Becks on Target!!

The much awaited goal finally arrived on Sunday when AC Milan traveled to Bologna to keep their title ambitions alive. After Bologna took the lead within the opening 10 minutes, things did not seem to be going according to plans for Milan. But Seedorf equalized within minutes and then Kaka showed where his heart truly lied by scoring a brace in the first half. The game was sealed when former Manchester United and Real Madrid star, David Beckham, finished off a lovely break from the right side with his favourite right foot, thus getting his first goal in the Milan jersey. A 4-1 win for the Italian giants and no wonder there are already talks of Beckham extending his loan move further on. But the other big clubs in Italy were also upto the mark, with Juventus and Inter Milan both grinding out 1-0 home wins with goals from Marchisio and Adriano respectively. With 18 games remaining, the title is anyone’s for the taking!

Spain witnessed the familiar tale of Barcelona thumping their opponents as their rivals struggle to keep up with them. A 4-1 win for Barcelona over Numanica, with all goals being scored in the second half, has taken the goal tally for the Catalan giants to a staggering 63 goals from only 20 games. Need to look into the record books to find such a per-game scoring average in recent times! Real Madrid kept their slim title hopes alive with a 1-0 win over Deportivo. However, Sevilla, Villareal and Valencia lost further ground, though realistically speaking, even with half the games yet to be played it appears to be only a battle for Champions League spots for the teams below Barcelona.

England witnessed the fourth round of the FA Cup matches, with Chelsea and Manchester United recording wins. Arsenal were held to a goalless draw at Cardiff while Liverpool also had to salvage a draw against rivals Everton. Replay matches would not be welcomed by either of these two teams. Elsewhere, in Scotland, Celtic improve their lead to 4 points at the top over Rangers, while in Netherlands, Alkmaar have taken a 6-point lead over Dutch giants Ajax.

Games of the weekend:
Bologna 1 – 4 AC Milan
Juventus 1 – 0 Fiorentina
Barcelona 4 – 1 Numanica

Champions 3 – 0 Pretenders

The result that has stood out in Europe this weekend… Manchester United 3 - 0 Chelsea!! A lesson taught in football by Sir Alex’s team to Scolari’s men who have now won only two of their last eight Premiership games, and also have managed only 1 point out of a possible 12 against the other teams of the so called ‘Big Four’. While the Blues are no way out of the title race, but the question that will be asked after Sunday’s disastrous show would be whether they are worthy of lifting the title. Manchester United, on the other hand, could overtake Liverpool by a point of they can win the two games in-hand. With Liverpool’s draw at the Britannia Stadium and the on-going saga between the two managers, this is a battle that could get snappier as time goes by and nerves start cracking. Still a long way to go…

Barcelona displayed their perseverance and doggedness, in a season that has so far been defined by their elegance and effortless style of football, in the away game against Osasuna where they rallied from 2-1 down to win the game 3-2, with Messi scoring a brilliant goal in the 85th minute. Real Madrid’s 3-0 win at Mallorca keeps them 12 points adrift of Barcelona while a 3-3 draw between Villareal and Valencia drops them off the pace a bit. In Italy, despite David Beckham’s debut in a Milan shirt, Roma managed to keep AC Milan at bay and held them to a 2-2 draw. Juventus reduced the gap at the top to 4 points with a 1-0 win against Siena as Inter Milan needed Ibrahimovic to come to their rescue to snatch a point against Cagliari. Jose Mourinho was later spotted at Old Trafford on Sunday watching his former club take on his current club’s next Champions League opponents. Mourinho sure knows how to get himself noticed!

In the French Ligue One, Lyon’s draw meant that Bordeaux reduced the lead at the top to just a single point with a convincing 4-0 victory against PSG. Celtic continue their surge in the Scottish Cup with a 2-1 win against Dundee. No surprises there! With Bundesliga still on a winter break, that’s a wrap of the week’s action. Mid-week drama could unfold as in-form Wigan travel to Old Trafford to keep the BPL title race exciting!

Games of the weekend:
Manchester United 3 – 0 Chelsea
Osasuna 2 – 3 Barcelona
Valencia 3 – 3 Villareal