THE SHOTS WE TOOK THIS WEEK

Monday, April 1, 2024

🇮🇹 Arrigo Sacchi turns 78 today, 🇮🇹 Paolo Conti turns 74, 🇩🇪 Dieter Müller turns 70, 🇮🇹 Giancarlo Antognoni turns 70, 🇮🇹 Roberto Pruzzo turns 69 today, 🇧🇷 Tita turns 66, 🇮🇹 Cristiano Doni turns 51, 🇮🇷 Hamid Estili turns 57, 🇳🇱 Clarence Seedorf turns 48, and 🇬🇭 Haminu Draman turns 38.

🇪🇸 Villarreal 1-2 Atlético Madrid (spanish la liga):
Saul Niguez came off the bench in the 84th minute and scored the game winning goal three minutes later to restore Atletico Madrid’s lead and hand them a win against Villarreal to take full advantage of the favor Real Madrid did them by beating Athletic Club. The results pushed Atletico Madrid up to 4th place in the standings.

🇮🇹 Inter Milan vs. Empoli (italian serie a):
With a comfortable 14-point lead in the Serie A title race, Inter Milan had the luxury of some margin for error. Nevertheless, they maintained their winning streak and secured another victory, this time against Empoli—a side desperately seeking points to fend off relegation.

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Tuesday, April 2, 2024

🇭🇺 Ferenc Puskás would’ve been 97, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Teddy Sheringham turns 58, 🇧🇷 Edmundo turns 53, 🇧🇷 Grafite turns 45, 🇲🇽 Carlos Salcido turns 44, 🇳🇱 Ibrahim Afellay turns 38, 🇧🇦 Miralem Pjanić turns 34, 🇨🇲 André Onana turns 28,

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Newcastle United ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Everton \ premier league
Dominic Calvert-Lewin converted a penalty into a goal in the 88th minute to get Everton even on the scoreboard and grab a point at Newcastle. This point was crucial for Everton, who had gone 13 league matches without a win and were teetering on the edge of a fourth consecutive league defeat.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Nottingham Forest ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Fulham \ premier league
Nottingham Forest’s 3-0 lead in the opening half proved sufficient to defeat Fulham. This victory marked Nottingham Forest’s first win in six league matches, having previously suffered four losses.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Bournemouth ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Crystal Palace \ premier league
Justin Kluivert scored the game’s only goal to get Bournemouth home victory against Crystal Palace.

🇳🇱 Excelsior ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) PSV Eindhoven \ eredivisie
PSV Eindhoven made the recovery from their first league defeat of the season with a win against relegation-threatened Excelsior.

🇩🇪 Saarbrücken ( 0 ) – ( 2 ) Kaiserslautern \ dfb-pokal semi final
After eliminating Bayern Munich, Eintracht Frankfurt, and Borussia Monchengladbach on their path in the DFB Pokal, Saarbrücken’s remarkable tournament journey finally concluded in the semifinal at home against Kaiserslautern. Despite a valiant effort, a 2-0 home defeat, with both goals scored in the second half, allowed Kaiserslautern to secure a spot in the DFB Pokal final at Saarbrücken’s expense.
Considering Saarbrücken’s mid table position in the third division of German club football, their semifinal run in the German Cup is truly impressive and epitomizes the unpredictability and excitement inherent in cup competitions.

🇮🇹 Juventus ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Lazio \ coppa italia – semi final
After suffering a league defeat to Lazio over the weekend, Juventus exacted revenge in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final, securing a victory of their own. With the second leg yet to come, Juventus holds a promising ‘2-0′ lead, providing valuable insurance as they head to Rome.

🇫🇷 Lyon ( 3 ) – ( 0 ) Valenciennes \ coupe de france – semi final
As expected, Lyon secured a comfortable victory against Valenciennes to secure their place in the Coupe de France final. Given Valenciennes’ current position at the bottom of the Ligue 2 standings, failure for Lyon to advance at home against them would have been the kind of upset that could lead to contract cancellations.

🇵🇹 Benfica ( 2 ) – ( 2* ) Sporting CP \ taca de portugal – semi final
Sporting CP secured their spot in the final after a 2-2 draw away to Benfica, adding to their 2-1 home win in the first leg.
Last season, Sporting CP was eliminated in the third round by Varzim, a club that has since been promoted to the second division but was in the third division at that time. This season, Sporting CP is heading to the final with a ‘4-3’ aggregate win on Benfica.

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Wednesday, April 3, 2024

🇲🇽 José Luis Salgado turns 58, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ben Foster turns 41, 🇳🇱 Tim Krul turns 36, 🇭🇷 Lovre Kalinić turns 34, 🇫🇷 Adrien Rabiot turns 29, 🇧🇷 Gabriel Jesus (Brazil) – 27, 🇧🇪 Wout Faes (Belgium) – 26.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Arsenal ( 2 ) – ( 0 ) Luton Town \ premier league
A two-goal first-half lead was enough for Arsenal to secure three points at home against Luton Town.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Manchester City ( 4 ) – ( 1 ) Aston Villa \ premier league
A hat-trick for Phil Foden, which included an equalizing goal, the game-winning goal, and the goal to ensure a win

🇳🇱 Heracles ( 5 ) – ( 0 ) AZ Alkmaar \ eredivisie
Not what was expected when looking at the league standings, but a Heracles side just outside the relegation zone won 5-0 against an AZ Alkmaar side just outside the top four.

🇳🇱 Utrecht ( 5 ) – ( 1 ) PEC Zwolle \ eredivisie
Six goals were scored in the second half, with Utrecht netting five of them to secure a home victory against PEC Zwolle.

🇳🇱 Heerenveen ( 3 ) – ( 3 ) Twente \ eredivisie
Twente failed to hold on to a two-goal lead on two occasions, dropping points against Heerenveen.

🇩🇪 Bayer Leverkusen ( 4 ) – ( 0 ) Fortuna Düsseldorf \ dfb-pokal semi final
Leverkusen went into the break with a 3-0 lead. Florian Writz scored his second goal of the game and the only goal of the second half through a penalty, securing a 4-0 win.

🇮🇹 Fiorentina ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Atalanta \ coppa italia – semi final
There is still a lot to play for in the second leg but Rolando Mandragora scored the only goal of the game, giving Fiorentina a leading start at home in the Coppa Italia semi final first leg.

🇫🇷 Paris Saint-Germain ( 1 ) – ( 0 ) Rennes \ coupe de france – semi final
Kylian Mbappe’s goal sent PSG to the Coupe de France final to meet up with Lyon.

🇵🇹 Vitoria de Guimaraes ( 0 ) – ( 1 ) Porto \ taca de portugal – semi final
Pepe, the attacking player, secured the game’s sole goal, leading FC Porto to victory. The second leg of this tie is set for April 17, 2024. With Porto holding a 1-0 advantage at home, they will strive to maintain their lead and advance to the Taca de Portugal final to defend their title. Sporting CP awaits the finalist from these two teams.

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Thursday, April 4, 2024

🇧🇷 Branco turns 60, 🇧🇷 Emerson turns 48, 🇩🇪 Sami Khedira turns 37.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Chelsea ( 4 ) – ( 3 ) Manchester United \ premier league
A Cole Palmer hat-trick propelled Chelsea to victory in a thrilling 7-goal encounter against Manchester United at home.
Despite initially holding a 2-goal lead, Chelsea found themselves level on the scoreboard with Manchester United at halftime after relinquishing their advantage. In the second half, Manchester United surged ahead 3-2 when Ganarcho netted his second goal of the match in the 67th minute.
However, deep into extra time, a penalty was awarded, presenting Cole Palmer with the opportunity to score his second goal of the game and level the score in the 10th minute of added time. In a dramatic turn of events, Palmer then fired in the winning goal just a minute later, securing three crucial points for Chelsea.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Liverpool ( 3 ) – ( 1 ) Sheffield United \ premier league
Liverpool managed to overcome a scare to secure an expected victory at home against bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United.
An own goal in the 58th minute leveled the score for Sheffield United after Darwin Nunez had put Liverpool in the lead in the first half. However, Alexis Mac Allister restored Liverpool’s advantage with a goal in the 76th minute.
The contest was sealed when Cody Gakpo scored in the 90th minute, securing a 3-1 victory for Liverpool.

🇳🇱 EREDIVISIE

Volendam ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Feyenoord \ eredivisie
RKC Waalwijk ( 0 ) – ( 0 ) Almere City \ eredivisie
Ajax ( 1 ) – ( 1 ) Go Ahead Eagles \ eredivisie

All three Eredivisie matches of the day ended in draws, with both Feyenoord and Ajax failing to secure victories in their respective fixtures ahead of their upcoming meeting this weekend.
After suffering a league defeat to Lazio over the weekend, Juventus exacted revenge in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final, securing a victory of their own. With the second leg yet to come, Juventus holds a promising ‘2-0’ lead, providing valuable insurance as they head to Rome.

2024 DFB-POKAL FINAL: Kaiserslautern vs. Bayer Leverkusen

Kaiserslautern and Bayer Leverkusen are set to clash in the final of the DFB Pokal on May 25th, 2024. Leverkusen enters the match as the clear favorite, given their dominant performance throughout the season and their position at the top of the league table in the first division of German football. In contrast, Kaiserslautern finds itself in the second division and struggling near the bottom of the league, facing the threat of relegation.

In terms of historical success in the competition, Kaiserslautern holds the edge with more DFB Pokal titles. They have won the tournament multiple times (2), including a more recent victory in 1996. On the other hand, Bayer Leverkusen has claimed the title only once, back in 1993.

COUPE DE FRANCE FINAL: Lyon vs. Paris Saint-Germain

Cup football often brings surprises, but the Coupe de France semifinals were devoid of any upsets. Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain advanced through the semifinals at the expense of Valenciennes and Rennes, respectively.
Paris Saint-Germain is aiming to secure their first Coupe de France title since 2021, which would bring their total to a record-setting 15 titles.
Lyon is seeking their first title since 2012, which would mark their sixth Coupe de France triumph.