Real Madrid’s 3-2 comeback win over Atletico has seen them regain the top spot in La Liga, while Bayern Munich have extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga. Juventus and Barcelona are struggling to maintain form after suffering heavy defeats last weekend.
Real Madrid’s derby delight; Bayern tighten Bundesliga grip; Juventus, Barcelona struggle: Weekend review. Read more in detail here: real madrid schedule .
Was this the weekend when the presidents of Spain and Germany made major decisions? Fans of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich hope so! In other news, Juventus lost more points, a USMNT teenager scored a crucial goal, and Manchester United praised their world-class goalie.
Rob Dawson, Andrew Cesare Richardson, Alex Kirkland, Sam Marsden, and James Tyler bring you the latest news from Europe.
Go to: Hot topics | Top goals | Difficult teams | MVP of the weekend
There are four items to consider.
On derby day, Real Madrid defeats Atletico Madrid
Real Madrid reinforced their hold on the top of the standings with an easy 2-0 victory against Atletico Madrid putting LaLiga in danger of becoming a one-team league this season. Carlo Ancelotti’s team has won their past ten games in all competitions, putting them eight points ahead of Sevilla in second place. Atletico Madrid and Barcelona are 13 and 18 points behind, respectively, despite the fact that Madrid has played one more game.
Madrid is the most effective attacking side in Spain, owing in large part to Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior, who both scored in Sunday’s Madrid derby. Both goals were set up by Vinicius, the first by Karim Benzema and the second by Marco Asensio. Benzema has already scored 18 goals in all competitions, the most in Spain. Vinicius is second with 12, and both have seven assists. Thibaut Courtois is in excellent form at the opposite end of the field, as Atletico discovered.
Sevilla and Real Betis, both from Seville, are currently Madrid’s closest opponents in the league, but Madrid is the only club standing between them and the LaLiga title. For this to go away, it would need a massive implosion. Marsden’s words
WOW! 🔥
Vinicius Jr. crosses for Karim Benzema to volley home. pic.twitter.com/L9mxA2YtbD
12 December 2021 — ESPN FC (@ESPNFC)
Is it Bayern Munich’s to lose in the Bundesliga?
Just over a week after Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund were separated in the table by one point ahead of their Klassiker match-up, the gap has widened to six; the title race may not yet be over, but the head-spinning shift in momentum has firmly placed the rest of the league in the champions’ rearview mirror.
Following Bayern’s controversial victory in Dortmund, the rivals had winnable games against Mainz and Bochum, respectively. Both teams were down a goal, but Bayern was able to come back and win all three points, while Dortmund had to settle for a draw.
Bayern struck twice in the second half after falling down to Karim Onisiwo’s 22nd-minute header. Kingsley Coman calmly slammed home Corentin Tolisso’s long ball before Jamal Musiala’s thunderous low drive ended the game.
In the first half, Dortmund struggled to generate opportunities and fell down to a Sebastian Polter penalty after Gregor Kobel brought down Christopher Antwi-Adjei. BVB dominated the second half, but Julian Brandt’s 85th-minute goal was all they could produce. Tyler’s comment
Thanks to goals from Kingsley #Coman and @JamalMusiala, @FCBayernEN come from behind to increase their advantage at the. pic.twitter.com/Drdx38bN8Z
11 December 2021 — Bundesliga English (@Bundesliga EN)
Wolves’ dreams are shattered by Jimenez.
It’ll be difficult to find a more egregious red card than Raul Jimenez’s red card against Manchester City on Saturday. As halftime neared, the Mexico international’s team seemed to be in control at 0-0, only for a minute of lunacy to swing the game in favor of the Premier League winners.
2 Related
As City attempted to react, Jimenez was booked for a challenge on Rodri on the halfway line. The 30-year-old then added insult to injury by failing to withdraw from the second free kick and sticking his leg out to stop the ball. With a second yellow card, Wolves will have to play 45 minutes with only ten men. Jimenez seemed to play up to City supporters’ booing and jeering at the conclusion of a peculiar chapter.
Wolves were trapped on the outside of their penalty area as City attacked in waves, despite looking sturdy in defence and threatening on the break. They held out for more than 20 minutes, but Raheem Sterling’s contentious second-half penalty finally broke them down.
Things may have turned out differently if Jimenez hadn’t made a mistake. Dawson’s words
Raul Jimenez receives two yellow cards in one minute, reducing Wolves to ten men. #MCIWOL #MyPLMorning pic.twitter.com/GKKlb44O0g #MCIWOL #MCIWOL #MCIWOL #MCIWOL #MCIWOL #MCIWOL #MCIWOL
December 11, 2021 NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer)
Strikers, both young and elderly, put on a Serie A display.
As Italy’s top flight continued to show that it has a wealth of quality centre-forwards, Zlatan Ibrahimovic produced more heroics at the age of 40 to rescue a point for AC Milan, and a player 19 years his junior starred again to move clear in the Capocannoniere race, a player 19 years his junior starred again to move clear in the Capocannoniere race.
Dusan Vlahovic of Fiorentina, who scored twice in Saturday’s 4-0 triumph against Salernitana and established more club history in the process, leads all scorers with 15 goals. The Serbian’s 32 goals in 2021 are more than Gabriel Batistuta and Luca Toni combined for just a calendar year during their tenure at La Viola.
– LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, and more on ESPN+ – Watch ESPN FC every day on ESPN+ (U.S. only) – If you don’t have ESPN, you’re out of luck. Get immediate access
Vlahovic has three games left until the end of the year to score the two goals he needs to surpass Ronaldo’s 71-year high of 33, which he set in 2020, but might this be his last match in Florence? Vlahovic’s agent, Davide Torchia, has indicated that the 21-year-old, whose contract ends in 2023, may be available in January.
Nicely other news, Giovanni Simeone looks to have settled in at Hellas Verona, with his 12th league goal coming against Atalanta on Sunday. And keep an eye on Udinese attacker Beto, who scored the first goal against AC Milan on Saturday after scoring twice against Lazio. Richardson’s words
Three objectives that you must see
What a moment for Richards of the United States Men’s National Team!
A header from a corner may not seem to be the finest goal on the surface, but US defender Chris Richards would undoubtedly disagree. After all, his 94th-minute set-piece goal earned Hoffenheim a crucial 2-1 victory against Freiburg, keeping them in contention for a top-four finish in the Bundesliga.
It was particularly important since it was Richards’ first Bundesliga goal, something the on-loan Bayern Munich defender earned after an excellent second season at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena. Tyler’s comment
Chris Richards of the United States Men’s national team scored the game-winning goal for Hoffenheim tonight in stoppage time! It was his first goal in the Bundesliga.
Take a look at what it means. pic.twitter.com/VVUKw5E6UH
December 11, 2021 — ESPN FC (@ESPNFC)
Delaney is the game-winner for Sevilla.
Sevilla beat Athletic Bilbao against the run of play to remain Real Madrid’s closest competitors in LaLiga, eight points behind with a game in hand, thanks to Thomas Delaney’s superb effort.
With a wonderful left-footed strike from the corner of the box at San Mames, the Danish midfielder struck the top corner. Delaney’s first goal for the club since coming from Borussia Dortmund came from Sevilla’s lone attempt on target, punishing Athletic for their profligacy at the opposite end — Marsden
HIGHLIGHTS | Thomas Delaney scores a stunning goal for @SevillaFC ENG against San Mames.
#AthleticSevillaFC pic.twitter.com/2TLrM1cTPv #AthleticSevillaFC
December 11, 2021 — LaLiga English (@LaLigaEN)
Maddison states his case.
James Maddison will score more stunning goals than the late goal that sealed Leicester’s 4-0 victory against Newcastle on Sunday, but few will illustrate his attacking abilities better.
Brendan Rodgers may not have always liked Maddison, but the Leicester manager would have been pleased with the manner the 25-year-old bounced a ball off Patson Daka before marching into the penalty area and beating Martin Dubravka. It was a simple yet effective goal that concluded an outstanding day. Dawson’s words
There are two teams that should be concerned.
Is Allegri the appropriate guy for the job as Juventus manager?
The question is valid, to the surprise of many, following another disappointing result, in which Juve surrendered a lead to draw 1-1 at struggling Venezia, leaving the Bianconeri four points outside the top four, 11 points behind second-placed AC Milan, and 12 points behind Inter as the season draws to a close.
Allegri, a five-time Serie A champion, returned to Juventus with the task of restoring the club’s nine-year Scudetto dominance. While Pep Guardiola, Antonio Conte and others have profited from sabbaticals, may Allegri’s time off have seen him miss out on football? He is incapable of fixing in-game concerns, despite the fact that this was formerly his forte. Yes, better players are required, but he should be able to get more from what he now has.
Juve won their Champions League group despite Chelsea tearing them apart at Stamford Bridge and Zenit St Petersburg twice giving up leads, but Allegri’s squad will undoubtedly be considered as an advantageous draw for Europe’s best. Unpredictability and inconsistency are not usually connected with the club, but they are the defining characteristics of this season’s squad. Richardson’s words
MATTIA ARAMU HIT IT ON THE HEAD.
IN THE FIGHT AGAINST JUVE, VENEZIA HAS FOUND THE EQUALIZER. GET IN THE GAME! pic.twitter.com/SioGn1DHbn
December 11, 2021 — CBS Sports Golazo (@CBSSportsGolazo)
Xavi recognizes the magnitude of his Barcelona challenge.
At Barcelona, Xavi Hernandez has been bitten by reality. Barca has now gone three games without a victory after victories over Espanyol and Villarreal sandwiched by a draw against Benfica in his first three outings. They drew 2-2 with Osasuna on Sunday after sliding out of the champions league and into the Europa League and plummeting to seventh in LaLiga.
Barca are now fighting to even reach the top four and qualify for the Champions League next season, rather than contending for the championship with Real Madrid
There are some positives, such as the young players who are coming through, but even that is a concern for Xavi. After seeing 19-year-olds Nico Gonzalez and Abde Ezzalzouli score their first goals for the club against Osasuna, and 17-year-old Gavi impress once again, the new Barca manager claimed it was “tough to swallow” that the team had grown so dependent on juveniles.
A trip to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to compete in the Diego Maradona Cup against Boca Juniors is not the kind of preparation they need for their match against Eibar on Saturday, according to defender Gerard Pique, who describes the situation as “critical” and says Barca “urgently needs to get back to winning ways.” Marsden’s words
HIGHLIGHTS | In an El Sadar thriller, Chimy Avila’s equaliser wipes out Nico and Abde’s initial goals.
#OsasunaBarça pic.twitter.com/QjGQlQ2DrI #OsasunaBarça pic.twitter.com/QjGQlQ2DrI
12 December 2021 — LaLiga English (@LaLigaEN)
Weekend MVP
Dave rescues Man United once again.
On Saturday, Ralf Rangnick owes David De Gea a debt of gratitude for tilting the scales in his favor. Manchester United’s interim coach left Norwich with a 1-0 victory, extending his undefeated start at Old Trafford, but there may have been difficult questions about how one of the world’s most brilliant teams lost to the league’s worst club if it hadn’t been for his goalie.
De Gea has been one of United’s greatest players this season, despite facing little competition, and he extended his excellent form at Carrow Road. He made a world-class stop from Ozan Kabak’s header after the Norwich defender had gotten up above Harry Maguire — United hadn’t had a league clean sheet since March — Dawson
Watch This Video-
Related Tags
- real madrid next game
- real madrid fc
- juventus vs barcelona
verifiedtasks
admin
