming the first to win the league in England, Spain and Italy.
Top six: 1. (C) - Juventus (87), 2. Napoli (67), 3. Inter Milan (61), 4. Milan (56), 5. Atalanta (56), 6. Roma (55)
Scoring leader: 22 - Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria)
Assists leader: 10 - Dries Mertens (Napoli)
🙌 #CHAMPI8NS ❤️💙 https://t.co/LNjp8u7eYc— Paris Saint-Germain (@Paris Saint-Germain) 1555954093.0
PSG finally crowned themselves champions of this season after being denied for three weeks straight. Mbappe delivered a hat-trick in the 3-1 win over Monaco as Neymar made his first appearance in return from injury. It is PSG's 8th Ligue 1 title and 6th out of the last seven seasons.
Top six: 1. (C) - PSG (84), 2. Lille (65), 3. Lyon (59), 4. Saint-Étienne (56), 5. Marseille (54), 6. Montpellier (51)
Scoring leader: 30 - Kylian Mbappé (PSG)
Assists leader: 12 - Teji Savanier (Nimes)
Top three: 1. Ajax (77), 2. PSV Eindhoven (77), 3. Feyenoord (59)
Championship Round: 1. Genk (44), 2. Club Brugge (38), 3. Antwerp (35), 4. Standard Liege (33), 5. Anderlecht (27), 6. Gent (26)
Top three: 1. Benfica (75), 2. Porto (75), 3. Sporting CP (67)
Championship: 1. Celtic (78), 2. Rangers (69), 3. Aberdeen(58)
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La Gran Final. Clásico Regio. Donde los Campeones se Coronan #SCCL2019 👑 @TigresOficial @Rayados https://t.co/rbo1SNX7Bz— Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League (@Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League) 1555038190.0
The champion of the region awaits to be crowned in a battle of crosstown rivals, and the region's two most expensive teams when Tigres UANL and Monterrey will face off in a home-and-home series over the next two weeks.
East top seven: 1. D.C. United (14), 2. Toronto (13), 3. Philadelphia (13), 4. Columbus (13), 5. Orlando (11), 6. Montreal (11), 7. Chicago (9)
West top seven: 1. LAFC (22), 2. LA Galaxy (18), 3. Seattle (16), 4. FC Dallas (16), 5. Houston (13), 6. Minnesota (10), 7. Real Salt Lake (10)
Scoring leader: 10 - Carlos Vela (LAFC)
Assists leader: 5 - Alejandro Pozuelo (Toronto) / Mark-Anthony Kaye (LAFC) / Carlos Vela (LAFC)
Top eight: 1. Leon (38), 2. Tigres UANL (33), 3. Monterrey (29), 4. Cruz Azul (26), 5. Necaxa (25), 6. Pachuca (25), 7. Club America (23), 8. Puebla (23)
Scoring leader: 14 - Angel Mena (Leon)
Assists leader: 9 - Angel Mena (Leon)
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Standings: 1. North Carolina Courage (4), 2. Portland Thorns (4), 3. Houston Dash (4), 4. Utah Royals (3), 5. Washington Spirit (3), 6. Chicago Red Stars (2), 7. Seattle Reign (2), 8. Orlando Pride (1), 9. Sky Blue FC (0)
Scoring leader: 3 - Crystal Dunn (North Carolina) / Christine Sinclair (Portland)
Assists leader:2 - Meghan Klingenberg (Portland)
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Tuesday, Apr. 23
1:45 p.m. - [Premier League] Tottenham vs. Brighton (NBC Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [Eredivisie] Ajax vs. Vitesse (ESPN+)
1:45 p.m. - [German Cup] Hamburg vs. RB Leipzig (ESPNews, ESPN Deportes)
2:30 p.m. - [La Liga] Alaves vs. Barcelona (beIN Sports)
5:15 p.m. - [Copa Libertadores] Libertad vs. Gremio (beIN Sports)
9:00 p.m. - [Concacaf Champions League] Tigres UANL vs. Monterrey (YahooSports.com, Univision Deportes)
Wednesday, Apr. 24
12:30 p.m. - [La Liga] Atletico Madrid vs. Valencia (beIN Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [German Cup] Werder Bremen vs. Bayern Munich (ESPNews, ESPN Deportes)
1:45 p.m. - [Coppa Italia] Milan vs. Lazio (ESPN+)
2:00 p.m. - [Premier League] Manchester United vs. Manchester City (NBC Sports)
5:15 p.m. - [Copa Libertadores] Palestino vs. River Plate (beIN Sports)
Thursday, Apr. 25
1:45 p.m. - [Coppa Italia] Atalanta vs. Fiorentina (ESPN+)
2:30 p.m. - [La Liga] Getafe vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)
Friday, Apr. 26
1:30 p.m. - [Bundesliga] Augsburg vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen (FS2)
2:00 p.m. - [Premier League] Liverpool vs. Huddersfield (NBC Sports)
Saturday, Apr. 27
6:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Tottenham vs. West Ham (NBC Sports)
8:30 a.m. - [Budesliga] Borussia Dortmund vs. FC Schalke 04 (FS2, UniMas)
9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Fulham vs. Cardiff (NBC Sports)
9:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Southampton vs. Bournemouth (CNBC)
9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Atletico Madrid vs. Real Valladolid (beIN Sports)
11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Brighton vs. Newcastle (NBC)
11:30 a.m. - [Budesliga] VfB Stuttgart vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach (FS2)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] Barcelona vs. Levante (beIN Sports)
2:30 p.m. - [MLS] FC Dallas vs. San Jose Earthquakes (Twitter, Univision)
7:30 p.m. - [MLS] Houston Dynamo vs. Columbus Crew SC (KUBE57)
Sunday, Apr. 28
6:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Leicester vs. Arsenal (NBC Sports)
8:00 a.m. - [Premier League] Burnley vs. Manchester City (NBC Sports)
10:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Manchester United vs. Chelsea (NBC Sports)
11:00 a.m. - [Budesliga] Nurnberg vs. Bayern Munich (FS2, FOX Deportes)
12:30 p.m. - [MLS] Minnesota United FC vs. D.C. United (FS1)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)
2:30 p.m. - [MLS] Seattle Sounders FC vs. LAFC (ESPN)
5:00 p.m. - [NWSL] Houston Dash vs. North Carolina Courage (YahooSports.com)
Monday, Apr. 29
2:00 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Betis vs. Espanyol (beIN Sports)
Two first-place teams, identical records, and a weekend set with serious measuring-stick energy.
The Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs open a three-game series Friday night at Daikin Park, in what could quietly be one of the more telling matchups of the summer. Both teams enter at 48-33, each atop their respective divisions — but trending in slightly different directions.
The Astros have been red-hot, going 7-3 over their last 10 while outscoring opponents by 11 runs. They've done it behind one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, with a collective 3.41 ERA that ranks second in the American League. Houston has also been dominant at home, where they’ve compiled a 30-13 record — a stat that looms large heading into this weekend.
On the other side, the Cubs have held their ground in the NL Central but have shown some recent shakiness. They're 5-5 over their last 10 games and have given up 5.66 runs per game over that stretch. Still, the offense remains dangerous, ranking fifth in on-base percentage across the majors. Kyle Tucker leads the way with a .287 average, 16 homers, and 49 RBIs, while Michael Busch has been hot of late, collecting 12 hits in his last 37 at-bats.
Friday’s pitching matchup features Houston’s Brandon Walter (0-1, 3.80 ERA, 1.10 WHIP) and Chicago’s Cade Horton (3-1, 3.73 ERA, 1.29 WHIP), a promising young arm making one of his biggest starts of the season on the road. Horton will have his hands full with Isaac Paredes, who’s slugged 16 homers on the year, and Mauricio Dubón, who’s found a groove with four home runs over his last 10 games.
It’s the first meeting of the season between these two clubs — and if the trends continue, it may not be the last time they cross paths when it really counts.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -112, Cubs -107; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
Here's a preview of Joe Espada's Game 1 lineup.
The first thing that stands out is rookie Cam Smith is hitting cleanup, followed by Jake Meyers. Victor Caratini is the DH and is hitting sixth. Christian Walker is all the way down at seventh, followed by Yainer Diaz, and Taylor Trammell who is playing left field.
How the mighty have fallen.
Pretty wild to see Walker and Diaz hitting this low in the lineup. However, it's justified, based on performance. Walker is hitting a pathetic .214 and Diaz is slightly better sporting a .238 batting average.
Screenshot via: MLB.com
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