EUROPEAN FOOTBALL ROUND-UP
Seven and crusing
EPL: Man Utd’s 3-1 victory over Spurs on Saturday had piled pressure on Chelsea to win against Stoke, however, they duly responded thrashing Stoke 7-0. Kalou got a hat-trick, Frank Lampard a double and Daniel Sturridge and Florent Malouda a goal each. Aston Villa kept themselves in the mix for fourth spot with a controversial James Milner penalty to win 1-0 over Birmingham. Liverpool’s faint hope of clinching fourth spot remains in tact as a Steven Gerrard brace inspired them to a 4-0 hammering of Burnley at Turf Moor. Eyeing the Europa League semi-finals against Hamburg, Fulham rested a number of their first teams stars and were beaten 2-1 by Everton thanks to an extra-time penalty from Mikel Arteta. Champions League-chasing Manchester City held Arsenal to a goalless draw while Portsmouth fought back from 2-0 down to earn a draw against Bolton. Darren Bent scored his 24th goal of the season to give Sunderland a 1-0 win over Hull. West Ham’s game against Wigan was heading for a draw when Scott Parker produced a sensational long-range effort to give West Ham three valuable points in a 3-2 victory. Wolves ensured their survival with a 1-1 draw with Blackburn.
Business as Usual
La Liga: Barcelona and Real Madrid remain separated at the top of La Liga by just a point as both claimed victories. Thierry Henry scored on his return to the team in Barca’s 3-1 win over Xerez while Kaka did the same in Madrid’s 2-1 win over Zaragoza. A David Villa penalty was enough for Valencia to claim victory over Deportivo. Mallorca’s Champions League hopes suffered a dent as they drew 1-1 at home to ten-men Malaga. Atletico Madrid warmed up for their Europa League semi-finals clash with Liverpool with an easy 3-1 victory over Tenerife. Nilmar and Diego Godin struck twice in the last 20 minutes to hand Villarreal a 2-1 win over Racing Santander. Valladolid gave themselves a boost with a 2-0 victory over Sporting Gijon. Espanyol gave themselves breathing space from the relegation zone with a 1-0 win over fellow strugglers Almeria. Luis Garcia’s 54th minute was enough to give the Barcelona-based side the victory. Getafe came from behind twice to defeat Champions League chasers Sevilla 4-3.
Inter Back on Top
Serie A: Inter Milan returned to the top of Serie A with a 3-1 win over Atalanta, however, arch rivals AC Milan were soundly beaten by the same score at the hands of Palermo. Cesare Bovo gave Palermo the lead and Fabrizio Miccoli sealed the win in the 69th minute. Lazio and Bologna had similar 2-1 wins over Genoa and Parma respectively. Chievo clinched Serie A survival with an impressive 2-0 win over European chasers Fiorentina. Vincenzo Iaquinta scored a brace to give Juventus an easy 3-0 victory over Bari. A first-half brace from Simone Pepe set up Udinese for a 4-1 win over Siena. Three goals in 16 minutes saw Livorno defeat Catania 3-1. Roma slipped to second in Serie A after they were beaten 2-1 at home by Sampdoria. Giampaolo Pazzini scored both goals for Sampdoria who are chasing a place in next season’s Champions League. Napoli’s European ambitions suffered a setback as they drew 0-0 with Cagliari.
Bayern Slip
Bundesliga: Bayern Munich could only manage a 1-1 draw at Borussia Monchengladbach as they slipped up in the Bundesliga title race. Bayern’s slip was made all the worse as title rivals Schalke edged cellar dwellers’ Hertha Berlin 1-0. Bayer Leverkusen defeated Hannover 3-0 but was pushed to fourth by Werder Bremen who moved into third with a 1-0 win over Cologne. Lucas Barrios scored a hat-trick to give Borussia Dortmund a 3-2 victory over Nurnberg. Meanwhile Eintracht Frankfurt and Mainz played out a thrilling 3-3 draw. Vedad Ibisevic and Chinedu Obasi each bagged a brace as Hoffenheim ended a seven-game winless streak with a thumping 5-1 win over Hamburg. Freiburg boosted their chances of beating the drop with a 1-0 victory over Wolfsburg.