Winners
Flamengo
Do yourselves a favour and check this game out.
For the first time in 38 years, Flamengo lifted the Copa Libertadores after recording one of the most dramatic wins of the season against Riverplate.
Starring down the barrel of defeat and further heartbreak, Flamengo’s Gabirel Barbosa turned the game on its head with an equaliser in the 89th minute before netting his second just three minutes later to give his side the lead and set up a grandstand finish.
Things got even crazier when the striker was sent off in the 95th minute, alongside Riverplate’s Exequiel Palacios, before the referee blew time on a famous win for the Rio de Janeiro outfit.
Al-Hilal
The Saudi Arabian powerhouse returned to the top of the food-chain after being crowned Asian Champions for the third time of their history.
The side put two heartbreaking finals losses behind them to defeat Japanese powerhouse Urawa Red Diamonds 3-0 on aggregate after two dominant performances.
Al-Hilal – who arrived in Japan with a 1-0 aggregate lead – opened the scoring in the 74th minute through Salem Al-Dawsari before former Lyon and Swansea forward Bafetimbi Gomis put the nail in the coffin in stoppage time.
Al-Hilal ends a run of seven consecutive tournaments won by East-Asian nations, becoming the first side from the West to lift the Asian Champions League since 2011.
Central Coast Mariners
There is plenty of optimism coming out of Gosford as the Mariners recorded their second win of the season and their first clean sheet in 39 matches.
Giancarlo Gallifuoco’s debut A-League goal was enough for the Mariners, who also had goalkeeper Mark Birighitti to thank for several match-winning saves.
The 28-year-old denied a peppering Western United outfit throughout the match, with his best save coming midway through the first half from an Alessandro Diamanti free kick.
He would also manage to keep out a close-ranged Besart Berisha header in the second half to cap off a man of the match performance.
Losers
Western United
It’s been a difficult fortnight for the league’s newcomers, who suffered consecutive defeats for the first time.
While Mark Rudan would feel his side was hard-done-by – with a Ziggy Gordon handball not picked up by the referee or the VAR in the second half, exacerbating the handball confusion.
Western United also conceded first for the fifth consecutive week, a statistic the side will be desperate to rectify.
Borussia Monchengladbach
The Bundesliga continues to surprise as Monchengladbach had their lead on top of the table reduced to one point after going down two-nil to Union Berlin.
Red Bull Leipzig and Bayern Munich now move within striking distance after both sides picked up big wins over the weekend – sitting equal second on 24 points.
The loss for Monchengladbach could prove to be significant in the weeks to come as they host fourth placed SC Freigburg next week, in a game which will have a great impact on the top four.
Watford
Watford were unable to back up last week’s win away to Norwich, going down by three goals to Burnley which sees them at the foot of the table after 13 rounds.
Watford’s saving grace is there are plenty of teams performing just as poorly, with the Hornets only one win away from breaking out of the relegation zone.
The Hornets have only scored eight goals this season with a goal-difference of -18, ahead of their match with fellow relegation battlers Southampton next week.
