Another weekend of European football has come and gone, with many clubs picking up some silverware as the season draws to a close. Real Madrid edged closer to another La Liga title with victory over Mallorca, while Barcelona continued their good form with a win over Cadiz, heading into the UEFA Champions League return leg against PSG in midweek on Saturday. Start in Spain.
In Germany, Bayern Munich postponed early celebrations to celebrate winning the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen's win over Cologne and Wales, but Wrexham secured a new promotion, this time to Ligue 1. So it was party time.
Now let's get into the action.
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saturday review
Lead: Madrid move closer to La Liga title with narrow win over Mallorca
Real Madrid's trip to Mallorca in La Liga is always going to be a tricky test. He was crammed into the middle of the Champions League quarter-finals, facing a team at the bottom of the table who needed a point. Aurélien Choameny's long-range shot (which appeared to have taken a huge turn) proved the difference between the two teams, giving Madrid a valuable 1-0 victory and another step towards the league title. Ta.
Manager Carlo Ancelotti's decision to make five changes, leaving Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo, Toni Kroos, Eduardo Camavinga and Dani Carvajal on the bench, is understandable given the situation against Manchester City. It was possible. But the result was a disorganized first-half performance, with Madrid's only chance in the first half coming when Jude Bellingham's curling shot hit the bar.
The situation improved in the second half. Choameni's goal put Madrid ahead in the 48th minute, and Ancelotti's attacking threat increased with the introduction of Camavinga and Vinicius an hour later. The Brazilian forward quickly came close to scoring twice himself, but with some quick footwork Federico Valverde got past goalkeeper Predrag Rajković, but his shot was somehow blocked on the line.
At the other end, keeper Andriy Lunin had to make a full-strength save from Sergi Dalder to maintain Madrid's lead. Eder Militão also returned from injury and was substituted in stoppage time in the second half, but his minutes played suggest the centre-back will be in contention to start against City on Wednesday. was not enough.
It wasn't going to be an easy game against Mallorca, who lost on penalties in last weekend's Copa del Rey final, but in the end all Madrid needed was a win. Thanks to Tchouameni and lucky. — Alex Kirkland
Saturday league topics
Barça win against Cadiz and stay in good form ahead of PSG's return leg
Joao Félix's stunning bicycle kick gave Barcelona a 1-0 win over Cadiz at Nuevo Mirandilla on Saturday, keeping them eight points clear of La Liga leaders Real Madrid heading into next Sunday. Clasico At the Santiago Bernabéu.
Felix scored the only goal of the game in the 37th minute, taking his tally to 10 in all competitions this season with an acrobatic effort from a corner kick.
The Portuguese winger also hit the post in the second half (although the offside flag was raised belatedly) and contributed to some of Barça's best moments in an otherwise unremarkable game.
He hopes his performance will earn him a spot in Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Paris Saint-Germain at the Olympic Stadium, where Barca will go into the match with a 3-2 advantage.
However, the fact that he started here meant that he was left on the bench as manager Xavi Hernández ordered substitutions and two of the eight players from the team that won in Paris, wingers Lamine Yamal and Rafinha, were dropped. This suggests that it may be necessary.
Despite this rotation, Barça got the job done against Cadiz, who remain in the bottom three, extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to 13 games.
In addition to Felix, Barça's goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen was also grateful for the point against Cadiz. The German goalkeeper made a superb save from Diadi Samasekou in the second half to extend his team's clean sheet record in the league to six games.
Barça's turnaround may have come too late to challenge them in La Liga. After the win against Mallorca and the failure to win next weekend, they remain eight points behind Madrid. Clasico Perhaps their slim hopes of winning a title will be gone.
Tuesday's game against PSG will therefore be a huge one, as Barça are targeting their first Champions League semi-final since 2019. — Sam Marsden
Barcelona take the lead with João Félix's bicycle goal
João Félix found the back of the net with a bicycle kick, giving Barcelona a 1-0 lead.
Bayern Leverkusen beat Cologne convincingly to delay Bundesliga title
With their backs against the wall, Bayern Munich put in a mature performance against Cologne, defeating the relegation-threatened team 2-0 thanks to goals from Rafael Guerreiro and Thomas Müller. As a result, Bayern delayed Bayer Leverkusen's near-inevitable victory in the Bundesliga. Xabi Alonso's side face Werder Bremen on Sunday with a chance to claim their first trophy with a win at BayArena.
Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel, who was not allowed to coach from the sidelines due to suspension, appeared to be planning to rest some of his players ahead of Bayern's second leg of the UEFA Champions League ahead of the game against Cologne. The company has decided to make several personnel changes. In a few days, they will face Arsenal in the quarter-finals.
Still, the record German champions did not want to fail again in a league match, so Cologne left as little breathing room as possible for most of the match. As has often been the case this season, Cologne mainly look to their opponents for attacking opportunities towards the end of the first half, with pacey striker Sargis Adamian positioned near the offside line throughout most of the first hour. was. The 30-year-old Armenian gave Bayern two chances early on, but failed to convert.
From then on, Bayern were in complete control, patiently waiting out the Cologne defense's mistakes. Guerreiro scored the winning goal in the 65th minute following a corner kick from Joshua Kimmich, while Müller cleared any remaining doubts in injury time by capitalizing on mistakes by Jakob Christensen and Luca Waldschmidt. Bayern would have needed solid performances like Saturday's more often throughout the season, but Cologne are clearly a below-average team at the moment.
While Cologne look to their future in the second division of the Bundesliga, local rivals Bayer Leverkusen are on the verge of their biggest success in the club's long history. It all comes down to Sunday's game against Bremen. — Konstantin Ekner
Americans overseas: Reina impressed with first start at Forest
It took a while for that to happen, but Gio Reyna was finally able to make his first start for Nottingham Forest, currently on loan at Borussia Dortmund. Despite appearing in eight games for Tricky Trees this season, the USMNT attacker did not start until Saturday's game against Wolves, setting up the assist from a corner kick to set up Morgan Gibbs-White and Nuno. – Did not disappoint director Espirito Santo's expectations. In the end, the hosts scored the equalizing goal in a game that ended in a 2-2 draw.
The forest will earn all the points it can get at this stage. With five games left until the end of the season, Reina's side sit just one point above the relegation zone, while Luton Town are currently bottom of the table with five games left until the end of the season.
What I like to see 🤩@USMNTGio Reyna recorded an assist in his first PL start. @NFFC! 🎁🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/HV95Lq7JHK
— Premier League USA (@PLinUSA) April 13, 2024
Meanwhile in Italy, Weston McKennie provided no inspiration for Juventus, who were scoreless. Derby della Mole They will enter the match against Torino while maintaining pole position to qualify for next season's Champions League. Finally, in the Netherlands, Serginho Dest and Malik Tillman both helped PSV beat Vitesse 6-0, moving them closer and closer to winning the Eredivisie title. It was also boosted by Tillman's second goal for Peter Bosz's side. — Roberto Rojas
news of the day
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Manchester City defeated Luton Town 5-1, with Erling Haaland scoring his 20th league goal of the season, moving them provisionally to the top of the Premier League. Josep Guardiola's side currently have 73 points from six games and remain in a three-way title race, with Arsenal and Liverpool potentially ahead of City if they win their respective matches on Sunday. There is a two point difference between both teams. Relegation-threatened Luton Town are in 18th place, just one point away from safety.
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Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marcel Sabitzer sparked drama in Germany on Saturday after his penalty against Borussia Mönchengladbach was canceled out by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), denying him a hat-trick. happened. It was later revealed that referee Florian Badstubner ruled that Omrin had touched the ball before bringing down Karim Adeyemi and ruled the penalty null and void. Dortmund won 2-1.
And finally on Saturday…
League One says “Welcome to Wrexham!” The Welsh club, co-owned by Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, defeated Forest Green Rovers 6-0 with two games to spare in their second EFL league season, making them the first English football league champions since 2005. Officially promoted to the 3rd division league.
Technically it is still possible to win the League Two title in Stockport County by beating the team above them (and who still have to play), but Wrexham have climbed up the English football pyramid and eventually continues his quest to achieve his goal of reaching the Promised Land. That's the Premier League.
If you had told me a few years ago that I would cry tears of joy at a football match in North Wales, you would have been Rob McElhenney. Congratulations to Wrexham and my crime co-chairs. Let's double the city! This is the vehicle of our life. 🏴 · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ·
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) April 13, 2024
Still, Reynolds and McElhenny remain proud of their Welsh club and expressed it on social media.
Wrexham have been promoted to the National League, League Two and then League One in quick succession and, if they can achieve further promotion, Wrexham could be playing in the Premier League in 2026. Of course there is a long way to go, but the dream remains. Unharmed. – LOHAS