From Golden Gonzalo back in business with Chelsea to a sorry spectacle for Inter in the Giuseppe Meazza, here are the weekend winners and losers
WINNERS
Gonzalo Higuain
He “only” scored a brace against bottom of the table Huddersfield, true. And it came after a couple of disappointing outings. But then Chelsea had a much more disappointing centre forward beforehand, that struggled to score even against the worst opponents.
El Pipita did it, as a true penalty box man does, with a lethal, clinical finish, and a curled effort to give Chelsea a smooth three points in a must-win game. Exactly what Chelsea want from him.
Barcelona
Coming from 2-0 down against Valencia to change things around and complete the comeback at the Camp Nou with a draw that is worth a lot more than just the one point. Lionel Messi scored twice to make it the eleventh consecutive season in which he scores at least 20 goals, and we’re only in February.
With Atletico Madrid losing, this draw is harmless for the Blaugrana, who extend their lead at the top of La Liga, and do it in style, with a win that shows their spirit and winning mentality.
[fve]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82p_5XJZuKU[/fve]
Benfica
The perfect weekend for the Aiguas: winning the Lisbon Derby against Sporting Club de Portugal and climbing up the table to just three points behind leaders Porto, held to a 0-0 draw.
Benfica dominated from beginning to end away at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, scoring two early goals and then rounding off the victory in the second-half to a final 4-2 win, for the happiness of the away supporters and the sheer sadness of 43 thousand home fans, who weren’t shy in showing their disappointment.
[fve]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJLZXSjvy6c[/fve]
LOSERS
Claudio Ranieri
Yet another defeat for Ranieri and his men, as Fulham continue to struggle in the bottom spots of the Premier League. Luka Milivojevic and Jeffrey Schlupp gave Crystal Palace a vital win in the fight to avoid relegation, and exposed all the problems the London club have, despite the change of coach. The Italian still hasn’t brought the necessary consistency in results to get out of the drop zone, and continuing like this will likely mean Fulham will be in the Championship next season.
Bayern Munich
The defeat to Bayer Leverkusen could cost Bayern the title race, as Borussia Dortmund got a draw away in Frankfurt and are now seven points clear. With Lucien Favre’s men drawing, this was the chance for Bayern to get closer to the rivals at the top of the Bundesliga table. Instead, Bayer put three past Sven Ulreich, giving another defeat and another terrible weekend for the Bavarians.
[fve]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTNdE7jUh0I[/fve]
Inter
A terrible week for the Nerazzurri – in which Luciano Spalletti’s men crashed out of the Coppa Italia – was topped by the home defeat to minnows Bologna this weekend at the Giuseppe Meazza.
The visitors had been thrashed 4-0 at home against Frosinone just one week ago, changing coach to former Inter man Sinisa Mihajlovic. And it was the Serbian coach who inflicted yet another blow for the Nerazzurri, as Federico Santander’s goal was enough to give even more troubles to the Milan club, and give Bologna an unbelievable win at the Meazza.
