Slate on Soccer: Thinking good thoughts for Carli Lloyd

It might not have come in the most exciting fashion but regardless, the achievement is still remarkable as Napoli’s (22-7-6) 1-0 loss at Roma (20-11-4) on Monday officially clinched the fifth straight Serie A title for Juventus (27-4-4). This crown had to be extra special for the storied Italian club since they were down as low as 12^th-place (and 11 points back) as recently as Oct. 28, 2015. They were at practice on Monday when they got the great news but the team was still able to celebrate right afterwards.

Thinking Good Thoughts for Lloyd

Playing for her club team (the Houston Dash) on Saturday, U.S. superstar midfielder Carli Lloyd went down with the dreaded non-contact injury to her right knee. She was scheduled to have an MRI on Sunday but so far, news of those results hasn’t surfaced yet which is a bit worrisome. The Americans head into the 2016 Olympics in Brazil this summer with three straight gold medals to their name and they have won four out of five overall.

Champions League Final Four

The world’s top club tournament-the Champions League-is down to its final four heavyweight teams with the first legs kicking off Tuesdayand Wednesday. Manchester City (England) hosts Real Madrid (Spain) on Tuesday (2:45, Fox Sports 1) and Atletico (Spain) hosts Bayern Munich (Germany) on Wednesday (2:45, Fox Sports 1). The second legs are next Tuesday and Wednesday with the final on May 28 (2:45, Fox) at San Siro Stadium (which is the home of both AC Milan and Inter Milan).

Leicester City is going to Win the Barclays Premier League This Season

Star striker Jamie Vardy (22 goals, 6 assists) was suspended for Sunday’s match vs. Swansea City (10-10-15) but it hardly mattered as the Foxes (22-10-3) managed to roll to a 4-0 victory behind two goals by substitute striker Leonardo Ulloa (6 goals, 2 assists). Midfielder Riyad Mahrez (17 goals, 11 assists) also scored a goal and later that evening picked up the PFA’s (Professional Football Association) coveted player of the year award. Tottenham (19-11-4) is in second-place in the BPL, eight points back of Leicester City with a game in hand as they hosted West Bromwich (10-10-14) on Monday.

Follow Metro soccer writer Richard Slate on Twitter: @RichSlate