What is interesting about European football?

McTominay and his teammates are still competing for the Serie A championship. Photo: Reuters .

The Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga and Ligue 1 have all found their champions, including Liverpool, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and PSG. The Champions League tickets are also gradually being determined.

In contrast to the above tournaments, Serie A remained fiercely competitive until the final round. Napoli and Inter Milan were in close pursuit and created a dramatic race until round 38.

Serie A has not found a champion yet

In the early morning of May 19, Inter Milan and Napoli both shared points with Lazio and Parma respectively. Inter had reason to regret missing the opportunity to surpass Napoli due to a 90th-minute goal in a 2-2 draw with Lazio.

The gap between Napoli and Inter is only 1 point. In the final match, Inter must beat Como and hope Napoli stumbles against Cagliari to have a chance to defend the Serie A title.

Head-to-head history shows that Napoli has been dominant every time they meet Cagliari. In 33 encounters, Antonio Conte and his team have won 19 times and only suffered 4 defeats. Playing at home is also a big advantage for Napoli. The southern Italian team really wants to win to lift the championship trophy in front of a large number of fans.

Meanwhile, Inter are under great pressure when they visit Como, a team that is flourishing under Cesc Fabregas. In the first leg, Inter won 2-0 at home. 3 points are a must for coach Inzaghi's team if they want to usurp Napoli.

Inter Milan must win in the final round of Serie A. Photo: Reuters .

Champions League ticket tension

In the Premier League, only two teams have officially secured tickets to the Champions League next season: Liverpool and Arsenal. The remaining three tickets are contested between five teams, including Man City, Newcastle, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest.

Of these, Man City has played one match less than the four teams mentioned above. If they win all the remaining two matches, coach Pep Guardiola and his team will have 71 points, holding 99% of the ticket to the Champions League next season. Man City's two upcoming opponents, Fulham and Bournemouth, also have no goals to strive for.

Newcastle, Chelsea and Aston Villa have 66 points and are ranked from 3rd to 5th on the table. Of these, Newcastle has the easiest schedule when only meeting Everton, ranked 13th. Aston Villa must play away at MU, while Chelsea and Nottingham Forest will fight for the remaining Champions League ticket.

Nottingham Forest are a phenomenon in the Premier League this year and have 65 points, equal to Man City and 1 point behind Chelsea. This is the last chance for Nuno Santo and his team to compete for a ticket to the Champions League next season.

Chelsea decide their own chance to participate in the Champions League next season. Photo: Reuters .

What to expect in La Liga?

In La Liga, the five Champions League spots for next season have been determined, including Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao and Villarreal.

Real Betis are the first team to qualify for next season's Europa League. The remaining ticket is a competition between Celta Vigo and Vallecano, when the gap between the two teams is only 1 point.

Fans' attention is on Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, as the French striker is pushing hard to compete for the European Golden Shoe award.

Mbappe is likely to win the La Liga top scorer award this season. Photo: Reuters .

In the early morning of May 19, Mbappe scored 1 goal in Real Madrid's 2-0 victory over Sevilla. This was also the 41st goal in 55 matches for "Los Blancos" in all competitions this season by the French striker.

Mbappe is currently just half a point behind Sporting Lisbon's Viktor Gyokeres in the race for the European Golden Shoe. Each of Gyokeres' goals counts for 1.5 points, when playing in a league outside the top 5 in Europe. Meanwhile, Mbappe's goals in La Liga count for 2 points.

The race is coming to an end as Mbappe still has a chance to score in the final round of La Liga against Real Sociedad next week.