Domestic Leagues

Football weekend: Dutch Cup winners, FA Cup finalist, and extended unbeaten streak.

By Futbol Staff

Posted on April 22, 2024

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 FA Cup semi final

April 20. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Chelsea 0-1 Manchester City
April 21. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Coventry City 3-3 Manchester United (2-4 pko)

Back-to-back Manchester derby FA Cup final. The final is what many expected at the draw: a Manchester derby, but it was a lot closer to not being one. Manchester City will be looking for their 8th FA Cup title, while despite being the underdogs, Manchester United will be aiming for their 13th FA Cup title.

Manchester City faced the challenge of ensuring their quest to defend the FA Cup title didn’t meet the same fate on Saturday against Chelsea as their hopes of defending their Champions League title did on Wednesday against Real Madrid. Manchester City narrowly edged Chelsea in the semifinal on Saturday, with a goal from Bernardo Silva in the 84th minute handing Manchester City a 1-0 win at Chelsea’s expense.

In a surprising turn of events, Coventry City, who had already exceeded expectations by reaching this stage, nearly surpassed them further by overcoming a 3-0 deficit against Manchester United and forcing a penalty shootout. After initially holding a 3-0 lead, Manchester United found themselves needing a penalty shootout after 120 minutes of intense play to secure a win against Coventry City. With just 20 minutes remaining in the match, Manchester United had a comfortable 3-0 advantage over Coventry City, only to witness the game end in a dramatic 3-3 tie. It was only through the intervention of VAR that Manchester United was able to avoid a defeat in the final moments of the match, as VAR disallowed a goal by Coventry City due to an offside call.
In the end, Andre Onana’s save and a miss by Coventry in the shootout allowed Manchester United to return to the FA Cup final through a 4-2 shootout win.

🇳🇱 KNVB CUP FINAL

Feyenoord 1-0 NEC Nijmegen
Igor Paixao scored the game’s only goal, securing Feyenoord’s victory in the Dutch Cup final for the 14th time, their first since 2019. It came at NEC Nijmegen’s expense.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 PREMIER LEAGUE

Luton Town ( 1 ) – ( 5 ) Brentford
Sheffield United ( 1 ) – ( 4 ) Burnley
Wolverhampton Wanderers ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Arsenal
Everton ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Nottingham Forest
Aston Villa ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Bournemouth
Crystal Palace ( 5 ) – ( 2 ) West Ham United
Fulham ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Liverpool

On the weekend when Manchester City were contesting for a spot in the FA Cup final, Arsenal and Liverpool secured wins to advance to first and second positions, respectively. Manchester City now sits in third place with a game in hand, trailing the top two by just a point. There were no other changes in the standings.

Luton Town ( 1 ) – ( 5 ) Brentford
A late goal conceded in the second minute of added time denied Brentford a clean sheet despite their comfortable win against relegation-bound Luton Town. The 5-1 victory allowed Brentford to open a 10-point gap over Luton Town in the league standings, significantly aiding Brentford’s fight to avoid the threat of relegation.

Sheffield United ( 1 ) – ( 4 ) Burnley
19th-placed Burnley picked up three points from a 4-1 win over 20th-placed Sheffield United. Both clubs were promoted into the top flight this season and are destined for relegation at the end of it. The margin of victory is a telling sign of how underprepared Sheffield United is for the top flight at the moment.

Wolverhampton Wanderers ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Arsenal
Arsenal bounced back from back-to-back defeats with a 2-0 win against Wolves. It was the result they needed to fund their title race.

Everton ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Nottingham Forest
Goals in each half, both from shots outside the penalty box, secured Everton a 2-0 home victory against Nottingham Forest.

Aston Villa ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Bournemouth
Aston Villa came from a goal down to pick up a ‘3-1’ win against Bournemouth.

Crystal Palace ( 5 ) – ( 2 ) West Ham United
Crystal Palace secured their second consecutive league win, following up their 1-0 victory at Anfield against Liverpool with a 5-2 home win against West Ham. The result extended West Ham United’s winless streak to four matches, which includes their exit from the Europa League.

Fulham ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Liverpool
Liverpool scored in the second half to secure a 3-1 victory over Fulham. The result was crucial for Liverpool to rebound from their previous league defeat and their midweek exit from the Europa League.

🇩🇪 BUNDESLIGA

Eintracht Frankfurt ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Augsburg
Heidenheim ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) RB Leipzig
FC Köln ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Darmstadt
Hoffenheim ( 4 ) – ( 3 ) Borussia Mönchengladbach
Wolfsburg ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Bochum
Union Berlin ( 1 ) – ( 5 ) Bayern Munich
Werder Bremen ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Stuttgart
Borussia Dortmund ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Bayer Leverkusen
Freiburg ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Mainz

Bayern Munich widened the gap with Stuttgart, while RB Leipzig also increased their lead over Dortmund.
Bayer Leverkusen remains comfortably at the top of the Bundesliga standings, maintaining a 14-point lead and reaching the 80-point mark with a draw against Dortmund.
Stuttgart was the only side in the top six to suffer defeat, losing to Werder Bremen.

Eintracht Frankfurt ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Augsburg
Three second-half goals enabled Eintracht Frankfurt to come from behind and secure a home victory, overturning a 1-0 deficit to claim three points with a 3-1 win against Augsburg.

Heidenheim ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) RB Leipzig
Lois Openda scored the winning goal in the 85th minute, securing three points for RB Leipzig at Heidenheim. With Borussia Dortmund closely trailing them, RB Leipzig had to maintain their grip on 4th place with this win.

FC Köln ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Darmstadt
In a match between the two bottom clubs in the German Bundesliga, the lower-ranked team secured three points with a 2-0 victory.

Hoffenheim ( 4 ) – ( 3 ) Borussia Mönchengladbach
Mönchengladbach never held a lead, but Robin Hack scored three goals to bring them level by the 89th minute. Despite Hack’s efforts, Mönchengladbach couldn’t secure a win as Anton Stach scored in the first minute of added time to restore Hoffenheim’s lead, resulting in a 4-3 home win at Mönchengladbach’s expense.

Union Berlin ( 1 ) – ( 5 ) Bayern Munich
Despite losing the Bundesliga title for the first time in 11 seasons, Bayern Munich were in good spirits and form, likely buoyed by their advancement to the semifinals of the Champions League. This showed in their 5-1 win in Berlin against FC Union.

Werder Bremen ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Stuttgart
Stuttgart’s battle with Bayern Munich for a second-place finish to a hit after defeat against Werder Bremen. Marvin Ducksch scored a goal in each half to secure Werder Bremen a 2-1 victory against Stuttgart.

Borussia Dortmund ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen’s first league match after clinching the title was a 1-all draw with Borussia Dortmund. Josip Stanisic scored in the seventh minute of added time to equalize and extend Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten run, securing a 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund in Dortmund. Niclas Fullkrug had opened the scoring in the 81st minute, giving Borussia Dortmund the lead, but Bayer Leverkusen managed to salvage a late goal to maintain their unbeaten season.

Freiburg ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Mainz
Mainz picked up an important point in their relegation battle with a 1-1 draw against Freiburg.

🇫🇷 LIGUE 1

Nice ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Lorient
Nantes ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Rennes
Lens ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Clermont
Le Havre ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Metz
Lille ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Strasbourg
Reims ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Montpellier
Brest ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Monaco
Toulouse ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Marseille
Paris Saint-Germain ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Lyon

The league title is likely to stay in Paris for another year.
Paris St. Germain, with a game in hand, extended their lead to 11 points at the top of the Ligue 1 standings after securing a home win against Lyon.
Monaco moved up to second place by defeating Brest.
Metz climbed out of the relegation zone with their win over Le Havre, relegating Le Havre to the playoff spot, while Lorient dropped into the relegation zone alongside Clermont.

Nice ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Lorient
Nice secured a comfortable 3-0 victory against relegation-threatened Lorient.

Nantes ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Rennes
Rennes secured three points with three second-half goals, leaving Nantes still hovering around the threat of relegation.

Lens ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Clermont
An early penalty converted by Florian Sotoca in the third minute of the match was enough to secure a home victory for Lens against bottom-tabled Clermont.

Le Havre ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Metz
Metz moved one point above Le Havre by securing a 1-0 victory. Both teams continue to face the threat of relegation in the league.

Lille ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Strasbourg
Jonathan David’s goal in the 12th minute secured a 1-0 home win for Lille against Strasbourg.

Brest ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Monaco
Monaco finished the game with two players sent off with red cards, but still secured a 2-0 win against Brest. This result moved Monaco one point ahead of Brest in the standings, with a game in hand.

Toulouse ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Marseille
Marseille avoided defeat in Toulouse, thanks to a late goal in the 96th minute of added time, securing a 2-2 draw. Although Marseille initially took the lead, they found themselves trailing by a goal in the 82nd minute.

Paris Saint-Germain ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Lyon
It was no contest as PSG took a commanding lead with a goal in the third minute and were 3-0 up by the 33rd minute. Gonçalo Ramos scored twice in the first half, which ended 4-1. The score remained unchanged until the final whistle, securing another league win for PSG and handing Lyon their first defeat in seven matches.

🇪🇸 LA LIGA

In the top four, Real Madrid widened the gap on Barcelona to 11 points, while Girona extended their lead over Atletico Madrid to 7 points. Valencia dropped to 8th position as Real Betis moved up to 7th. The only change in the relegation zone was Granada picking up a point.

Athletic Club ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Granada
Celta Vigo ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Las Palmas
Rayo Vallecano ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Osasuna
Valencia ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Real Betis
Girona ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Cádiz
Getafe ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Real Sociedad
Almería ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Villarreal
Alavés ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Atlético Madrid
Real Madrid ( 3 ) – ( 2 ) Barcelona
Sevilla ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Mallorca

Athletic Club ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Granada
Athletic Club has now dropped points in consecutive league games since winning the Copa del Rey title. They followed a 1-1 home draw against Villarreal with another draw against relegation-zoned Granada.

Celta Vigo ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Las Palmas
Celta Vigo came from a goal down to secure a 4-1 victory against Las Palmas, with Iago Aspas scoring two goals and assisting two. These points are crucial for Celta Vigo as they aim to distance themselves from the threat of relegation.

Rayo Vallecano ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Osasuna
Two goals in the last 10 minutes of regulation time brought Rayo Vallecano from a losing position to secure a 2-1 win and avoid a home defeat against Osasuna. Moi Gomez opened the scoring for Osasuna in the 29th minute, maintaining their lead until the 80th minute when Pep Chavarria leveled the score for Rayo Vallecano. Isi Palazon then scored the game-winning goal to seal the victory.

Valencia ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Real Betis
Ayoze Perez had to score again in the 77th minute to give Real Betis the lead after his goal in the 19th minute was nullified when Pepelu scored from the penalty spot in the 66th minute to level the score for Valencia. The result allowed Real Betis to move one point ahead of Valencia in the standings.

Girona ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Cádiz
Girona confirmed their qualification for continental cup football competition in the coming season with a 4-1 win against a Cádiz side that is likely to be relegated at the end of the season unless something improbable occurs.

Getafe ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Real Sociedad
A goal apiece in the first half sees Getafe and Real Sociedad sharing the points. Getafe came from behind to secure a point.

Almería ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Villarreal
Alexander Sorloth scored in the second minute of added time (90+2′) to give Villarreal a 2-1 away win against Almería, who had been reduced to 10 men five minutes prior. Largie Ramazani picked up a second yellow card within the space of 7 minutes. The result leaves Almería at the bottom of the table with only one league win.

Alavés ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Atlético Madrid
Atlético Madrid, following a midweek Champions League defeat, suffered a 2-0 loss to Alavés in the league. This result pushed Atlético Madrid further away from the top three.

Real Madrid ( 3 ) – ( 2 ) Barcelona
With the advantage of playing at home and buoyed by their midweek triumph in the Champions League, we expected Real Madrid to enter the fixture on a high. Conversely, we expected Barcelona to arrive with a dampened morale by their Champions League exit on home turf. Despite this, it was Barcelona that got the lead on two occasions but failed to keep it. Real Madrid came from behind twice before securing the game-winning goal by Jude Bellingham in the first minute of added time, clinching an El Clásico victory. This win helped them open an 11-point lead over Barcelona in the La Liga title race, with a maximum of 18 points remaining for each club in the league.

🇮🇹 SERIE A

Inter Milan won the Milan derby and clinched the Scudetto on the same day, marking their 20th league title and adding a star to their team crest. Bologna defeated Roma to surpass the 60-point mark, creating a 7-point gap between the two clubs, with Roma still having a game in hand. Frosinone earned a point, but the bottom three remained unchanged. Udinese slipped to 17th position as Empoli climbed to 16th with a victory over Napoli.

Genoa ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Lazio
Cagliari ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Juventus
Empoli ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Napoli
Hellas Verona ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Udinese
Sassuolo ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Lecce
Torino ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Frosinone
Salernitana ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Fiorentina
Monza ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Atalanta
Roma ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Bologna
AC Milan ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Inter Milan

Genoa ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Lazio
Luis Alberto scored the game’s only goal in the 67th minute to secure a victory for Lazio against Genoa.

Cagliari ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Juventus
Two first-half penalties allowed Cagliari to gain a 2-0 lead, but it wasn’t enough to secure a home win against Juventus. The visitors fought back to earn a point in a 2-2 draw. This result was not what Juventus was hoping for to bounce back from dropped points in the previous round against Torino, especially with the two clubs ahead of them (Inter Milan and AC Milan) facing each other in the same round. Juventus now has one win from their last seven league games played.

Empoli ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Napoli
Alberto Cerri scored in the opening 4 minutes to give Empoli a lead that Napoli couldn’t overturn. Defending champions Napoli suffered a 1-0 defeat against Empoli, a team currently embroiled in a relegation battle.

Hellas Verona ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Udinese
Diego Coppola headed in the only goal of the match in the final minute (90+3′) to secure all three points for Hellas Verona at the expense of Udinese.

Sassuolo ( 0 ) – ( 3 ) Lecce
Sassuolo remains stuck in the relegation zone after suffering a 3-0 defeat at home to Lecce. This marks back-to-back wins for Lecce, following their 1-0 victory against Empoli.

Salernitana ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Fiorentina
The goals came late for Fiorentina as they defeated bottom-tabled Salernitana 2-0. Christian Kouamé opened the scoring in the 80th minute, just ten minutes after entering the game, while Jonathan Ikone doubled the lead in the fifth minute of added time.

Monza ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Atalanta
Atalanta secured their first league victory in three attempts with a 2-1 win over Monza, extending Monza’s winless streak to four straight league games.

Roma ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Bologna
Roma couldn’t secure the desired result at home to enhance the value of their pending league game. Bologna took a 2-goal lead into halftime, and the second half concluded with a 1-1 draw. Bologna emerged victorious, leaving Rome with a 3-1 win against Roma.

AC Milan ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Inter Milan
Francesco Acerbi rose for a free header in the 18th minute, setting Inter Milan on course for a Milan derby victory and their 20th league title. However, it was Marcus Thuram’s goal in the 49th minute that ultimately sealed the 2-1 win for Inter Milan. AC Milan mounted a late surge, with Fikayo Tomori finding the net in the 80th minute to narrow the deficit, but Inter Milan managed to hold on for the win. Given the intense rivalry between the two clubs, AC Milan would have preferred not to see this match determine the Serie A title winner.The match concluded with three red cards, mirroring the three goals scored, but unlike the goals, AC Milan received the majority of the dismissals, 2-1.

🇵🇹 PRIMEIRA LIGA

All teams in the top four emerged victorious this round.
Benfica secured a win in the final match of the round, maintaining a 7-point gap between themselves and the top of the league.
Unless Benfica drops points, Sporting CP, with a 7-point difference, needs just two more wins to become champions.

Rio Ave ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Arouca
Moreirense ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Gil Vicente
Boavista ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Estrela da Amadora
Braga ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Vizela
Chaves ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Estoril
Famalicão ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Portimonense
Casa Pia ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Porto
Sporting CP ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Vitória de Guimarães
Farense ( 1 ) – ( 3 ) Benfica

Moreirense ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Gil Vicente
Moy Gbane scored the game’s only goal in the 38th minute to secure an away win for Gil Vicente against Moreirense. This victory marked Gil Vicente’s first win in their last eight league games, putting an end to a run of four straight defeats.

Boavista ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Estrela da Amadora
Boavista avoided defeat with a goal in the second minute of added time (90+2) to stay a point ahead of Estrela da Amadora.

Braga ( 2 ) – ( 1 ) Vizela
Rodrigo Zalazar scored a brace to lead Braga from a goal down to a 2-1 victory against bottom-table Vizela.

Famalicão ( 2 ) – ( 2 ) Portimonense
Jhonder Cadiz had the chance for a hat-trick, which could have secured a 3-2 win for Famalicão against Portimonense. However, Cadiz missed a penalty in the first half before scoring twice in the second half (in the 60th and 63rd minutes) to turn the game around, giving Famalicão a lead. Portimonense managed to find the equalizing goal in the 77th minute.

Casa Pia ( 1 ) – ( 2 ) Porto
Nico González’s goal in the 56th minute sealed the match, granting Porto a 2-1 away victory against Casa Pia. This marked Porto’s first league win in four attempts.

Sporting CP ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Vitória de Guimarães
Viktor Gyökeres scored twice as Sporting CP moved closer to the league title with a 3-0 victory over Vitória de Guimarães.