Soccer

Bundesliga, Week 33 preview: Battles for Europe, Relegation coming down to the wire

There are two matchdays left in the Bundesliga, and the battles for Europe and Relegation are coming down to the end.

May 2, 2014, 7:00 AM UTC

Alexandra Beier

It’s bittersweet to be a Bundesliga fan this time of the year. We get to enjoy the incredible battles for Europe and Relegation, but we’re also reminded that season is nearly completed. The Bundesliga plays all of the matches on it’s final two matchdays concurrently, so this means that you can only watch one match live unless you can watch the Konferenz.

There are two different scenes to keep an eye on this weekend: The Battle for Europe and The Relegation Battle.

The Battle for Europe

Since the DFB Pokal Final is between first place Bayern Munich and second place Borussia Dortmund, the Bundesliga's third spot in the Europa League will go to the team that finishes seventh in the table. Lucky for us, fourth place and seventh place are separated by five points.

4th - Bayer Leverkusen - 55 points

This weekend Leverkusen visit Eintracht Frankfurt in what is a must win game for Die Werkself. They only sit one point ahead of Wolfsburg for the Bundesliga's final spot in next season's Champions League and need to win out to leave no doubt as to their qualification for next year's competition. While last week's draw with red-hot Dortmund would have boosted their spirits, learning that they're going to have to do this without Stefan Kießling will be disheartening. The forward injured his thigh against BVB and will miss the remainder of the season.

5th - Wolfsburg - 54 points

Wolfsburg are also on the road; however, they’re match is a little easier. Die Wölfe definitely need a victory here after last week’s disappointing draw against Freiburg. Next week, Wolfsburg will take on Borussia Mönchengladbach, so it’s imperative that they take the three points in their easiest matchup. Qualifying for the next season’s Champions League is probably a season early, and it would be a massive accomplishment.

6th - Borussia Mönchengladbach - 52 points

7th - Mainz - 50 points

Borussia Mönchengladbach and Mainz square off at Borussia Park in what should be a very entertaining match. If Gladbach have any hope of pipping Leverkusen and Wolfsburg for the final Champions League position, this match is a must win. For Mainz, while they will be pleased to have qualified for Europe once again, Thomas Tuchel would love it if they could avoid the early qualifying rounds of the Europa League.

The Relegation Battle

Our three relegation teams are basically set. The only thing that remains is the order in which they will finish. Remember: in the Bundesliga, the 17th and 18th placed teams are automatically relegated, while the 16th place team will be in a two legged playoff against the 3rd place team in the 2.Bundesliga.

16th - Hamburg - 27 points

I do not envy Hamburg this weekend. They will host Bayern Munich at the Imtech Arena, and one has to believe that FCB will be wanting to make a statement after the clobbering they took midweek at the hands of Real Madrid. Hamburg’s one chance is to figure out a way to defend better than they have in any match this season.

17th - Nürnberg - 26 points

Der Club have a massive opportunity to leapfrog Hamburg and take over the playoff position when they host Hannover 96. While Tayfun Korkut's side has been playing better as of late, they are now safe from being relegated. If Nürnberg are going to avoid relegation, they must take a stand in this match.

18th - Eintracht Braunschweig - 25 points

I don't know if they're going to figure out a way into the playoff spot, but Eintracht Braunschweig aren't going down without a fight. This weekend they'll face a fun and talented Augsburg side. A Braunschweig win here would be marvelous for the final matchday.