PSV CAN HAVE GREATEST EVER DUTCH LEAGUE SEASON
PSV Eindhoven clinched the Dutch league title with two games to go when they came from behind to defeat Sparta Rotterdam 4-2 on Sunday, and can now go down as statistically the best team in Eredivisie history.
PSV can match Ajax Amsterdam’s 1971-72 record of 93 points in a single season, adjusted upwards as back then teams only received two points for a win, but must win their final two fixtures against Fortuna Sittard and RKC Waalwijk to do so.
That will also mean they improve on their current +88 goal-difference, which is already better than the Ajax team of 52 years ago, who finished on +84.
That Ajax side also lost a single match, the same as PSV this season, with the only team to go through a Dutch league campaign unbeaten the Ajax side of 1994-95, though they finished with 88 points.
REAL CLINCH LEAGUE TITLE. GIRONA, CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOT
It was an intense Saturday in Spanish football that ended with two fan bases celebrating historic achievements after substitute Portu climbed off the bench in the second half to score a brace to give Girona a cathartic 4-2 comeback win over Catalonia rivals Barcelona.
The result meant runaway leaders Real Madrid, whose second-stringers beat lowly Cadiz earlier on Saturday, clinched a record-extending 36th LaLiga title with an unassailable lead with four games left.
It also secured surprise package of the season Girona a Champions League spot next season, their first qualification to European football ever. They leapfrogged Barcelona into second place in the standings and are in control of their own destiny to secure a top-two finish that would qualify them to the profitable Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.
METZ FACE RELEGATION AFTER AGONISING RENNES WIN
Metz dropped to 16th after losing 3-2 at home to Rennes on Saturday, leaving them in a potential relegation play-off spot after being promoted last year.
Despite a fine performance, Metz, who took the lead in the first half through goals from Georges Mikautadze and Papa Diallo, could do nothing after Benjamin Bourigeaud’s 74th-minute penalty and an unexpected stoppage-time strike from Arnaud Kalimuendo sealed a 3-2 win for the visitors.
“I don’t know whether I should scream, cry or laugh. I can’t comment. Am I really going to talk to you and tell you what I feel, what’s in my heart? Because if I do, I will immediately buy a ticket to go to the disciplinary committee,” said Metz coach Laszlo Boloni after striker Georges Mikautadze was sent off in the 95th minute for colliding with Kalimuendo.
Metz failed to keep up the pressure on fellow promoted side Le Havre AC with two games remaining in the campaign while also missing out on condemning bottom side Clermont to Ligue 2, who lost 4-1 at AS Monaco.
NEWCASTLE’S GORDON LOOKS EUROS-BOUND
Anthony Gordon was not on the scoresheet, but in front of watching England manager Gareth Southgate he ran the show in attack for Newcastle United in their 4-1 success at Burnley to boost his chances of going to the Euro 2024 finals in Germany.
If Newcastle qualify for European football next season, Gordon will have played his part with 10 goals and 10 assists so far.
England have an array of attacking talents, but with UEFA having expanded squads for Euro 2024 to 26 players, the irrepressible Gordon is finding form at the right time and will be hard to leave out.
LUTON WIN FRIENDS BUT RELEGATION LOOMS
Luton Town’s Premier League stay may be a case of “one and done” as their lacklustre 1-1 draw at home to Everton on Friday edged them ever closer to the relegation trapdoor.
The 18th-placed Hatters have by no means disgraced themselves on their return to the top flight for the first time since 1992, but as against the Toffees, they have had a tendency to come up just short in crucial situations.
A flurry of stoppage-time chances suggested a team still full of desire, but again it proved too little, too late, and Nottingham Forest’s win over Sheffield United on Saturday leaves Luton with a mountain to climb if they are to survive.
With Sheffield United down already and Burnley likely to join them it would be the first time since 1998 that all three promoted clubs make an immediate return.
RAYA SIGNING GOLDEN FOR ARSENAL
When Arsenal signed David Raya on loan from Brentford last August there were raised eyebrows, especially as they already had an England international in Aaron Ramsdale.
But the Spaniard has fully vindicated Mikel Arteta’s faith and in the 3-0 win over Bournemouth on Saturday he kept his 15th Premier League clean sheet of the season to secure him the Golden Gloves award — the first Arsenal keeper to have that honour since Petr Cech in 2015-16.
Strangely it is still not certain whether Raya’s deal will be made permanent but, barring the odd error like the one against Tottenham Hotspur last week, he could not have done a great deal more to convince Arsenal to retain his services.
TOTTENHAM’S SEASON RUNNING OUT OF STEAM
Tottenham began the Ange Postecoglou era impressively and were unbeaten in their opening 10 Premier League games when talk of a title bid did not look farfetched.
But they are ending his first season in a horrible run of form with Sunday’s 4-2 defeat at Liverpool their fourth defeat in a row — the first time in 20 years that has happened.
Postecoglou is still very much in credit after changing the dynamic at the club, but it is clear his risk-taking style of football needs some squad upgrades in the summer to make it truly effective against the top clubs.
HAALAND BACK IN BUSINESS
Manchester City’s goal-scoring machine Erling Haaland is rounding into form at the perfect time, with three games remaining in City’s tight title race with Arsenal.
City manager Pep Guardiola deemed the 23-year-old Haaland, who missed two months earlier this season with a foot injury, “back in business” after he struck four times in City’s 5-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday to take his tally for the season to 25 league goals.
Three of Haaland’s goals on Saturday were in the first half, making him the third different player to score two first-half hat-tricks in Premier League history (also v Nottingham Forest last season), after Andrew Cole and Michael Owen.
PIOLI RESPECTS SILENT PROTEST FROM MILAN FANS
AC Milan manager Stefano Pioli said he respected the silent protest carried out by thousands of frustrated fans during Sunday’s 3-3 Serie A draw against Genoa.
With second-placed Milan left trophyless for a second successive season and trailing champions and city rivals Inter Milan by 18 points, irritated fans unfurled banners demanding improvements to the team, while the hardcore ultras stayed silent in protest throughout Sunday’s encounter.
Fans left behind a banner which read “the sound of silence” as they filed out en masse from the entire Curva Sud section of the San Siro stadium shortly after Olivier Giroud had put Milan 3-2 ahead in the 75th minute.
By the time Genoa pulled level late in the match, thanks to an own goal by Malick Thiaw, the stand was completely empty.
“The fans have chosen this type of protest and we just need to respect them,” Pioli, whose side have already secured their spot in next season’s Champions League, said.
“Our fans have been an added value in recent years. They will have their reasons if they chose this protest.”
Sunday’s draw also meant Milan are winless in their last four league matches.
ALLEGRI ADMITS REGRETS AS JUVE SLUMP
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said he had regrets following a string of poor results after they drew 1-1 with AS Roma on Sunday.
Allegri stormed off the bench and threw his jacket on the ground, seemingly in frustration, after the final whistle with his side having won only two of their last 14 Serie A matches.
“There are regrets, naturally we could’ve done better during this period, but football is vicious like that, sometimes it just doesn’t go your way,” he told DAZN.
“We risked losing a game that we were in a position to win at the start of the second half.”
Despite four consecutive Serie A draws, Juve can still wrap up qualification for next season’s Champions League in their next match against Salernitana. They have also reached the Italian Cup final and will face Atalanta on May 15.
“The important thing now is to concentrate on the next game, as that is the match ball for the Champions League, then we have the Coppa Italia final,” Allegri said.
“The club will evaluate at the end of the season, naturally there are some solid foundations for Juve, but we were missing players like (Paul) Pogba, (Nicolo) Fagioli and of course (Federico) Chiesa was on and off.”
Allegri also avoided discussing his own future at the club.
“I don’t know, you’d have to ask the club. The important thing is for us to focus on the Coppa Italia final and hopefully, we’ll come back here with the Champions League already achieved,” he said.
Via Reuters
