Real Madrid back on top of La Liga as Atleti falter, AC Milan top Juve on a wunderkind wonder-strike, and Christian Pulisic continues to be a difference-maker for BVB.
La Liga
Real Madrid are back on top of the La LigaĀ table after defeating Athletic Bilbao 2-1 thanks to a late strike by substitute Alvaro Morata. After three consecutive draws, they have won two on the bounce in the league, and remain undefeated in league play. The best part about Morataās winner? It appears Cristiano Ronaldo is appealing for offsideĀ against his own team:
Never change, Cristiano.
Barcelona have scored 11 goals in their last three games in all competitions; Lionel Messi accounted for five of them (is that good?). He scoredĀ onĀ a stoppage time penalty, his second goal of the day, to give Barca a 3-2 win against Valencia on Saturday, leaving on them in third place on goal difference behind leaders Real and second-place Sevilla, who have rattled off three league wins in a row.
Atletico Madrid began the weekend in first place, but, after losing to Sevilla, slid all the way to fifth. Since pouring in seven goals against Granada back on Oct. 15, Atleti have only managed one goal in their last two matches.
Serie A
AC Milan are off to their best start in years after beating leaders Juventus 1-0 this weekend. They have won five of their last six league matches and are level on points with second-place Roma, who they trail on goal difference.
And did I mention the goal to beat first-place Juve was an absolute howitzer from 18-year-old Manuel Locatelli? Well, it was:
The young Italian wonāt soon forget that one.
Roma continue to impress as they make their push towards the top of Serie A, beating Palermo 4-1. NapoliĀ are back to their winning ways after back-to-back league losses, defeating Crotone 2-1 on Sunday. Torino (fifth place) and Torino (sixth place) both sit two points behind fourth-place Napoli. Juventus have surely taken notice of the fine play of the rest of the top six and will know they cannot afford many more slip ups if they hope to defend their league title.
Bundesliga
Bayern Munich managed to keep red-hot Red Bull Leipzig ā who won their third league match in a row against Werder Bremen ā at bay for another week as they defeated Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 (USMNT member Fabian Johnson started and went the full 90 in a losing effort). Hertha Berlin and Hoffenheim both leap-frogged Cologne to take third and fourth, respectively, after wins on the weekend.
Borussia Dortmund drew 3-3 away to Inglostadt, meaningĀ they are winless in their last three Bundesliga matches. This one, however, appeared to be headed for the loss column as they trailed 3-1 late in the second half. Then Christian āEuro roundup favoriteā Pulisic went to work. The young American international was subbed on at halftime and ended up being the difference maker BVB had been lacking.
Pulisic assisted on Dortmundās goal in the 69th minute, bringing them within a goal. He continued to make himself a nuisance to the Inglostadt back line, finally finding the equalizer off a rebound in the 91st minute. The kid just makes things happen on the field. It will be hard for Dortmund to avoid losing the 18-year-old attacker, who continues to draw interest from some of the biggest clubs in the world, during the next few transfer windows.
Goal of the Week (probably of the Year)
This strike by Kevin-Prince Boateng for Las Palmas is patently absurd:
(The 15-yard no-look back-heel pass wasnāt too shabby either.)
That goal pretty much defies comparison, but if I had to try I would say it was like an alley-oop in basketball, except not just a regular alley-oop, more like one of those superĀ alley-oops from NBA JAM. The amount of factors that had to come together just right in order to allow this to happen is mind-boggling. But I think itās improper to over-analyze art, so letās just enjoy it.
See you next week.