Barcelona remain unbeaten in 2025, having gone 20 games without recording a loss this year under Hansi Flick. Can either Real Madrid or Atlético Madrid dent the Blaugrana‘s lead in the LaLiga title race?
In the FA Cup, Manchester City will look to find solace in their disappointing season as they are now two games away from winning the oldest competition in the world. Will Pep Guardiola win himself another trophy, or will there be another surprise in the competition’s long and coveted history?
Meanwhile, in the Bundesliga, Marco Rose is out of a job at RB Leipzig with Zsolt Lőw coming in to replace him. Can the Hungarian manager save Die Roten Bullen‘s season with significant matches left to play?
Sam Tighe, Sam Marsden and Constantin Eckner make observations from across Europe to bring you up to speed on what you might have missed this weekend.
Top takeaway: Pep’s super subs save the day
Eyebrows were raised when the teamsheets dropped at Bournemouth‘s Vitality Stadium, as Manchester City’s XI looked curious for the wrong reasons. With Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, Mateo Kovačić, Ilkay Gündoğan, and Bernardo Silva all starting, no one could doubt the quality of the Citizens’ midfield — but you could question where the natural width might come from.
Those concerns proved fair as the visitors struggled in the first half, going into the break 1-0 down. It’s not that they didn’t create chances — Erling Haaland missed a trio of good ones, including a penalty — but they played into Bournemouth’s hands by congesting the middle of the pitch and then losing the physical battle.
Guardiola wasted little time in addressing this. For the second half, he sent Nico O’Reilly — a central midfielder — on at left-back, asked him to raid up and down the flank, and he immediately changed the game. His first driving run was promising, then his second teed up Haaland for the equalizer. Fourteen minutes later, his clever flicked pass found fellow substitute Omar Marmoush, whose strike found a way through Kepa Arrizabalaga‘s frame.
In a season where Guardiola has been firmly questioned from a tactical perspective, this served as a nice reminder that he can still flip the script of a game with a clever move.
Best match: AFC Bournemouth 1-2 Manchester City
City’s comeback victory was the pick of the bunch this weekend, as it was the closest match that actually featured a goal! The Cherries had the reigning champions on the ropes in the first half, but a combination of Guardiola’s tweaks and sheer squad depth turned things around in the second. Some of the interplay in the box between De Bruyne, Gündoğan, and Jack Grealish was a sight to behold.
Best goal: Eberechi Eze, Crystal Palace vs. Fulham
Eze opened the scoring for Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage with a beautiful goal. The combination of control and power on a strike that stayed low, and the way it whistled past Bernd Leno‘s outstretched arm, was a sight to behold.
Dan Thomas is joined by Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and others to bring you the latest highlights and debate the biggest storylines. Stream on ESPN+ (U.S. only).
Instead, goals from Davy Klaassen and Bertrand Traoré sealed a victory which took Ajax nine points clear of PSV, who have now won just four of their last 12 league games. Ajax have taken full advantage of PSV’s collapse. Francesco Farioli’s side have won 11 of their last 12 games and few would bet against them winning the league for the first time since 2022. — Marsden
Decent start for Tudor under difficult circumstances
The Italian Serie A saw another manager being sacked a week ago, as Juventus parted ways with Thiago Motta after devastating losses to Atalanta and Fiorentina. While Juventus would seemingly like to bring current Napoli manager Antonio Conte back to Turin, they had to opt for a different solution, hiring former player Igor Tudor as temporary manager.
Tudor has the chance to keep his job if he qualifies for the Champions League. He has taken one step in that direction, with Juventus beating Genoa 1-0 on Saturday. Kenan Yıldız scored the deciding goal, assisted by Dušan Vlahović, who is reportedly set to stay with the club beyond the summer.
But a simple win might not bring Juventus back into navigable waters, because the club are seemingly troubled by financial woes. Managerial changes won’t help that situation given the extra costs involved. Motta is still under contract until 2027 and continues to receive a yearly salary in the range of €5 million.
However, qualifying for the most lucrative European competitions would certainly help the bottom line and might almost be a necessity for the proud club to keep competing with the likes of Internazionale and Napoli. Tudor knows his assignment. — Eckner
