Bayern can seal Bundesliga title with 4 matches to spare

Frankfurt, Germany: Bayern Munich can seal its 25th Bundesliga title with four matches to spare with some outside help this weekend.

If Bayern beats Hertha Berlin at home on Saturday and Wolfsburg fails to win at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Sunday, Pep Guardiola will have his second Bundesliga title in as many seasons as coach of the German powerhouse.

Bayern's overwhelming 6-1 victory over Porto in the Champions League wiped out a 3-1 first-leg defeat and put Guardiola's team in the semifinals for the fourth consecutive season and kept it on track for a repeat of the 2013 treble.

Bayern is two wins away from its 18th German Cup triumph and it hopes to crown the season with its sixth Champions League title on June 6 in Berlin.

Guardiola inherited the team from Jupp Heynckes after its first treble season. He won the domestic titles in his first season but exited the Champions League in the semifinals against Real Madrid.

Bayern was under tremendous pressure to beat Porto, since an even earlier exit from the Champions League would have been seen as a huge failure. But Guardiola's team thrived and produced a spectacular five-goal first half.

Guardiola has another year on his contract and Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told Thursday's edition of Bild newspaper that contract extension talks will start in the second half of the year.

"I think we have very good cards in our hand and that he will remain our coach beyond 2016," Rummenigge told the paper.

While Bayern eyes the title, Hertha is far enough from the relegation zone to be concerned about a defeat in Munich, where mightier teams have fallen. Even if it wins, Bayern will have to wait 24 hours to find out if it's the champion again.

Here are some things to know about the weekend's 30th round:

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BATTLE FOR THIRD:

Bayer Leverkusen and Moenchengladbach are battling for third and direct qualification for the Champions League. They are tied on points, with Leverkusen ahead on goal difference.

Leverkusen visits neighboring Cologne for the Rhine River derby. Cologne takes pride in its defense and has already 11 draws this season — eight of them 0-0 stalemates, a Bundesliga record.

But Leverkusen is on a seven-match winning streak and beat Cologne 5-1 at home.

Moenchengladbach must beat second-place Wolfsburg to keep pace. Wolfsburg is 12 points behind Bayern and seven ahead of Leverkusen.

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NEW COACH, OLD PROBLEM:

Bruno Labbadia lost his first match as Hamburg's fourth coach of the season in Bremen as his team veers toward relegation. Hamburg, a founding member of the Bundesliga, looks set to be relegated for the first time.

Hamburg next hosts Augsburg, a solid team with a Europa League slot within its reach. Hamburg has taken only two points from its last nine matches and has the least proficient attack in the league with 16 goals.

Augsburg coach Markus Weinzierl says a "hurting" Hamburg will be a tough rival that will have to attack. That could open up for Augsburg's counterattacks.

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NEW COACH IN HANNOVER:

Michael Frontzeck took over at Hannover at the start of the week with the mission to save the team from relegation in the five matches remaining.

Hannover still has not won in 2015, a run of 13 matches, and is only two points from the relegation zone. While the two bottom clubs drop automatically, the 16th place team goes into a playoff with the third-best team from the second division and the winner plays in the top tier.

"We are going to make it," Frontzeck said ahead of the home match against Hoffenheim.

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STUTTGART'S LAST CHANCE:

Stuttgart is just one point above bottom-place Hamburg and desperately needs to beat Freiburg at home. Freiburg has not won in three games and also has relegation worries.

With a victory, Stuttgart would pull even on points with Freiburg and improve its situation.