Barcelona were rampant, PSG clinical and Real Madrid fortunate. But it was Manchester United who stole the headlines with a shock victory at Wembley.
La Liga
Barcelona continued their impressive league form with a 3-0 win over Eibar. Luis Suárez’s brace was added to by Lionel Messi’s 400th La Liga goal as Barça restored their five point lead at the top of the table.
Atlético Madrid did what they do best – score one and concede none. Diego Simeone’s incredible defensive unit held out Levante to keep touch with league leaders Barcelona.
An Antoine Griezmann penalty was the difference, the Frenchman scoring his ninth goal of the campaign.
Real Madrid avoided another disappointing result, digging deep to find a late winner against Real Betis.
Ballon d’or winner Luka Modrić opened the scoring for Los Blancos but were set to be denied the three points when Sergio Canales equalised for the home side. However, former Betis man Dani Ceballos fired a dead ball into the bottom corner to snatch victory for Real, just two minutes from the end of normal time.
Sevilla played Athletic Bilbao for the second time in a matter of days, this time going down 2-0. An Iñaki Williams brace was enough to Bilbao, easing the pressure a little on the club’s relegation battle. For Sevilla, they now trail Barça by 10 points and are surely out of the title race.
Rayo Vallecano came out on top of their goal fest with Celta de Vigo, winning 4-2.
Leganés defeated bottom placed Huesca 1-0, Girona and Alavés shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw, as did Valencia and Valladolid with the former recording their 11th draw of the season.
Getafe scored a late winner to defeat Villarreal on the road, while Real Sociedad won 3-2 against Espanyol.
Premier League
Manchester United recorded the shock of the weekend, defeating title hopefuls Tottenham. Paul Pogba continued his stunning form, providing the assist for Marcus Rashford’s strike from inside his own half. David de Gea put in a man of the match performance, making 11 saves in the second half – a Premier League record. United are now equal points with Arsenal and are charging towards a top four finish.
As for the Gunners, they were defeated at the hands of West Ham 1-0. A Declan Rice strike was enough to secure the three points for the Hammers in what could likely be Marko Arnautović’s last game for the club.
Liverpool bounced back from consecutive losses in all competitions by defeating Brighton 1-0. Mohamed Salah scored from the spot, making it an astonishing 46 goals in 58 Premier League games for the Egyptian. The result sees the Reds hold their four point lead atop the table.
Manchester City made sure they remained in the title race, beating Wolves 3-0 in what was a comfortable victory in the end. Gabriel Jesus struck for City 10 minutes in, before Wolves were reduced to 10 men when Willy Boly was sent off for a dangerous challenge. Jesus later added a second from the spot, while a Conor Coady own goal sealed the points for City.
Chelsea got back to winning ways, narrowly defeating relegation battlers Newcastle. With no recognised striker in the side, Chelsea were still able to break the deadlock early in the match through Pedro. But Stamford Bridge was stunned when Ciaran Clark equalised for the Magpies minutes before half time. Rumoured Barcelona target Willian then found the back of the net emphatically to regain the lead for the Blues. They sit six points clear in 4th and face Arsenal this week in what could be season defining.
Southampton recorded an unlikely win on the road to Leicester, winning 2-1 with 10 men.
Everton defeated Bournemouth 2-0 and despite Burnley registering zero shots in their match against Fulham they still managed a 2-1 win thanks to two own goals.
Meanwhile, Watford came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 2-1, while Cardiff and Huddersfield played out a 0-0 draw.
Ligue 1
Paris Saint-Germain responded to their Coupe de la Ligue exit with a 3-0 demolition of Amiens. Edinson Cavani’s successful spot kick was added to by goals from Kylian Mbappe and Marquinhos, extending the club’s lead at the top to 13 points with two games in hand.
Monaco’s trip to Marseille ended all square in a match which saw Cesc Fabregas make his debut for his new club. Goals to Maxime Lopez and Youri Tielemans ensured the match finished 1-1, in what could be an important point for Monaco as they continue their battle for survival.
Lyon disappointingly dropped points at home to Reims, a result which sees them lose ground on 2nd place. Bertrand Traoré rescued a point for the home side, however, Lyon will need to improve on their performance if they are to have any chance of defeating Barcelona in the Champions League.
Lille continued their impressive season, defeating Caen 3-1 away from home, Nice have climbed further up the table with a 1-0 win over Bordeaux, while Champions League hopefuls Strasbourg and Rennes had 2-1 and 1-0 wins against Toulouse and Nantes respectively.
Bottom placed Guingamp were defeated again, this time to St Etienne, while Montpellier and Dijon played out a 1-1 draw.
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga returns on the 19th of January.
Serie A
The Serie A returns on the 20th of January.
