Real Madrid draw with Sevilla to hand La Liga title advantage to Atletico – European round-up
Real Madrid passed up the opportunity to take control of the La Liga title race despite Toni Kroos’ stoppage-time goal earning them a 2-2 draw with Sevilla.
Atletico Madrid’s 0-0 draw at Barcelona on Saturday meant that victory for Zinedine Zidane’s men would have drawn them level on points with Atleti and, thanks to their better head-to-head record, they would have leapfrogged their neighbours.
But Sevilla still have title hopes of their own and will be devastated to have let a lead slip so late after Ivan Rakitic’s penalty looked to have won it for the Andalusians.
Real Madrid move second, level on points with Barca but two behind Diego Simeone’s side.
It was a night of frustration for Real, who saw a Karim Benzema goal disallowed early after nodding in Alvaro Odriozola’s cross. VAR confirmed that Odriozola had strayed just offside in the build-up.
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Soon after, Fernando was able to find space in the box to knock the ball past Thibaut Courtois after Rakitic knocked down a cross and gave Sevilla their first lead of the night.
Real’s equaliser came through Marco Asensio on 67 minutes – and it came less than 60 seconds after Zidane brought him off the subs’ bench. Kroos sent the super-sub through on goal and he calmly finished beyond Yassine Bounou.
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There was then huge drama as Benzema was clearly brought down by Bounou in the Sevilla box, only for VAR to pull the play back for an Eder Militao handball in Real’s penalty area prior to the breakaway.
Sevilla were correctly awarded a spot-kick and former Barcelona midfielder Rakitic made no mistake, firing the ball past Courtois.
Julen Lopetegui was quite happy for his side to waste time in the final stages and it was deep into injury-time that Kroos rescued a point.
? WHAT AN END TO THE MATCH!#HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/85uKGQL2oa
The German fired a low shot from the edge of the box right into the bottom corner and Real almost won it in the 96th minute, only for Casemiro’s effort to bend narrowly wide of the post.
At the bottom, Eibar picked up a second successive victory to pull themselves right back into the relegation battle.
Recio’s last-gasp penalty was enough to see off Getafe, meaning they are just two points from safety after Real Valladolid lost 3-0 at Valencia.
There were six goals, three penalties and three red cards in Celta Vigo’s thrilling 4-2 victory at Europa League finalists Villarreal.
Rulli and Perez Martinez were both sent off for the hosts in first-half stoppage-time, before Ferreyra was given his marching orders for Vigo near the end.
AC Milan stun Juventus
AC Milan have given themselves a great chance of returning to the Champions League after thrashing Juventus 3-0 in Turin.
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Brahim Diaz’s curling strike shortly before the break put AC 1-0 up before Franck Kessie passed up a glorious opportunity to double their lead when his penalty was saved by Wojciech Szczesny in the Juve goal.
But Ante Rebic and Fikayo Tomori ensured it would be a night to remember in Turin for Milan with goals late in the second half. Rebic fired in from distance with 12 minutes remaining, shortly before Chelsea loanee Tomori made it three on a memorable night for the Rossoneri
The result draws AC Milan level on points with Atalanta in second, two clear of Napoli in fourth and three ahead of Juve, who risk missing out on Europe’s premier competition for the first time in nine years.
Atalanta moved second with an entertaining 5-2 victory at struggling Parma, with Luis Muriel’s double the highlight for Gian Piero Gasperini’s men.
Elsewhere, Roma smashed Crotone 5-0, Cagliari and Sassuolo picked up away wins at Benevento and Genoa respectively, while Hellas Verona and Torino both scored late in a 1-1 draw.
Ligue 1: PSG frustrated by Rennes
It is advantage Lille in the Ligue 1 title race after PSG were held to a 1-1 draw by Rennes on Sunday night.
The reigning champions are now three points behind Lille with just two games of the season left, meaning four points will be enough for Christophe Galtier’s side to lift the trophy.
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Both teams had chances in the first half at Rennes before Paris were awarded a highly-controversial penalty as Nayef Aguerd was adjuged to have fouled Layvin Kurzawa.
Up stepped Neymar, fresh from extending his stay in Paris until 2025, to convert from the spot deep into added-on time at the top of the first half.
But Rennes were up for the fight and a fantastic header from Serhou Guirassy levelled up proceedings with 20 minutes remaining.
PSG’s misery was compounded when Presnel Kimpembe was red carded in the 87th minute.
Third-placed Monaco sit five points off the top after Eliot Matazo’s strike helped them see off Reims 1-0, while there were also wins for Saint-Etienne, Angers, Nimes, Nice and Montpellier.
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