Amidst all the high profile European action this week thanks to the Champions League and Europa League, the domestic tournaments in Europe were worthy enough to make massive headlines. While the Manchester Derby was postponed due to the League Cup final, the game between Southampton and Manchester United was nothing short of thrilling with the Red Devils coming out on top.
Elsewhere in Spain, Real Madrid dropped points against Valencia, while they completed a stunning comeback against Villareal to stay a point ahead of Barcelona with a game in hand. The Catalans themselves beat Atletico 2-1 to pile on the pressure on Real. Juventus continued their fine form with a routine win in the league while two screamers from Radja Nainggolan helped Roma beat Inter.
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Bayern Munich continued their fine season with an 8-0 thumping of Hamburg, while Celtic sealed yet another win in the Scottish Premier League. Chelsea beat Swansea 3-1 to bounce back from their recent draw in style. With all the action from the domestic competitions, here are five of the best moments this week:
#1 Wayne Shaw eats a pie during Sutton’s game against Arsenal
Arsenal’s 2-0 victory over Sutton United was not only a great game for the Gunners but a fantastic outing for the non-league team. The Gunners progressed to the next round and also won the hearts of many with the respect that was shown to their opponents. Arsene Wenger fielded a relatively strong team while Alexis Sanchez also played a brief part in the game to please the home fans.
However, the man who stole the show – despite spending all his time on the sidelines – was Sutton United’s goalkeeper Wayne Shaw. The 46-year-old reserve goalkeeper was already in the news for his age as well as size. A bookmaker had offered odds of 8/1 that Shaw would eat a pie on camera during the game against Arsenal. Shaw seemed to have been aware of this bet.
The goalkeeper was then seen eating a pie after all three substitutions were made during the game. Shaw even confessed that he was aware of the bet and it was all banter. While the incident led to his sacking, the goalkeeper certainly put a smile on the faces of many and perhaps helped a few optimistic punters make a few bucks.
#2 Zlatan seals the League Cup for Manchester United
Time to hear from the man of the moment!@Ibra_official talks to #MUTV... pic.twitter.com/RrFhcMAKKn
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 26, 2017
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is like wine – he gets better with age. The Swedish striker was simply stunning on Manchester United’s big night as the Red Devils sealed their second trophy under Jose Mourinho with a stunning 3-2 victory over Southampton at Wembley.
After going 2-0 up against Southampton, the Red Devils were at the receiving end of Manolo Gabbiadini’s wrath after the striker continued his stunning form with a brilliant double. When it looked like Manchester United were going into extra-time with an extra 30 minutes to play, Zlatan Ibrahimovic saved the day with his second goal of the game.
United! pic.twitter.com/4EuUON9AuN
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 26, 2017
The striker admitted that he was very tired as the game approached the end after he was at both ends helping out his team against a spirited Southampton. Zlatan’s double proves that the striker has a lot to offer for the Red Devils and is here to stay. This could be the beginning of something special for Manchester United.
#3 Real Madrid’s stunning comeback against Villarreal
After their loss to Valencia on Wednesday, Real Madrid certainly needed a great performance to keep the league firmly in their hands. Barcelona’s 2-1 victory over Atletico Madrid certainly seemed to make a victory even more important for the Los Blancos.
However, Real Madrid was struggling after going down 2-0 in the second half. With just under 30 minutes to go, Gareth Bale scored a header to give Real a fighting chance to win the game. Cristiano Ronaldo converted a penalty after the referee’s controversial decision sparked a lot of anger in the Villarreal dugout. The penalty seemed to do the trick for Real.
After the goal, Madrid came out all guns blazing and quickly scored their third through Alvaro Morata who had come on for Karim Benzema. With eight minutes to go, Real held their lead to complete a stunning turnaround and lead the La Liga by a point with a game in hand.
#4 Radja Nainggolan lights up the San Siro
While Juventus seem to be on their way to yet another Scudetto, AS Roma continued to fight for their chances with a 3-1 victory over Inter Milan at the San Siro on Sunday. The club based in the capital of Italy have been in great form this month barring the 1-0 loss to Villareal in the Europa League which they wouldn’t mind since they qualified 4-1 on aggregate.
Midfielder Radja Nainggolan opened the scoring with a brilliant curler with his right foot into the right-hand corner of the goal to put Roma ahead in the 12th minute. In the 56th minute, Roma found themselves on the counter attack in a 3-v-3 situation with Nainggolan on the ball yet again.
Mohamed Salah’s brilliant run drew D’Ambrosio along with him to leave Nainggolan with acres of space to his right. The midfielder accelerated into the area and launched yet another rocket of a shot into the left corner of the goal. With two stunners on the same night, Nainggolan was surely the star of the game.
#5 Lionel Messi bails out Barcelona yet again
Barcelona’s February has been disappointing, to say the least, and with Real Madrid running away in the league, the Catalans had to win at the Vicente Calderon to apply pressure on Real.
However, Atletico Madrid came out all guns blazing in the first half and dominated the game for the first 35 minutes. Defenders Gerard Pique, Samuel Umtiti and Jeremy Mathieu were good enough to absorb the pressure while ter Stegen kept Barcelona in the game with a few great save.
In the second half, Barcelona seemed to be more in control and was rewarded for their good play with a goal. Rafinha put the ball in the net in what was a scrappy goal, but a goal never the less. Diego Godin put Atletico back on level terms within ten minutes with a header yet again.
With less than five minutes to go, Barcelona were chasing the win, while Atletico was happy to sit back and hit them on the counter. Samuel Umtiti found himself with the ball in Atletico’s penalty area and held it well to find Suarez. The Uruguayan setup Messi whose first attempt was blocked but his second attempt was converted as the little Magician once again scored late to save Barcelona.
