English Premier League
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | 77 |
| 2 | Manchester United | 76 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 71 |
| 4 | Tottenham | 64 |
| 5 | Manchester City | 62 |
The title race is alive (as predicted on Sports Pundit last week) after Chelsea stumbled 2-1 at Tottenham, while Manchester United won an epic Mancunian derby with a very, very late Paul Scholes winner against the Sky Blues. Arsenal’s 3-2 collapse at Wigan sees them out of the race, so it is down to two.
In the battle for European spots, Tottenham’s recent double of victories over Chelsea and Arsenal has them firming for fourth spot, although Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini insists he retains hope of grabbing that spot. Liverpool, meanwhile, have lost Fernando Torres for the rest of the campaign through injury.
In the relegation battle, Hull City’s goalless draw at Birmingham City gives them hope of making a last-ditch push to escape the drop zone, but there’s far less optimism at Burnley who lost 2-1 at Sunderland and look certain for the drop. Portsmouth, of course, are already relegated.
Spanish La Liga
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Barcelona | 84 |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 83 |
| 3 | Valencia | 59 |
| 4 | FC Sevilla | 54 |
| 5 | Real Mallorca | 52 |
Barcelona’s goalless draw with Catalan rivals Espanyol on Saturday opened the door for Real Madrid who responded in kind on Sunday with a solid 2-0 win over third-placed Valencia. Is was a make or break weekend for Real and they produced a great result with Gonzalo Higuain and Cristiano Ronaldo getting the goals.
In the race for the fourth and final Champions League spot, Sevilla firmed with a comfortable 3-0 win over Sporting Gijon although Mallorca can leapfrog them when they host Osasuna on Monday night. Villarreal moved into sixth spot with a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid to increase their Europa League hopes.
Down the wrong end, a hat-trick from Nino has given Tenerife hope after a 3-2 win over Getafe moved them to within one point of safety. Valladolid remain 19th but made it three games unbeaten under new boss Javier Clemente after a 0-0 draw with Malaga.
German Bundesliga
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 63 |
| 2 | Schalke 04 | 61 |
| 3 | Werder Bremen | 54 |
| 4 | Bayer Leverkusen | 54 |
| 5 | Borussia Dortmund | 53 |
Bayern Munich stamped their title credentials with an emphatic 7-0 triumph over battling Hannover 96 with Arjen Robben grabbing a hat-trick, but Schalke 04 remain within touching distance after their 3-1 victory over Borussia Moenchengladbach.
In the race for third spot and the last Champions League place, Werder Bremen made a big move jumping into third after a Torsten Frings’ inspired 4-2 win at champions VfL Wolfsburg. Leverkusen’s woeful form continued (with just one point from their last five outings) as they lost 2-1 at in-form VfB Stuttgart.
Hannover’s loss was SC Freiburg’s gain after they defeated fellow relegation battlers FC Nurnberg 2-1. Suddenly Freiburg have hope of avoiding the drop, while VfL Bochum and Nurnberg aren’t out of the wars after both losing this weekend.
Italian Serie A
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | AS Roma | 71 |
| 2 | Inter Milan | 70 |
| 3 | AC Milan | 64 |
| 4 | Sampdoria | 57 |
| 5 | Palermo | 55 |
Mirko Vucinic continues to power AS Roma towards the title after scoring a double in their 2-1 derby victory over Lazio. And Inter, who switch their attention to the Champions League this week, have kept in touch after a 2-0 victory over Juventus on Friday.
Meanwhile, Sampdoria have jumped into the Champions League spots after Giampaolo Pazzini’s injury-time winner in the 2-1 victory over AC Milan, who realistically can not win the Scudetto anymore. Sampdoria leapfrogged Palermo, who rescued a 2-2 draw at Cagliari. Juventus, down in seventh, look to have missed next season’s ECL.
Down the bottom, Atalanta’s solid home form continues to offer hope to their fans in their bid for survival after a superb 2-1 win over Fiorentina lifted them to within two points of out-of-form Bologna in 17th.
Random League: Dutch Eredivisie
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Twente | 83 |
| 2 | Ajax Amsterdam | 82 |
| 3 | PSV Eindhoven | 77 |
| 4 | AZ Alkmaar | 61 |
| 5 | Feyenoord | 60 |
Steve McClaren’s FC Twente are one win away from the Dutch title after a 2-0 win over Europa League hopefuls Feyenoord gave them the advantage ahead of Ajax with one match to play in the season. On the final day, Ajax go to 12th-placed NEC Nijmegen while Twente are at midtable NAC Breda.
In the battle for European spots, champions AZ Alkmaar won 3-0 at Willem II to move above Feyenoord and into fourth, the final automatic qualifying spot for the Europa League. On the final day, AZ host third-placed PSV Eindhoven, while Feyenoord entertain Heerenveen.
In the relegation battle all is decided with RKC Waalwijk automatically relegated, while Sparta Rotterdam and Willem II will have to survive through the playoffs. ADO Den Haag secured their top flight status on the weekend after a 4-0 win over RKC.