Bayern oldies set for winning farewell

Berlin, May 19: For the fifth season in a row, Bayern Munich will be presented with the Bundesliga trophy at the Allianz Arena following the final whistle against Freiburg with emotions set to run high, in the final round of the Bundesliga on Saturday.

It will be the 517th and final Bayern appearance for Germany’s World Cup-winning captain Philipp Lahm, 33, and Spain’s Xabi Alonso, 35, who are both hanging up their boots.

The customary “Bierd-usche” celebrations will be in order when the Bayern team eagerly empty oversized glasses of wheat beer over each other.

With 30 league goals this season, Bayern predator Robert Lewandowski is favourite to retain the golden boot title he won the last term.

However, his arch-rival, Borussia Dortmund’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, last season’s runnerup, will want to add to his 29 goals when his club host Werder Bremen.

There is plenty of speculation about the future of Dortmund striker Aubameyang and his club want to know his future plans after Saturday’s match. The Gabon star has a Dortmund contract until 2020.

Aubameyang has scored 37 goals in all competitions this season, but in early 2017 he twice hinted that he was considering leaving Dortmund to “take the next step”.

Darmstadt and Ingolstadt are already confirmed in the automatic relegation places, but there is a battle royal brewing for Hamburg’s home match with Wolfsburg.

Hamburg are 16th, which carries a two-legged relegation play-off at the end of the season against the team which finishes third in the second division, with Wolfsburg two points above in 15th — and safety.

Fixtures: Saturday (all matches at 7:00 PM): Bayern Munich vs Freiburg, Borussia Dortmund vs Werder Bremen, Borussia Moenchengladbach vs Darmstadt, Hertha Berlin vs Bayer Leverkusen, Cologne vs Mainz, Hamburg vs Wolfsburg, Ingolstadt vs Schalke, Hoffenheim vs Augsburg