MADRID: In a slump and facing the hottest team in Spain, Barcelona came through with an important win for its title hopes and quelled any fears of a late collapse.
Barcelona ended a three-game winless streak — and Atletico Madrid’s 13-game unbeaten run — with a hard-fought 1-0 win on Sunday to stay on track for its first Spanish league title in four years. The home win restored the team’s comfortable 11-point lead over Real Madrid with eight rounds remaining.
The victory also halted a six-game winning streak by Atletico, which lost ground to Madrid in the fight for second place. Madrid, which is focused on the Champions League and the Copa del Rey final, beat Celta Vigo 2-0 at home on Saturday.
Ferran Torres scored a 44th-minute winner at Camp Nou with a well-placed low shot from just inside the area to end Barcelona’s recent problems entering the final stretch.
It hadn’t scored in three straight games after being humiliated at home by Madrid 4-0 in the Copa del Rey semifinals and held to scoreless draws against modest league opponents in Girona and Getafe.
“We had to win no matter what, it was an important match to keep us on track to winning the league,” Torres said. “It was difficult, against a team that was unbeaten in 13 matches and that was one of the hottest teams this season.”
It was the 23rd clean sheet in the league for Barcelona, which last won the league title in 2019. It has conceded only nine goals in 30 league matches this season.
Third-place Atletico, which has the second-best defense with 22 goals conceded, trails Madrid by five points.
It was the third straight win by Barcelona over Diego Simeone’s team, whose last win against the Catalan club was in 2021. Atletico is winless at Camp Nou in 17 consecutive league matches. Its last league loss this season had been at Barcelona in January.
“They deserved the victory because they were more efficient,” Simeone said. “We had our chances but didn’t take advantage of them.”
Atletico, the 2021 champion, threatened first with a shot by Antoine Griezmann that hit the crossbar three minutes into the match.
Atletico struggled early in the season, quickly falling out of contention for the league title and finishing its Champions League group in last place, but it had been the hottest team in Spain in 2023.
Barcelona coach Xavi had the return of Pedri and Frenkie de Jong after they missed several matches because of injuries.
SEVILLA’S MOMENTUM
Youssef En-Nesyri scored a winner four minutes into stoppage time as Sevilla kept its momentum with a 2-1 win over Villarreal at home.
It was the third victory in a row for Sevilla, which eliminated Manchester United in the Europa League midweek. It moved to 12th.
Villarreal stayed sixth after its second straight loss and missed a chance to move closer to the Champions League places.
RELIEF FOR VALENCIA
Valencia took a step forward in its fight against relegation with a 2-0 win at last-place Elche.
The result ended Valencia’s 10-match winless streak in away matches in the league. It had lost eight in a row on the road.
Valencia stayed in 18th place with the same points as 17th-place Almeria, the first team outside the relegation zone.
Elche is 17 points from safety.
GETAFE IN DANGER
South Korean midfielder Lee Kang-in scored a pair of second-half goals as Mallorca came from behind to beat relegation-threatened Getafe 3-1 at home.
Mallorca moved to 10th place, while Getafe dropped to 16th and one point from the relegation zone.
Barcelona ends Atletico’s winning run, moves closer to title
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Barcelona ends Atletico’s winning run, moves closer to title
- Ferran Torres scored a 44th-minute winner at Camp Nou with a well-placed low shot from just inside the area to end Barcelona’s recent problems entering the final stretch
Atletico held at Alaves in dry Liga draw
- Diego Simeone’s side have little to play for in the final weeks of the season
- Alaves, however, moved provisionally 16th, three points clear of the relegation zone
VITORIA, Spain: Atletico Madrid were held to a dull 0-0 draw at relegation-battling Alaves on Saturday in La Liga.
Diego Simeone’s side have little to play for in the final weeks of the season, sitting third with Champions League qualification virtually assured and leaders Barcelona nine points ahead of them.
Alaves, however, moved provisionally 16th, three points clear of the relegation zone with an important point against their illustrious visitors.
Julian Alvarez was sent off in the only moment to get pulses racing in the first half when he connected high on Argentine compatriot Facundo Garces’ leg, but the referee downgraded his red card to yellow after a VAR review.
Simeone took off his son Giuliano and Antoine Griezmann as he looked for more energy, bringing on Samuel Lino and regular super-sub Alexander Sorloth.
Antonio Sivera saved a Lino long-range effort, Atletico’s first shot on target, with around 20 minutes remaining as what had been a soporific battle burst belatedly into life.
Jan Oblak made a superb low stop to thwart Kike Garcia from close range as Eduardo Caudet’s hosts almost found a way through.
Sivera clawed out a Clement Lenglet effort and Angel Correa could not convert at the end of a swift counter-attack as Atletico threatened but could not find a winner.
“Neither side could get the upper hand, either in possession or in attack, there were no shots in the first half — the game was played in the middle of the pitch without any danger,” admitted Simeone, who turned his attention to the Club World Cup this summer.
“We’ve earned (qualification) on our merit... the Club World Cup, a significant milestone for the last four years of work.”
Ayoze Perez struck twice for Villarreal as they beat Osasuna 4-2 to close in on Champions League qualification for next season.
The top five La Liga teams qualify and the Yellow Submarine are currently fifth, four points clear of Real Betis who visit Espanyol on Sunday.
Villa boost top five bid, Southampton beaten at Leicester
- Seventh-placed Villa extended their unbeaten run on home turf to 20 games in all competitions
- Emery said: “Today, we got more or less to be close to Europe. Wow, fantastic, brilliant”
LONDON: Unai Emery vowed Aston Villa will fight until the end for a place in the Champions League after boosting their bid with a 1-0 win against Fulham on Saturday.
Emery’s side are back in the hunt to finish in the Premier League’s top five thanks to Youri Tielemans’ 12th-minute header at Villa Park.
Seventh-placed Villa extended their unbeaten run on home turf to 20 games in all competitions, lifting them level with sixth-placed Nottingham Forest and fifth-placed Chelsea on 60 points.
After bouncing back from their dismal FA Cup semifinal loss to Crystal Palace last weekend, Villa will hope their rivals falter over the weekend as the top five race heads for a dramatic climax.
“If we weren’t winning today, forget it completely,” Emery said.
“Today, we got more or less to be close to Europe. Wow, fantastic, brilliant. The best gift we can achieve after it is the Europa League or Champions League.
“Champions League, okay. We are not favorites to get it because there is Nottingham Forest in front of us, Manchester City, Chelsea and Newcastle.
“But we will fight for it, Europe, and hopefully we can fight for the Champions League.”
Southampton wasted a chance to avoid a share of the lowest points total in Premier League history as Jamie Vardy’s 199th Leicester goal inspired a 2-0 win at the King Power Stadium.
Simon Rusk’s bottom of the table team are trying to avoid finishing with just 11 points — which would match Derby’s low mark set in 2007-08.
But Southampton’s hopes of getting a 12th point quickly faded against fellow relegated side Leicester.
After announcing last week that he will leave the club at the end of the season, the 38-year-old Vardy bagged a farewell goal as he put second-bottom Leicester ahead in the 17th minute.
The game was delayed for 11 minutes when referee David Webb was forced off with a head injury after colliding with Leicester’s Jordan Ayew.
Vardy cheekily blew the referee’s whistle while he was being treated.
Leicester finally won for the first time since January as Ayew grabbed the second goal in the 44th minute.
Southampton have now lost 28 of their 35 league games and have three matches left to avoid sharing the low points record with Derby.
Relegated Ipswich fought back from two goals down to draw 2-2 in Everton’s penultimate match at Goodison Park.
Kieran McKenna’s third-bottom side trailed to Beto’s 26th minute goal and Dwight McNeil’s effort nine minutes later.
But Julio Enciso ‘s 30-yard rocket reduced the deficit in the 41st minute and George Hirst equalized with 11 minutes left.
Everton’s emotional last match at Goodison before moving to their new Bramley-Moore Dock stadium next season comes against Southampton on May 18.
Second-placed Arsenal host Bournemouth in Saturday’s late game as the Gunners warm up for their Champions League semifinal showdown with Paris Saint-Germain.
Mikel Arteta’s side lost 1-0 in the first leg on Tuesday and head to France for the second leg on Wednesday as they look to reach the final for the first time since 2006.
Leipzig put Bayern and Kane’s title party on ice
- Leroy Sane looked to have completed the comeback and clinch the title
- The result keeps Bayer Leverkusen’s slim chances of defending their Bundesliga title alive
MUNICH: Bayern Munich and Harry Kane’s German Bundesliga title party was delayed by at least a day after RB Leipzig’s Yussuf Poulsen scored a stoppage-time equalizer in a 3-3 home draw on Saturday.
With Kane sitting in the stands due to a yellow card suspension, Bayern fell two down by half-time, Leipzig scoring twice in teaming rain in Saxony through Benjamin Sesko and Lucas Klostermann.
Bayern then scored twice in 46 seconds through Eric Dier and Michael Olize to level things up with just under 30 minutes remaining.
Leroy Sane looked to have completed the comeback and clinch the title, hitting an unstoppable shot from the right of goal on the 83rd-minute mark.
But Poulsen, subbed on with 30 minutes to go, chipped the ball over Urbig in the fifth minute of stoppage time to snatch a draw.
The result keeps Bayer Leverkusen’s slim chances of defending their Bundesliga title alive.
Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen play at Freiburg on Sunday and need to win their three remaining games, with Bayern, who have a significant goal difference advantage, needing just a point to lift the title.
Leipzig grabbed the lead 11 minutes in when Sesko pounced on a mistake from visiting ‘keeper Jonas Urbig, who was slipped while well outside of his penalty box, allowing the Slovenian to hit a long-range shot home.
Klostermann doubled Leipzig’s lead shortly before half-time, heading in from a David Raum header.
Leipzig, who needed a win to boost their hopes of Champions League football next season, were in control and looked on track for victory until Bayern shocked the hosts with two goals in 46 seconds.
Dier headed in from a corner, his third goal in his past four games, before Olize made the most of a Leipzig defensive mistake to level the scores.
Sane’s late goal sent Bayern’s bench wild.
As the clock wound down, a beaming Kane made his way down from the stands to the sidelines, ready to collect the title of his career.
Poulsen was however sent through on goal by Xavi Simons and cooly chipped the ‘keeper to delay Bayern’s party by at least a day.
Later on Sunday, Borussia Dortmund can keep their top-four hopes alive with a win at home against Wolfsburg.
Champions League finalists last season, Dortmund were as low as 11th this year but have won four of their past five.
Chile footballer Vidal cleared of suspicion in sexual assault case
- The woman accused Vidal and other Colo Colo players of sexual assault
- Other unnamed members of Vidal’s team remain under investigation
SANTIAGO: Chilean football star Arturo Vidal has been cleared of suspicion of sexual assault, prosecutors said Saturday, adding that the complaint made by a woman over a party at a Santiago night club had been dismissed.
The woman accused Vidal, 37, and other players from his first-division Colo Colo side of sexual assault at a club, where the footballers were celebrating a birthday on November 4.
“We were able to reconstitute the events of that day and, ultimately, there is no evidence to support charges,” prosecutor Felipe Cembrano said in a video sent to the media.
Other unnamed members of Vidal’s team remain under investigation, however.
Former Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus and Inter Milan midfielder Vidal returned last year to Colo Colo, where he started his career at 17.
He was part of the so-called “Golden Generation” that led Chile to victory in the 2015 Copa America.
Man City climb to third as De Bruyne sinks Wolves
MANCHESTER: Manchester City moved closer to qualifying for the Champions League as Kevin De Bruyne sealed a vital 1-0 win against Wolves on Friday.
Pep Guardiola’s side are embroiled in a tense battle for a top five finish in the Premier League and De Bruyne lifted them to third place with his first half strike at the Etihad Stadium.
For just the second time in a turbulent campaign, City have reeled off five successive wins in all competitions.
It was a major boost to City’s hopes of securing a place in Europe’s elite club competition.
“We are better than we were weeks ago. If we play like we did today, it is really good but we cannot relax. Winning in that way is good because it will make us realize that we still need to work,” Guardiola said.
After 10 years with City, it was De Bruyne’s penultimate appearance at the Etihad after the midfielder was told he will not get a new contract when his present deal expires at the end of the season.
It was only the sixth goal this season for the 33-year-old Belgian, underlining why Guardiola has decided to release him after an injury-plagued decline over the last two years.
But De Bruyne’s contribution could be crucial for City, who have three matches left and hold a four-point advantage over sixth-placed Nottingham Forest, who play their game in hand against Crystal Palace on Monday.
Fourth-placed Newcastle and fifth-placed Chelsea also have a game in hand over City heading into the weekend’s fixtures.
Hinting he could stay in the Premier League after leaving City, De Bruyne said. “A lot of teammates have said that it’s sad I have to go, but that’s just how it goes sometimes in life.
“I don’t know what the future will be, but I know that I can still play here. I try to play as much good football as I can. I’m still enjoying it.”
Guardiola saluted De Bruyne, saying: “Just thank you. His contribution in the game against Crystal Palace when we were 2-0 down and he delivers, and today the goal again.
“I want the best for Kevin. It cannot be possible to have done these many years without him.
“He has been an incredible player but the situation is what it is. It’s almost impossible to replace this kind of player.”
Even qualifying for the Champions League and winning the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace will not salvage the season in Guardiola’s eyes after their four-year reign as English champions came to a limp end.
Surrendering the title to Liverpool was bad enough, but missing out on a place in the Champions League for the first time since 2010-11 would be a complete catastrophe and this result kept them on course to avoid that fate.
Guardiola sprang a surprise by naming Erling Haaland as an unused substitute as the Norway striker returned ahead of schedule from the ankle injury he suffered at Bournemouth in March.
Wolves arrived buoyed by six successive top-flight victories for the first time since 1970-71 and their confidence was clear after such a successful streak.
Not for the first time this season, City were creaking at the back.
They rode their luck to escape as Rayan Ait-Nouri fired against the post from close-range before his effort from the rebound was cleared off the line by Josko Gvardiol.
Guardiola’s men recovered their composure and the breakthrough came in the 35th minute with the kind of flowing move that has been City’s trademark in De Bruyne’s decade in Manchester.
Ilkay Gundogan made a break from midfield and slipped his pass to Jeremy Doku, who deftly eluded his marker before pulled the ball back to the unmarked De Bruyne.
Having cleverly found space just inside the Wolves area, De Bruyne held his nerve to slot past Jose Sa, a finish that showed City what they will miss next season.
Wolves still carried a threat and Matheus Cunha rattled the post with a stinging strike from the edge of the area in the second half.
