Real Madrid calm storm with win over Levante
Real Madrid ended a turbulent week with a 2-0 LaLiga win over lowly Levante on Saturday courtesy of second-half goals from Kylian Mbappe and Raul Asencio, after being met with boos from a restless Bernabeu crowd before the breakthrough arrived.
Real stayed second in LaLiga on 48 points from 20 matches, one behind leaders Barcelona, who have a game in hand and visit Real Sociedad on Sunday. Levante are 19th with 14 points.
The win also snapped Real's two-match losing run and offered brief respite after a bruising week.
They looked flat in the first half, still carrying the scars of Sunday's 3-2 Spanish Super Cup final defeat by Barcelona, followed by the departure of manager Xabi Alonso and a shock 3-2 Copa del Rey exit to second-division Albacete.
Boos greeted the players at kickoff, with sections of the crowd also directing chants at club president Florentino Perez. Real finally eased the tension when defender Dela tripped Mbappe in the box, and the French forward converted the penalty in the 58th minute to extend his league-leading tally to 19 goals.
Seven minutes later, Real doubled their advantage through centre-back Asencio, who rose to meet Arda Guler's corner with a powerful header to make it 2-0, giving new coach Alvaro Arbeloa a crucial cushion and settling the mood inside the stadium.
"It was a very important day. Everyone wanted to turn the situation around," Asencio told RMTV. "What happened in Albacete shouldn't have happened. We felt guilty and wanted to make up for it."
Tensions at the Bernabeu spared no one, with the crowd particularly aggressive towards Vinicius Jr. and Jude Bellingham, whistling both players whenever they touched the ball during a cagey first half.
Vinicius, who scored 22 goals last season, has managed only six across all competitions this campaign, while Bellingham has found the net five times, compared with 15 last season.
Asked about Vinicius, Arbeloa -- a former Real right back -- said he is determined to help the 25-year-old Brazilian winger rediscover his best form.
"I've been booed a lot myself, and one of the things that makes this club great is the high standards demanded," the Spaniard said.
"We know what kind of week we've had, and the demands placed on us, and we have to take it in our stride because they know we can give more. I have no complaints about them -- it's on us to give much more at the Bernabeu.
"I'm going to work on improving Vinicius. I'm going to ask his teammates to give him as many balls as possible. He's the most unpredictable player in the world."
When asked about chants aimed at Perez, Arbeloa defended the club president: "I believe the shouts are not from people who dislike Florentino, but from people who dislike Real Madrid. All Madrid fans know how fortunate we are to have him."
Bayern demolish Leipzig in stunning comeback win
Leaders Bayern Munich powered back from a goal down, scoring three goals in six minutes, to crush hosts RB Leipzig 5-1 in the Bundesliga on Saturday and maintain their 11-point advantage at the top.
The visitors, for whom Jamal Musiala made a brief substitute appearance coupled with an assist in their last goal after breaking his leg and ankle last July, scored all five goals in the second half to maintain their unbeaten run in the league this season and moved up to 50 points.
It was only the second time that Bayern scored five goals after trailing at halftime in a Bundesliga away game. The only previous occasion was in 1976 in a 6-5 win at VfL Bochum.
Borussia Dortmund are in second place on 39 following their last-gasp 3-2 win over St Pauli on Saturday while Leipzig dropped to fourth on 32.
"Leipzig caused us many problems in the first half," said Bayern coach Vincent Kompany. "They were clearly the better side. It felt like they were twice as good as we were.
"But the second half, the lads delivered. We ran 6 kilometers more. It was old-school mentality. Winning one-on-ones, running, going forward. We weren't afraid and really went for it."
The hosts shot out of the blocks and had two early chances through Romulo and Antonio Nusa before the former made amends for his early miss, tapping home in the 20th minute.
Leipzig came close several more times in a strong first half but the visitors hit back five minutes after the restart when Serge Gnabry fired in his 100th goal for the club.
They completed their turnaround with the Bundesliga's leading scorer Harry Kane finding space at the far post to put them in front with his 21st league goal of the season and Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer did well to deny Yan Diomande, palming his shot wide.
The Bavarians, however, were far from done, scoring three more times through Jonathan Tah's 82nd-minute header and goals from Aleksandar Pavlovic in the 85th and Michael Olise who completed the comeback win in style.
Juventus title hopes fade after defeat at Cagliari
Juventus' Serie A title ambitions are all but over after they suffered a 1-0 defeat at Cagliari on Saturday, in a game where the visitors were unable to make their domination of possession count.
Juventus sit fifth in the standings on 39 points, 10 behind leaders Inter Milan who beat Udinese 1-0 on Saturday. Cagliari are 15th on 22 points, the win taking them eight points away from the relegation zone.
Cagliari failed to register a shot attempt in the opening half but scored a shock winner when Luca Mazzitelli scored with 25 minutes remaining to end Juve's six-match unbeaten league run.
"You tip your hat to your opponents, who brought home a victory that perhaps they didn't deserve, but sniffed out the opportunity and took it," Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti told Sky Sport.
"Maybe next time we can learn from that and sniff out our chance too."
The visitors dominated possession early on without creating any real danger until Cagliari keeper Elia Caprile saved Fabio Miretti's strike from just inside the area and the game remained goalless after a dour first half.
Juventus winger Kenan Yildiz did the hard work on the right, racing down the left wing dancing past three challenges to get himself into the box but his finish was well off target and minutes later Cagliari took a shock lead.
Gianluca Gaetano floated a free kick into the area and Mazzitelli met the ball first time to send a side-footed volley on the turn past Perin.
"A beautiful night that we'll carry with us," Mazzitelli told Sky.
"We faced one of the strongest teams, but we gave more than we had. It was a victory that came with plenty of suffering."
Caprile palmed away a scorching effort from Yildiz as Juventus desperately searched for an equaliser and Yildiz sent a deflected shot off the post late on.
Juventus, who fell to their second loss in 12 league games since Spalletti took charge at the end of October, need to pick themselves up before hosting Benfica in the Champions League on Wednesday and Serie A champions Napoli next weekend.
Key Points:
- Real Madrid stayed second in LaLiga on 48 points from 20 matches, one behind leaders Barcelona.
- It is only the second time that Bayern Munich scored five goals after trailing at halftime in a Bundesliga away game.
- Juventus suffered their second loss in 12 league games since manager Luciano Spalletti took charge at the end of October.
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