As we close in to the end of the season, championships galore abound. In Europe, not to surprise of anyone, Manchester United and Barcelona qualified for the finals of the UEFA Champions League. In South America, meanwhile, Brazil suffered a Bloody Wednesday that saw four of its five remaining clubs in the Copa Libertadores kicked out of the Copa Libertadores. Speaking of the Copa Libertadores, each of the eight clubs that qualified for the quarterfinals this week see the benefit of receiving Moderate Bonus Points, creating a little jerk in the rankings.
In domestic league action, AC Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk claimed titles in Italy and Ukraine, respectively. In England, Manchester United’s victory over Chelsea didn’t quite win the title for the Red Devils mathematically but made it an inevitability.
We’re a day late because of a weekend trip to Washington, D.C., but better late than never, I suppose. Below are the current rankings with links to stories regarding the latest action. Enjoy!!
World Club Rankings – Top 25 Clubs in the World – May 9, 2011
1. Manchester United (Eng) (1) – The week couldn’t have been much better from Manchester United. At midweek, a 4-1 home victory over Schalke 04 officially put United in the finals of the UEFA Champions League. On Sunday, another home victory, this time 2-1 over Chelsea, all but “officially” gave the English Premier League title. Coming Up: The league title should become official on Saturday after United’s match against Blackburn Rovers.
2. Barcelona (Esp) (2) – Like Manchester United, Barcelona clinched its spot in the UEFA Champions League final this week, doing it with a 1-1 draw at home against Real Madrid. Domestically, Barcelona moved very close to another Primera Division title with a 2-0 victory over Espanyol. Coming Up: Like Manyoo, Barça can clinch this week either on Wednesday against Levante or on Sunday against Deportivo La Coruña.
3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) – Like I just wrote, in a sense, Real Madrid was eliminated from the Champions League this week despite drawing 1-1 with Barcelona at the Camp Nou. This weekend, Real Madrid crushed Sevilla by a 6-2 score. Coming Up: On Wednesday, Real Madrid will host local rivals Getafe. In one of two matches featuring WCR Top 25 clubs, Real Madrid will battle with Villarreal on Sunday.
4. AC Milan (Ita) (4) – Milan clinched its first Serie A title in several seasons at the Stadio Olimpico by drawing 0-0 with Roma. Coming Up: On Tuesday, Roma will face off with Palermo in Italy in the Coppa Italia semifinals. In Serie A action, AC Milan hosts Cagliari on Saturday.
5. Chelsea (Eng) (6) – Chelsea’s last chance for hardware this season virtually came to an end this weekend at Old Trafford in only 37 seconds as it fell 1-2 to eventual champions Manchester United. Coming Up: It probably won’t matter in the standings, but Chelsea will host Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
6. Borussia Dortmund (Ger) (5) – You can tell the season is effectively over for the German Bundesliga champions who fell 0-2 this past weekend to a struggling Werder Bremen. Coming Up: The next meaningless match for Dortmund will take place at home on Saturday against Eintracht Frankfurt.
7. Porto (Por) (7) – Despite a rare 2-3 loss to Villarreal, Porto qualified for the final of the all-Portuguese Europa Cup final. Domestically, Benfica drew 3-3 with Paços de Ferreira. Coming Up: Porto will take on Maritimo on Saturday in its next Liga Sagres match.
8. Lille (Fra) (8) – Lille extended its lead in the French Ligue Un with a 1-0 victory over Nancy Lorraine. Coming Up: On Tuesday, Lille will host St.-Étienne in its next Ligue Un match. In its quest for a French double, Lille will take on Paris St.-Germain in the final of the Coupe de France on Saturday.
9. Inter Milan (Ita) (10) – Internazionale remains in second place in Italy’s Serie A following a 3-1 victory over Fiorentina. Coming Up: On Wednesday, Inter Milan faces off with Roma at the San Siro with a 1-0 lead in the second leg of the Coppa Italia semifinals. Its next Serie A match is a huge one as it heads south to take on third-place Napoli.
10. Vélez Sarsfield (Arg) (22) – With a 2-0 away victory against LDU Quito, Vélez Sarsfield qualified for Moderate Bonus Points as well as the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores. In the Argentine clausura, Vélez defeated Banfield 2-0 to extend its lead. Coming Up: The quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores begin for Vélez Sarsfield on Thursday when its hosts Paraguay’s Libertad. In Argentine action, Vélez Sarsfield takes on Lanús on Sunday.
11. Arsenal (Eng) (9) – The slumping gunners misfired again this weekend, losing 1-3 to Stoke City. Coming Up: On Sunday, Arsenal will host Aston Villa in its next EPL match.
13. Bayern Munich (Ger) (14) – With one match left, Bayern Munich moved within a whisper of the final automatic German berth in next season’s Champions League by stomping relegation-bound St. Pauli 8-1 this weekend. Coming Up: On Saturday, Bayern will finish its German Bundesliga season at home against VfB Stuttgart.
14. Benfica (Por) (13) – Despite scoring a 1-0 victory over Sporting Braga, Benfica was eliminated from the Europa League by Braga by virtue of away goals. Domestically, Benfica continued to roll in the Liga Sagres, defeating Rio Ave 2-1. Coming Up: Benfica will host União de Leiria in league play on Saturday.
15. Valencia (Esp) – Valencia extended its lead for the third place spot in La Liga’s Primera Division with a 3-0 victory over Real Sociedad. Coming Up: Valencia travels to Barcelona to take on Espanyol on Wednesday before hosting Levante on Sunday in a pair of league matches.
16. Bayer Leverkusen (Ger) (12) – Leverkusen’s second-place spot in the German Bundesliga became a little more dubious this weekend after drawing with Hamburger SV 1-1. Coming Up: On Saturday, Leverkusen will try to secure its runner-up position by defeating Freiburg.
17. Manchester City (Eng) (16) – City’s chase of Arsenal in the EPL took a hit this weekend as the other club from Manchester fell to the other club in Liverpool, losing 1-2 to Everton. Coming Up: As I’m writing this, Mansee is hosting Tottenham in a fairly-important league match. More importantly, perhaps, Manchester City will take on Stoke City in Sunday’s FA Cup final.
18. Napoli (Ita) (17) – Napoli slipped up again this weekend, falling to Lecce 1-2. Coming Up: Next up for Napoli will be a home match against Serie A’s second-place club, Inter Milan.
19. Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukr) (20) – Shakhtar clinched another Ukranian title this weekend with a 2-0 victory over Matalurh in a Donetsk derby. Coming Up: Shakhtar will fast Dnipro in a Ukranian Cup semifinal match on Wednesday. In league action, Shakhtar will take on Vorskla on Saturday.
20. Marseille (Fra) (19) – OM’s Ligue Un title chances took a hit as it fell 2-3 to Lyon this weekend. Coming Up: In a pair of Ligue Un matches this week, Marseill will take on Brest on Wednesday and Lorient on Sunday.
21. Fluminense (Bra) (21) – In a shocker of a result, Fluminense fell 0-3 to Libertad at midweek to be eliminated from the Copa Libertadores. Coming Up: No matches in coming week.
22. Liverpool (Eng) (NF) – After an absence lasting more than a year, Liverpool returns to the rankings in a week in which it defeated Fulham 5-2 at Craven Cottage. Coming Up: Liverpool returns to action on Sunday when it battles Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield in a battle for fifth place in the English Premier League.
23. Lyon (Fra) (24) – Lyon moves up a little in the rankings following its 3-2 victory over Marseille. Coming Up: Lyon’s two Ligue Un matches this week will be away at Auxerre on Wednesday and away again on Monday against Brest.
24. Udinese (Ita) (BU) – Udinese returns to the rankings as well following a 2-1 victory over Lazio that allowed it to move into fourth place in the Italian Serie A. Coming Up: Udinese returns to Serie A action on Sunday against Chievo.
25. Villarreal (Esp) (23) – The Yellow Submarine defeated Porto 3-2 at home on Thursday, but that wasn’t enough to keep Villarreal in the Europa League. Domestically, Villarreal dropped a few more points to third-place Valencia by drawing 0-0 with Mallorca. Coming Up: Villarreal’s faces two Primera Division clubs this week, Almeria on Wednesday and Real Madrid on Sunday.
Bubbling Under: Celtic (Sco), Dynamo Kyiv (Ukr), Fenerbahce (Tur), Panathinaikos (Gre), Rangers (Sco).
Next Five: Corinthians (Bra), Cruzeiro (Bra), Paris St.-Germain (Fra), Tottenham Hotspur (Eng), Trabzonspor (Tur).
Matches This Week Between WCR Top 25 Clubs:
15 May – (3) Real Madrid at (25) Villarreal
15 May – (9) Inter Milan at (18) Napoli
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