Round-up of weekend action in the major European leagues:
SPAIN
Barcelona moved top of the Primera Liga after an irresistible attacking display overwhelmed arch-rivals Real Madrid 3-0 at the Bernabeu on Saturday.
Champions Barca have 25 points from 12 games, the same as Osasuna who were held to a goalless draw at Getafe, but lead the standings with their superior goal difference.
Celta Vigo moved up a place to third with 23 points after a 2-1 home win over Atletico Madrid on Sunday followed by Real who remain on 21 points.
Barca striker Samuel Eto'o opened the scoring after 15 minutes before playmaker Ronaldinho took over in the second half by shrugging off two defenders to score after a 40 metre run and then leaving Sergio Ramos standing to fire inside the near post.
Celta took the lead through Brazilian striker Fernando Baiano after 27 minutes and Uruguayan midfielder Fabian Canobbio extended the lead in the 53rd minute with a glorious free kick.
ENGLAND
Leaders Chelsea got back to winning ways with a 3-0 defeat of Newcastle United while second-placed Wigan Athletic's six-game winning streak ended in a 3-2 defeat by Arsenal.
Manchester United began life without Roy Keane by beating Charlton Athletic 3-1 at the Valley while Tottenham Hotspur conceded an injury-time goal in a 1-1 draw with West Ham United.
Second-half goals from Joe Cole, Hernan Crespo and Damien Duff secured victory for Chelsea, whose midfielder Frank Lampard equalled a Premier League record of 159 consecutive appearances.
Wigan's record 25,000 crowd saw classy Arsenal race into a 2-0 lead through Robin Van Persie and Thierry Henry before Henri Camara gave the hosts a lifeline with a header.
Henry's free kick restored a two-goal cushion before Wigan hit back through Jimmy Bullard but Arsenal held on for a first away league win of the season.
United responded to the exit of skipper Keane on Friday with a win at Charlton to move up to third, just a point behind Wigan and 10 adrift of Chelsea with a game in hand on the champions.
Bolton Wanderers can move up to second place with a win at Birmingham City on Monday.
ITALY
Champions Juventus crushed AS Roma 4-1 at the Olympic stadium on Saturday with a double by Frenchman David Trezeguet sending them five points clear at the top of Serie A.
Fiorentina's Italy striker Luca Toni scored twice to earn a hugely impressive 3-1 win over AC Milan on Sunday that left the clubs level in second place.
Juventus have 33 points ahead of Milan and Fiorentina (28) with Inter (23) in fourth after a 2-0 win over Parma and Livorno (21) fifth after victory by the same score against Empoli.
Juve took the lead with a Pavel Nedved header before Zlatan Ibrahimovic's brilliant solo goal and Trezeguet's double wrapped up the victory. Roma's Francesco Totti scored a late penalty.
Fiorentina ended Milan's eight-match winning streak as Toni, Serie A's top scorer, headed them in front after 10 minutes. Milan fought back with an Alberto Gilardino header.
Just 35 seconds after the restart Dane Martin Jorgensen restored Fiorentina's lead and Toni struck three minutes from time with another stooping header.
GERMANY
Claudio Pizarro struck two late goals to give Bayern Munich a 2-1 victory at Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday and keep the champions five points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.
Second-placed Werder Bremen chalked up a 6-1 win at home to VfL Wolfsburg with two goals apiece by Tim Borowski and Miroslav Klose, a Naldo header and Frank Baumann's swept finish.
Hamburg SV beat MSV Duisburg 2-0 on Sunday to strengthen their grip on third place. Sergej Barbarez got the opener in the 38th and set up the second for Benjamin Lauth before halftime.
Champions Bayern lead with 34 points with Bremen second on 29 and Hamburg third with 28. Schalke 04 are fourth on 22 after losing further ground in a 2-2 draw at Cologne.
FRANCE
Two goals from Brazilian defender Cris enabled champions Olympique Lyon to beat struggling Troyes 2-1 on Saturday and extend their unbeaten Ligue 1 run to 15 matches.
Their seventh consecutive league win helped the leaders move 12 points clear of Paris St Germain, who moved level on points with Girondins Bordeaux by beating them 2-0 on Sunday.
Troyes midfielder Benjamin Nivet opened the scoring for the visitors with a header in the 21st minute but Lyon levelled six minutes later with a headed goal by Cris, who was on target again for the winner from 10 metres out in the 76th minute.
Auxerre are fourth after a 3-2 home victory over Lille in which Belgium striker Luigi Pieroni scored twice, while Monaco, now sixth, maintained their recovery from a poor start to the season by winning 1-0 at home to St Etienne, who are fifth.
© 2024 Rediff.com -