BARCELONA
won to remain top of La Liga with two matches left but Atletico Madrid
and Real Madrid stayed on their tails, while Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga
title party was wrecked.
Catch up on all the overseas action in EuroBeat!LA LIGA
Barcelona remain on top of La Liga with two games remaining as goals from Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suarez earned a 2-0 win over 10-man Real Betis on Saturday.
On a day of high tension when all three title contenders were at one point top of the table, Antoine
Griezmann came off the bench to score the winner in Atletico Madrid’s 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano to remain behind Barca solely due to their inferior head-to-head record.
Gareth Bale’s thunderous header 10 minutes from time kept an under-strength Real Madrid just a point behind the leaders in third in a 1-0 victory at Real Sociedad.
Bale header wins it for RealBarca need to win their two remaining games at home to Espanyol and away to Granada to be assured of retaining their title and were given a huge helping hand by Betis despite an unconvincing performance.
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Belgium » Jupiler League 2015/2016 :
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“I don’t think either of the other two are going to drop points so we have to win our games,” said Barca boss Luis Enrique.
“We need to concentrate on ourselves, be the best in attack and defence and resolve the game with the belief we have shown today.” Betis defender Heiko Westermann was deservedly sent-off 10 minutes before half-time when he chopped down Rakitic to see his second yellow card in seven minutes.
Ivan Rakitic (L) celebrates a goal.Source: AFPRakitic took advantage of more Betis generosity five minutes after half-time when he was left with the simple task to slotting into an empty net after German Pezzella and goalkeeper Antonio Adan failed to cut out Lionel Messi’s cross.
Suarez fired straight at Adan when gifted a golden chance by Messi to seal the points 17 minutes from time.
However, the Uruguayan made amends from another sensational Messi through ball eight minutes later to register his 54th goal of the season.
Luis Suarez celebrates after scoring.Source: AFPIn San Sebastian, Bale inspired a Real Madrid side without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema to a 10th straight La Liga win.
“I am happy for him because he has had problems this season with injury, but when is fit you notice,” Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane said of Bale.
“We could have scored earlier in the first-half, but we had to work until the end against a difficult side.
“I am happy with the performance and to get three points once again.”
Real Madrid's Gareth Bale (L) celebrates his goal.Source: APAs well as the absent Ronaldo and Benzema, Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane rested Marcelo, Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos with one eye on the return leg of their Champions League semi-final against Manchester City on Wednesday.
Bale was a constant threat in the air as he twice saw powerful headers fly just wide as Madrid completely dominated the hosts before the break.
The visitors continued to press after the break, but Geronimo Rulli looked set to end their title hopes as the
Argentine made a brilliant save to deny Bale from another fine Rodriguez cross.
Yet, a week after leading Real back from a two-goal deficit at Rayo Vallecano, Bale made the difference again when he got across his marker to bullet home a header from Lucas Vazquez’s cross.
Gareth Bale (C) heads the ball towards goal.Source: AFPAtletico boss Diego Simeone also showed his priorities lie with the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich in midweek as he made seven changes to the side that beat the German champions 1-0 on Wednesday.
However, Atletico’s youngsters struggled for the opening 55 minutes until Griezmann rode to the rescue.
The French international made a sensational and instant impact after coming off the bench as he controlled a loose ball on the edge of the area before thrashing a volley into the bottom corner for his 30th goal of the season.
And despite a late Rayo onslaught, Atletico held out to record their 34th clean sheet of the season.
“The important thing was to win and on a personal level I’m happy to score the goal,” Griezmann told Movistar+.
“Now we need to rest. We have a great game to come on Tuesday and we’ll try to get a good result there to go through to the final.”
Antoine Griezmann celebrates his goal.Source: APBUNDESLIGA
Bayern Munich’s party was wrecked by Borussia Moenchengladbach who hit back for a 1-1 draw at the Allianz Arena on Saturday, forcing the Bavarians to wait at least a week to clinch a fourth straight Bundesliga title.
Bayern, needing a win to wrap up the championship, were made to pay for their complacency as they rotated their team and sat back after Thomas Mueller had given them an early lead.
The 75,000 capacity home crowd, clearly believing the match was a formality after seeing their team win 14 of their previous 15 home league games this season, were stunned when Andre Hahn equalised midway through the second half.
(L-R) Bayern Munich's Kingsley Coman, Thomas Mueller and Serdar Tasci celebrate their goal.Source: AFPSecond-placed Borussia Dortmund closed the gap to five points by thrashing VfL Wolfsburg 5-1, helped by two second-half goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Bayer Leverkusen’s 19-year-old winger Julian Brandt scored for the sixth league game in a row to set them on the way to a 2-1 victory over Hertha Berlin.
The win guaranteed Leverkusen a top-three finish and a place in the Champions League group stage for the fourth season in a row, while Gladbach now occupy the playoff spot after leapfrogging Hertha into fourth place.
Bayern still remain firm favourites for the title with their remaining games away to mid-table Ingolstadt
Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrates after scoring his second goal.Source: APSERIE A
Fiorentina were held to a 0-0 draw by Chievo on Saturday which kept them in fifth place in Serie A and facing a potentially tortuous route in next season’s Europa League.
Fiorentina are four points behind Inter Milan who face Lazio on Sunday where the result could be crucial -- a fourth-place finish in Serie A guarantees a group phase spot in the Europa League but a fifth-place means featuring in two preliminary rounds.
Chievo had the best chances on Saturday with Nicola Rigoni hitting the post in the 57th minute and Antonio Floro Flores twice squandering good openings.
Chievo Verona's Sergio Pellissier (L) and Fiorentina's Nenad Tomovic go for the ball.Source: APLIGUE 1
Lyon beat Gazelec-Ajaccio 2-1 on Saturday to hold on to the coveted Ligue 1 runner-up spot and automatic entry to the Champions League.
The former multiple French champions are in a tight battle with Monaco for second, with only goal difference splitting the teams.
Monaco kept the pressure on Lyon with a 3-2 defeat of Guingamp to set up a winner-takes-all clash between the sides next weekend.
Earlier, Nantes delivered a damaging blow to Nice’s Champions League hopes as they inflicted a 1-0 defeat on Claude Puel’s side.
Nice slipped to fifth, one point behind Saint-Etienne who drew 0-0 with Toulouse as Nantes snapped a run of five games without a win.
Lyon's Maxwel Cornet (L) celebrates after scoring a goal.Source: AFPCREDIT TO:http://www.foxsports.com.au/football/eurobeat-barca-stay-top-of-la-liga-atletico-real-right-behind-bayerns-bundesliga-titleparty-wrecked/news-story/9aa7f12a3810519d4084005cccfab26d
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