03 Mar Soccer Insights – March Vol. 1
Chelsea grabbed the first piece of silverware available in England, Real Madrid dropped crucial points in the race for La Liga, and Borussia Dortmund continued their resurgence. We’ve got all the latest in this week’s Soccer Insights!
Premier League
Results
Arsenal 2-0 Everton
Burnley 0-1 Swansea
Liverpool 2-1 Manchester City
Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland
Newcastle 1-0 Aston Villa
Stoke 1-0 Hull
West Brom 1-0 Southampton
West Ham 1-3 Crystal Palace
Table
1. Chelsea 60pts
2. Man City 55pts
3. Arsenal 51pts
4. Man United 50pts
5. Liverpool 48pts
Talking points
• Liverpool put a severe dent in Manchester City’s title challenge with a deserved win at Anfield. For the second season running, the winning goal was scored by Brazilian midfielder Coutinho.
• There was a case of mistaken identity at Old Trafford when Wes Brown was sent off after conceding a penalty, despite the offense seeming to have been committed by John O’Shea. Brown has since had his red card rescinded.
• It was a perfect weekend for Chelsea. Not only did their closest rivals lose, but they triumphed 2-0 over Tottenham at Wembley to lift the League Cup, Mourinho’s first trophy since his return to the club.
La Liga
Results
Almeria 0-0 Deportivo
Celta Vigo 1-1 Elche
Eibar 0-1 Athletic Bilbao
Espanyol 1-0 Cordoba
Granada 1-3 Barcelona
Malaga 3-2 Getafe
Rayo Vallecano 4-2 Levante
Real Madrid 1-1 Villarreal
Sevilla 0-0 Atletico Madrid
Valencia 2-0 Real Sociedad
Table
1. Real Madrid 61pts
2. Barcelona 59pts
3. Atletico Madrid 54pts
4. Valencia 53pts
5. Sevilla 46pts
Talking points
• Los Blancos slipped up against Villarreal to allow Barcelona to close the gap to two points. Madrid had taken the lead after (another) penalty from Ronaldo.
• Barcelona put in a workmanlike performance to claim a win at Granada, which included one of the most unselfish assists of all time from Suarez to Messi.
• Valencia have pulled away in the race for the final Champions League qualifying spot, and their win over Sociedad means David Moyes is still looking for his first away win.
Bundesliga
Results
Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 Freiburg
Bayern Munich 4-1 Koln
Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Schalke
Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 Paderborn
Frankfurt 2-1 Hamburg
Hannover 1-1 Stuttgart
Hertha Berlin 1-0 Augsburg
Hoffenheim 2-0 Mainz
Werder Bremen 3-5 Wolfsburg
Table
1. Bayern Munich 58pts
2. Wolfsburg 50pts
3. B. M’gladbach 40pts
4. Bayer Leverkusen 36pts
5. Schalke 35pts
Talking points
• Three goals in the final 12 minutes gave Dortmund victory in the Ruhr derby. They are now in the lofty position of 10th, just eight points off 4th place.
• Bayern were given a little scare against Koln before wrapping up a comfortable win, Arjen Robben adding another goal to his impressive haul this season.
• Wolfsburg games may be the most exciting in Europe right now; hot off a 5-4 win against Bayer Leverkusen, they beat Bremen 5-3. Bas Dost has 14 goals in his last 9 games.
Serie A
Results
Atalanta 1-2 Sampdoria
Cagliari 1-2 Verona
Cesena 1-0 Udinese
Chievo 0-0 Milan
Genoa P-P Parma
Inter 0-1 Fiorentina
Palermo 0-0 Empoli
Roma 1-1 Juventus
Sassuolo 0-3 Lazio
Torino 1-0 Napoli
Table
1. Juventus 58pts
2. Roma 49pts
3. Napoli 45pts
4. Lazio 43pts
5. Fiorentina 42pts
Talking points
• Roma and Juventus fought out a draw that certainly helps Juve more than it does Roma. Carlos Tevez scored a sublime free-kick opener, but the 10 men of Roma equalised through Keita.
• Inter’s run of wins came to an end at three, with on-loan Chelsea winger Salah scoring his fourth goal for the Viola since joining in January.
• Milan were held to a dour draw with lowly Chievo to crank up the pressure on manager Pippo Inzaghi.
Ligue 1
Results
Bordeaux 1-1 Reims
Lens 0-1 Rennes
Lille 2-1 Lyon
Lorient 2-0 Bastia
Marseille 2-3 Caen
Metz 1-2 Evian
Monaco 0-0 PSG
Montpellier 2-1 Nice
Nantes 1-0 Guingamp
Toulouse 1-1 St Etienne
Table
1. Lyon 54pts
2. PSG 53pts
3. Marseille 50pts
4. Monaco 44pts
5. St Etienne 43pts
Talking points
• Monaco’s excellent defence was a match for PSG, who were without the suspended Ibrahimovic.
• Marseille are falling back after failing to win in their last four games. They were 2-0 up against Caen with less than half an hour to play, but an extraordinary comeback earned the visitors a 3-2 win.
• Lyon remain top but were unable to capitalise on their rivals mishaps, losing at Lille despite taking a lead in the third minute.
What to watch out for this week
• Premier League – there is a full set of midweek fixtures, with Chelsea facing a tough London derby against West Ham on Wednesday.
• FA Cup – the quarter-finals take place over the weekend, with the stand-out tie between Manchester United and Arsenal on Monday.
• La Liga – Valencia have closed the gap on Atletico Madrid to just one point, and the two face each other this weekend.
• Bundesliga – Dortmund go to Hamburg looking to continue their unlikely pursuit of a Champions League qualifying spot.
• Serie A – Italy only gets three Champions League spots, meaning the clash between Lazio and Fiorentina is hugely important for both teams’ ambitions.
• Ligue 1 – PSG have the chance to go top (for 24 hours at least) when they host Lens on Saturday.
