European roundup: Haaland signs off in style while Stuttgart make great escape

  • 5/14/2022
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Borussia Dortmund forward Erling Haaland scored in his last game for the German club as they beat Hertha Berlin 2-1 in the season finale, forcing their opponents into a relegation playoff. Haaland scored with a penalty to level the score at 1-1 with his 86th goal in his 89th match in all competitions since 2020, as Dortmund finished runners-up to champions Bayern Munich. The Norway international will join Manchester City ahead of next season in a multiyear deal reportedly worth up to €300m. Hertha took the lead with an 18th-minute penalty, after Ishak Belfodil was brought down in the box. Belfodil stepped up to convert the spot-kick himself. Dortmund took a long time to react but the hosts eventually got a penalty of their own for a handball by Marvin Plattenhardt, and Haaland found the net on his final appearance for the club to make it all square. Youssoufa Moukoko’s superb low shot in the 84th minute that went in off the post snatched the three points for Dortmund as Hertha finished in 16th following a dramatic stoppage-time winner for Stuttgart over Cologne that lifted them to 15th and safety. RB Leipzig scored in added time through Willi Orban to snatch a 1-1 draw at Arminia Bielefeld and secure their Champions League berth with a fourth-place finish as their opponents were relegated. Leipzig needed at least a point to make sure of a top-four place, but their job was made easier after Freiburg lost 2-1 at Bayer Leverkusen to fall short on the last matchday. Union Berlin completed their sensational season with a 3-2 over Bochum to finish fifth on 57 points, one behind Leipzig, and secure a spot in the Europa League. Cologne conceded a stoppage-time goal at Stuttgart to go 2-1 down but still end up in the Europa Conference League. Stuttgart’s last-gasp goal kept them up for another season, sending Hertha Berlin into the relegation playoff. Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski was on target in the season-ending 2-2 at Wolfsburg to take his tally to 35 Bundesliga goals as he won the league’s top scorer trophy for the fifth consecutive season. However Lewandowski has informed the club’s hierarchy that he wants to leave and not extend his contract with the German champions, the Bayern sports director, Hasan Salihamidzic, said on Saturday. The player has been heavily linked with a move to Barcelona. In Serie A, Roma drew 1-1 with relegated Venezia in their last home match of the season after their captain Lorenzo Pellegrini failed to convert two penalties. Eldor Shomurodov scored a late equaliser for Roma after David Okereke put Venezia ahead in the opening minute. Roma remain sixth and in the Europa Conference League qualifying position but are only one point ahead of Fiorentina and Atalanta, who both have a game in hand. Diego Perotti was in tears at the final whistle and had to be consoled by teammates after his late penalty was saved in relegation-threatened Salernitana’s 1-1 draw with Empoli. Salernitana inched two points clear of the drop zone — but missed a chance to increase the gap further — before Cagliari and Genoa play on Sunday. Spezia assured themselves of Serie A football next season after they fought back to win 3-2 at Udinese and move seven points clear of the relegation places. Torino won 1-0 at Hellas Verona thanks to Josip Brekalo’s first-half strike. A Wissam Ben Yedder hat-trick put Monaco on the brink of securing a direct Champions League spot for next season as they stormed back to beat Stade Brestois 4-2 for their ninth consecutive victory in Ligue 1. Marseille slipped down to third, on goal difference, when they slumped to a 2-0 defeat at Rennes. Benjamin Bourigeaud and Lovro Majer found the back of the net to send Rennes up to fourth place on 65 points a week before what looks like being a nail-biting finale. The top two teams qualify directly for the Champions League group stage while the side who finish third take part in the third qualifying round. Paris Saint-Germain, already crowned champions last month, beat Montpellier 4-0 courtesy of a Lionel Messi double with Ángel Di Maria and Kylian Mbappé scoring the others. Nice’s hopes of playing in the Champions League were ended when they lost 3-1 at home to Lille, who prevailed with a Jonathan David double. Bottom side Bordeaux were left on the brink of relegation after a 0-0 draw against Lorient left them on 28 points, three points from a relegation/promotion playoff spot but with a much worse goal difference than 18th-placed Metz. The only game in La Liga saw Espanyol held 1-1 by Valencia at home. Espanyol striker Raúl de Tomás equalised in first-half injury time after an opener from Maxi Gómez. There was little riding on the result with both teams destined for a mid-table finish.

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