Weekend Boxset: Ifs and ands

By Graham Sibley May 02, 2025

Weekend Boxset: Ifs and ands

There are plenty of things that could happen this weekend. We're here to help you get a sense of it.

Seven great matches to take you from Friday to Sunday. It’s the Sound of Football Weekend Boxset.

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All times are UK

Friday

Bundesliga: Heidenheim v Bochum

19.15 on Sky Sports Football
With only three matches left in the Bundesliga season we have in store a relegation concertina. If Heidenheim win the concertina is extended out, stretching the bottom three of the Bundesliga to within touching distance of Hoffenheim. Should Bochum win, the concertina constricts and the relegation playoff place remains within reach of all clubs in the bottom three. If Bochum lose then they are relegated. A draw blows the air out of the whole concertina analogy. Heidenheim's adventure in the Conference League has given way to misadventure in the Bundesliga. They hold the all-important relegation playoff spot (from which they play the third team of the second division) and are favourites to keep it. Their three-game snap of defeats against Leverkusen, Frankfurt and Bayern was broken by a spirited 1-0 win at Stuttgart. After this they face Union Berlin who are unbeaten in seven and Werder Bremen who have an outside chance of Europe. So, this is probably Frank Schmidt’s best and possibly last hope of surviving their sophomore Bundesliga season, given that the relegation playoff historically favours the team in the higher division. Bochum have struggled all season but rallied after Dieter Hecking was appointed new coach last November. But the Ruhrpott club have suffered a disastrous run of five defeats after their fantastic 3-2 victory over Bayern Munich. That hangover finally wore off last week with a 1-1 draw at home to Union which gives the Bochum fans a glimmer of hope. TD

Saturday

A-League: Melbourne City v Sydney

08.00 on TNT Sports 3
And so we come to the final day of the regular A-League season, and the permutations are simple. Sydney need a point to secure finals football. Due to the uneven number of teams in this season’s competition, Adelaide are unfortunate to have a bye in the final round and can only watch. The good news for the Reds is that Sydney concede easy goals and Melbourne City are a tough proposition at the best of times. With the squad Sydney have, Ufuk Talay’s team should be making the top six. Douglas Costa, golden boot chaser Adrian Segecic, and Joe Lolley are three of the best players in the league. Sadly their defence is liable to fall apart with a simple ball over the top. City, meanwhile, need a win to secure a top two finish and Champions League football. Draw or lose and they’ll be sweating on the results of Western United and Western Sydney Wanderers later in round. City should be favourites but Sydney occasionally pull an unexpected result out of the bag. Tense times at AAMi Park. GA

Championship: Coventry City v Middlesbrough

12.30 on Sky Sports Main Event & Ultra
Back in November you’d be forgiven for thinking that, come the end of the season, Coventry would be involved in a battle to stay in the Championship. The appointment of out of favour Frank Lampard raised a few eyebrows but any doubts surrounding his coaching abilities were clearly not held by the man himself. Such is the turnaround achieved under his stewardship that a win today could see them make the play-offs. In fact, depending on other results, even a draw could see them qualify. Despite their last two games being away defeats at the hands of lowly Plymouth and Luton, Coventry go into this one not just with an advantage in terms of points, but with an impressive run of six wins in their last seven home ties. For Michael Carrick, simultaneously from the wrong side of both the Tyne and the Tees, today's game offers the opportunity to salvage the season and silence some of the critics who believe that he should be moved on given his failure to achieve with such a talented Boro side. Lampard may have the advantage, but it’s not all bad for the Smoggies. Sitting in ninth, a win today, coupled with losses for Millwall and Blackburn, who are at Burnley and Sheffield United respectively, would see the Teessiders in the playoffs. Not that unlikely, is it?Just another example, if it was ever in doubt, of the EFL’s superiority over the Premier League. Home win. JB

Alternative viewing: Unlike every other division in the English league, there’s also plenty of jeopardy in the Championship’s relegation fight. If Hull can win at Portsmouth, the result of Derby v Stoke could see one of those sides relegated, depending on how Luton do away to West Brom and how Preston do away to Bristol City. All games kick off at the same time and they are all available to watch on Sky Sports Plus.

League One: Huddersfield Town v Leyton Orient

15.00 on Sky Sports Football & Ultra
Wrexham may have the fairytale headlines in League One, but Orient’s rise back from non-league to the verge of the Championship is just as impressive, especially given the lack of celebrity glamour at Brisbane Road. Orient need to match or better Reading’s result at home to Barnsley to take the final playoff spot, and they face some of the most obliging final day opponents they could hope for. Huddersfield had playoff ambitions of their own but are in shocking form with just two wins since mid February. You suspect Huddersfield will be on the beach mentally, while Orient have lost just once in nine. Ritchie Wellens has put together a seriously efficient team that other sides have underestimated and have the league’s top scorer in Charlie Kelman. That said, should Orient slip up and Reading take the final spot, it’ll be nothing short of a miracle given the club are perilously close to getting kicked out of the league. If Orient take the final spot, they’ll fancy their chances as the form side in the division. Stockport and Wycombe are shooting out for 3rd place at Adams Park. A draw could theoretically let in Charlton to 3rd if both the Hatters and Chairboys play out a draw, but the Addicks will need a big win against in form Burton to overhaul the goal difference. If Orient do manage to finish sixth, it would be a brave punter who would bet against the O’s having a Wembley visit. GA

Sunday

Women’s Super League: Manchester United v Manchester City

12.00 on Sky Showcase and Sky Sports Plus
A win against Chelsea on Wednesday evening would have confirmed another season of European football for Manchester United, with two games to go. As it is, Lucy Bronze’s goal confirmed yet another WSL title for Chelsea and means that there is still the slimmest of chances for City to snatch the third and final Champions League place. To make sure of finishing at least third, United need only a draw here, but should Nick Cushing’s City side be able to find win they will move to just a point behind their city rivals going into the last round of fixtures. United’s last game is against Arsenal at the Emirates, who will be mindful not to fall to another lazy defeat in their last game before their Champions League final against Barcelona. Given the number of injuries to key players City have suffered this season it’s remarkable how they’ve managed to stay in touch to this late stage. You suspect they will fall short, missing out for the second time in three seasons. From next season, there will be extra incentive to finish second as it will provide a direct route to the league phase. This has been achieved by English clubs improving their coefficient enough to climb above Germany for the first time ever. GS

Premier League: Brighton & Hove Albion v Newcastle United

14.00 on Sky Sports Premier League, Main Event & Ultra
Now that the sideshow matters of title-winning and relegations are out of the way in the Premier League we can concentrate on the important business of European qualification. The addition of a fifth bonus Champions League spot for this season hasn’t really made any clearer who will be playing in what competition next season. Just two points separate Newcastle in third and Nottingham Forest in sixth, and with Villa just three points beyond, any two sides from that group could have to settle for playing on Thursdays next term. Should Manchester City win the FA Cup, then eighth place would almost certainly become the Conference League position. Going into this round of fixtures, only goal difference keeps Fulham in that position ahead of Brighton, but Bournemouth and Brentford are in close pursuit. Brighton beat the (dirty) Mags at St James’s Park earlier season but have been in a fug that set in after their FA Cup quarter final defeat to Forest on penalties. Their last gasp win at home to West Ham last weekend should hopefully have restored some of their confidence. For Newcastle, Eddie Howe returned to the touchline last weekend after being hospitalised with pneumonia. His assistant, Jason Tindall who stood in for Howe while he was ill, has this week been linked to the freshly vacated head coach position at QPR. GS

Serie A: Bologna v Juventus

19.45 on TNT Sports 2 & OneFootball
As with the Premier League, there’s a tight race for the Champions League places in Serie A, with just three points separating the teams sat in fourth and eighth positions. Juventus edged a point clear at the top of that pack last weekend with a win that confirmed Monza’s relegation, while Bologna, who were in fourth, had a goalless draw with Udinese. Two other sides in the group, Roma and Fiorentina, will have played immediately before this game so the situation could look very different by the end the weekend. All of which gives an excellent opportunity for the fifth team in the group, Lazio, to take advantage of at least two rivals dropping points. In Serie A, head to head record is used ahead of overall goal difference to decide the order of the table for clubs finishing level on points (except for the title or the third relegation spot - those are decided by a play-off). As the reverse fixture between these sides ended 2-2, a win here would give make it even harder for the loser to recover in the remaining three rounds of fixtures. Last season, Bologna, under Thiaggo Motta, secured the bonus fifth Champions League spot, but started this season without players like Joshua Zirksee (who is actually very good) and Riccardo Calafiori, and of course their head coach. Vincenzo Italiano, replaced Motta having led Fiorentina to consecutive Conference League finals. He has managed to continue the clubs improvement, chasing their first consecutive top five finish since the 1960s and reaching this month’s Coppa Italia final against Milan. GS

Whatever you watch, have a great weekend.

Graham, Terry, Jan and Gary