Following a brief hiatus for two cup weekends in England, we’re back with the talking points from a busy weekend across Europe. In the Women’s Super League (WSL), it was groundhog day for Chelsea and Manchester City as they clashed for a third time in nine days, with the Blues claiming a late 2-1 victory thanks to Erin Cuthbert’s stoppage-time header. Elsewhere, Arsenal hit Liverpool for four — including a brace of own goals from Jasmine Matthews — and, in a frantic end to a routine game, Leicester City managed to see out a 3-2 win over Brighton for only their fourth win of the season.

In Spain, Barcelona sparred with Real Madrid for the third time this month. And Las Blancas, who were well beaten across both Copa de la Reina legs, finally got their revenge with a shock 3-1 win thanks to a late brace from Caroline Weir.

In Germany’s DFB-Pokal Frauen semifinals, Pernille Harder guided Bayern Munich to a less-than-comfortable 3-2 win over Hoffenheim, before second-tier Hamburg took Werder Bremen all the way to extra time in front of a record 57,000 crowd at the Volksparkstadion before falling to a 3-1 defeat. Juventus now lead Serie A’s Championship round by 10 points, as the chasing pack have been busy banjaxing each other’s hopes. Having dished out a shock win over the Bianconeri in the last round, Agnes Bonfantini’s second-half strike against a wasteful Inter Milan was enough to keep Fiorentina in the hunt for a European finish. Meanwhile, Roma let an early lead slip through their fingers against Milan to lose 3-1.

Elsewhere, Lyon dispatched Saint-Étienne 5-0 in one of the continent’s most one-sided derbies, while Ajax’s pursuit of a fourth Eredivisie title was dealt a sizable blow as PSV leapfrogged them after a 3-1 win at the Philips Stadion. And the new Swedish Damallsvenskan season started with newly promoted Malmö serving up a shock against 2023 runners-up BK Häcken.

Real Madrid claim long-awaited Clásico win

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” For Real Madrid, it took 19 tries to mark their first-ever win over Barcelona. Madrid, who had lost by an aggregated score of 8-1 against the Catalan giants over both Copa de la Reina legs earlier this month, went ahead through Alba Redondo before Caroline Graham Hansen pegged them back on 67 minutes.

And, in the increasing rain at the Olympic stadium, Madrid needed a slice of luck as Jana Fernández’s second-half goal (which would have made it 2-1 to the hosts) was inexplicably ruled out for a phantom offside. But while Barcelona stuttered in the wake of the decision, Madrid surged forward and Weir’s late double gave them a much-needed boost to close the gap at the top of Liga F to four points.

For the first time in a very long time against the Blaugranes, Madrid looked assured in their task and refused to be overwhelmed when behind the ball, waiting for the right moments to counter attack. Indeed, speaking after the match, Madrid manager Alberto Toril said: “They’ve done a good job of knowing how to handle moments. For example, when we had to suffer and when we had to attack.”

For Barcelona, it was an increasingly familiar story of Pere Romeu’s short tenure. The team failed to take their chances and there was a distinct lack of fresh ideas when in frustrating situations, although similar complaints could have been made about his predecessor’s time at the helm. — SL

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Grace Clinton lobs keeper from 40 yards out for Man United

Manchester United midfielder Grace Clinton outsmarts the Aston Villa keeper with a 40-yard lob.

Man United thrash Villa after first-half rout

Manchester United delivered a commanding 4-0 victory over Aston Villa to keep pressure on second-placed Arsenal and bolster their hopes of securing European football for a second-consecutive year.

United have quietly gone about their business this season, steadily picking up crucial wins to cement their place in the top three, and now sit seven points ahead of fourth-placed City, who slipped further behind after their defeat to Chelsea.

Last weekend’s 3-1 loss to Liverpool threatened to derail United’s momentum, but this emphatic win over Villa — a side fighting to escape relegation — was set up in the first half with a brace from Elisabeth Terland and then a stunning long-range lob from Grace Clinton, before Leah Galton put some gloss on the scoreline in the second half.

After a disappointing fifth-placed finish last season — their lowest since earning promotion in 2019 — United are determined to reclaim their place among the league’s top three but have some injury concerns as Celen Bizet and substitute Anna Sandberg were both forced off.

Meanwhile, Villa’s struggles continue under new manager Natalia Arroyo. They remain winless in six matches since her arrival, and a dismal run of seven straight defeats leaves them just one point above bottom-placed Crystal Palace, with their WSL future hanging in the balance. — EK

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Chelsea snatch a late victory at Man City

Erin Cuthbert scores a dramatic 91st-minute winner against title rivals Manchester City

Chelsea, Man City set for fiery fourth-straight clash

After three consecutive meetings, Chelsea and Manchester City are readying themselves for a decisive showdown in the second leg of the UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) quarterfinals in midweek — their fourth and final clash from the last 12 days.

Chelsea have won two of the three encounters so far, edging City 2-1 in the League Cup final before snatching another 2-1 victory in the WSL with a dramatic stoppage-time winner from Erin Cuthbert this weekend. However, in between those triumphs, City stunned the Blues with a 2-0 win in the first leg of the UWCL quarterfinal — ending Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor’s remarkable 28-game unbeaten streak and marking the first time her side had trailed by two goals.

As the final showdown approaches, both teams will have learned plenty about each other already. Chelsea will be wary of City’s pace and star forward Kerolin, who tormented their defence and opened the scoring this weekend, will be key again. Needing to overturn a two-goal deficit, the Blues will look to strike early while ensuring their aggressive press doesn’t leave them exposed to counterattacks.

But City have uncovered a clear weakness in Chelsea’s setup: the Blues are vulnerable in transition. All four of City’s goals across the three encounters have come against the run of play, capitalising on Chelsea’s disorganization when caught on the break. — EK

QUICK HITS

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Leicester open the scoring from long range

Shannon O’Brien scores from 30 yards with excellent drive into the bottom corner.

EIGHT. Harder hat trick hampers Hoffenheim. With Hoffenheim 2-0 up less than 25 minutes into the game, Bayern looked on course for an unexpected semifinal exit in the Pokal. Until it became the Harder show. Having missed a chunk of last season through injury, the Denmark attacker has been on a tear this season and she hit a hat trick 10 minutes either side of half-time to save the day. Even though the 32-year-old is at a point in her career when others might be slowing down, she is showing no signs of letting up.

SEVEN. Inter come unstuck. Following yet another draw against Milan last week, Inter failed to recover any ground on Serie A leaders Juventus after a 1-0 defeat at Fiorentina. Like so much of this season, there were positive flashes, but also a hefty helping of frustration. And while Fiorentina have two wins from two, Verónica Boquete and Bonfantini are doing the major lifting.

SIX. Foxes survive fright. Three goals up with 20 minutes to play against Brighton, there didn’t seem to be any jeopardy for Leicester. But the match very nearly turned. First Madison Haley pulled one back for the visitors then, in three swift minutes, Yuka Momiki failed to convert from the spot before giving a penalty away at the other end, which Fran Kirby happily dispatched. Leicester have been battling against the tide all season, so the nerves were palpable, but they somehow managed to hold on and pull themselves clear of the bottom two. Those three points will likely prove vital.

FIVE. New kids start with a bang. In Swedish men’s football, there is no team more successful than Malmö FF, but their women’s team is relatively new. Having been founded in 2019, they have swiftly worked their way up the tiers of the Swedish pyramid, earning promotion every season. Now in the Damallsvenskan, Malmö started as they mean to go on with a noteworthy 3-2 win away to Häcken, with former Portland Thorns star Izzy D’Aquila chipping in with two early goals. Malmö’s have lofty ambitions for their women’s team, but it’s all about securing safety in their first season in the top tier.

FOUR. Lyon dominate derby. Saint-Étienne have rarely been close to their Rhône rivals and, coming into the game without a win in their last seven league outings, the odds were not in their favour again. As expected, Lyon dispatched them with ease, hitting the hosts for five as they happily punished some less-than-stellar marking. The good news for ASSE is that, despite their current form, they should be safe this season.

THREE. PSV strike blow in Dutch title race. Ajax and FC Twente have shared two of the past three titles but PSV now sit top on goal difference as they sealed a controlled 3-1 win over Ajax on Saturday afternoon. Twente’s 3-0 win over Heerenveen knocked the Amsterdam club down to third in the standings, with only a point in it, and there will surely be more twists and turns to come.

TWO. Arrigoni stunner seals emphatic win for Milan. Having taken a fourth-minute lead away to Milan, Roma should have eased into top gear but instead put in yet another sloppy performance to lose 3-1. Still a long way from the finished product themselves, Milan have shown some growth this season, despite not being able to challenge for a European berth, and a stunning strike from 20-year-old Giorgia Arrigoni in the final minute will give them some momentum.

ONE. Nordderby steals the show. Frauen Bundesliga purists were licking their lips when the Pokal draw was made and second-tier Hamburg were pitted against Werder Bremen for a rarely contested Frauen-Nordderby. While Hamburg have a good chance of promotion this season, it was always going to be a tough ask against more-illustrious opponents, but they dug in and frustrated Werder from the start. In fact, when Saskia Matheis was shown a second yellow card in the 54th minute it was the hosts who had to grind. Sophie Weidauer’s 81st minute strike for Werder looked like the winner, but Sarah-Vanessa Stöckmann produced a moment of cup magic with a 90th-minute equalizer to take the tie to extra-time. Though Werder’s quality eventually told with a pair of goals in the last three minutes to end the fairytale. — SL