Barcelona lose lead, draw at Villarreal; Real Madrid surge past Sevilla

Barcelona missed out on the chance to go 11 points clear at the top of the Primera Division as they squandered a two-goal advantage in a 2-2 draw at Villarreal.

Ivan Rakitic's half-volley and a classy 'Panenka' penalty from Neymar had given Luis Enrique's side a comfortable lead before half-time.

But Villarreal fought back after the break, Cedric Bakambu halving the deficit before Jeremy Mathieu knocked the ball into his own net just moments after coming on as a substitute.

Despite failing to win for the first time in 13 league games, Barca increased their lead over nearest challengers Atletico Madrid at the top of the table to nine points after the Rojiblancos lost 2-1 at Sporting Gijon, while Villarreal remain fourth, picking up a first point in three games.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid used goals from Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Jese to overcome pesky Sevilla 4-0 at the Bernabeu.

Benzema eased nerves early with an impressive first-time finish of a Bale cross from the center of the box in the sixth minute.

It would take nearly an hour for Real to score again, but Los Blancos did so in rapid succession.

Ronaldo, who missed a penalty minutes before, scored his goal on a tricky finish from close range on 64 minutes, and Bale scored a similar effort from about the same distance after a cushioned chip from Benzema.

Substitute Jese then stepped up four minutes from time, pouncing on a deflection and slotting past Sergio Rico to wrap up the points for the Zinedine Zidane's men.

Late goals from John Guidetti and Hugo Mallo gave Celta Vigo a 2-0 win at hapless Valencia to pile more misery on coach Gary Neville, who was the subject of angry chants by the Mestalla crowd.

Valencia fell behind after 80 minutes as Guidetti latched onto an audacious back-heel by Fabian Orellana to lash home.

Five minutes later, captain Mallo finished off the hosts, coasting down the right-hand side and cutting inside to beat goalkeeper Mat Ryan at the near post.

As the whistle approached, furious Valencia fans turned their anger on Neville, chanting "Gary go now."

Goals from Pape Diop and substitute Felipe Caicedo saw Espanyol come from behind to beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 and move seven points clear of the relegation zone.

Javier Eraso had given the Basques the lead after 20 minutes by following up his shot on the rebound after Pau Lopez had parried.

Constantin Galca's side got the equaliser they deserved in the 54th minute, Diop rising to meet a corner and heading home.

They took the lead for the first time in the game just three minutes later. Gerard Moreno raced forward on the counter and spotted Caicedo on the edge of the area, the Ecuadorian controlling the ball and beating a defender before lashing into the net, making his mark on the game just four minutes after coming off the bench to replace Asensio.

Marcus Rashford hailed by Louis van Gaal after Manchester United victory

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal described Marcus Rashford as a "real striker" after the 18-year-old scored the only goal to win the derby at Manchester City.

Rashford's cool finish, which came after he had tricked his way past Martin Demichelis, cut the gap between fourth-placed City and United to just a point.

The 16th-minute strike made him the youngest scorer in Manchester derbies during the Premier League era at 18 years and 141 days.

Van Gaal told Sky Sports: "He is a real striker. That's why I let him play in that position.

"He can make goals but also is an attacking point and runs the channels. Still, he is 18, so we have to wait and see how consistent he is."

Rashford thought he should have had a penalty when he was brought down by the struggling Demichelis, and Van Gaal said: "I think it was a penalty. We need video referees, I think."

The United boss praised his side for their speedy recovery from the Europa league exit to Liverpool on Thursday, adding: "A lot of players had cramp, but that is logical when you have played on Thursday.

"You saw what Liverpool did. They were 2-0 up then lost 2-3 [at Southampton] because they were not recovered.

"It was fantastic, what we did. We did it also against Arsenal. We have beaten Manchester City and it is not easy to win here.

"It was a long time ago that we won here, so it is for the fans as well."

Chris Smalling was again a commanding presence in defence for United and praised Rashford for making the difference.

The England defender said: "It's so refreshing to see a young lad who wants to run at defenders. If I was coming up against him, I'd know it'd be a difficult game."

Michael Carrick, meanwhile, said the win was "more than three points."

He added: "The position that we were in, in the league meant it was a must-win game. It gives us a bit of momentum."

Galatasaray-Fenerbahce derby postponed due to unspecified threats

ISTANBUL -- Turkish authorities called off Sunday's Galatasaray-Fenerbahce derby in Istanbul about two hours before kickoff citing an unspecified threat, and said the game would be played at a later date.

A brief statement from the Istanbul governor's office said the match was cancelled following "the assessment of serious intelligence," but didn't provide details. It said the decision was made following "the request and the agreement" of the two bitter rivals.

Unconfirmed media reports said there was a bomb threat at the stadium.

The decision came a day after an Islamic State group-linked suicide bomber killed himself and four foreign tourists on Istanbul's main pedestrian street. The attack was the sixth suicide bombing in Turkey since July that have either been blamed on the IS group or claimed by Kurdish militants.

It came amid heightened alert in Turkey in the run-up to the Kurdish spring festival of Newroz, which has led to violent confrontations between Kurdish and Turkish security forces in the past.

Earlier, fans were told that the game would be played without spectators, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported, leading to protests by fans who were already inside the stadium. But authorities later decided to delay the game.

Gianluigi Buffon sets Serie A record in Juventus' win asNapoli keep pace

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made Serie A history as Juventus remained top of Serie A with a 4-1 win at Torino in the Turin derby on Saturday.

Needing to survive just four minutes to pass Sebastiano Rossi's all-time league record of 929 minutes without conceding a goal, Buffon did so with ease before Juventus moved 2-0 ahead through Paul Pogba and Sami Khedira.

Eventually Buffon was beaten for the first time in the league since Jan. 10 by an Andrea Belotti penalty, yet the Bianconeri made sure of the points with a brilliant third through substitute Alvaro Morata, who notched again late on in a result that extended Juve's unbeaten run to 20 league games.

The gloss was taken off the victory somewhat by Sami Khedira's 87th-minute red card, which he seemingly accrued for something he said to the referee.

Napoli overcame a half-time deficit to defeat Geona 3-1 to stay three points behind Juventus.

Tomas Rincon opened the scoring for the visitors in the 10th minute as Tomas Rincon's powerful right-footed shot from outside the box caught goalkeeper Pepe Reina off guard, and Genoa held a 1-0 half-time lead.

But Gonzalo Higuain scored six moments after the break when Elseid Hysaj's smart ball forward into the box found him in plenty of space, and then he put Napoli ahead in the 81st minute with a curling 16-yard strike in off the right post.

Omar El Kaddouri added a third goal in stoppage time for Napoli as he slotted home Manolo Gabbiadini's cross.

Fiorentina were held to a 0-0 draw by relegation battlers Frosinone -- but the point was enough to lift them back into fourth place above Inter Milan.

Frosinone goalkeeper Nicola Leali produced a string of fine saves to deny the Viola, who twice hit the woodwork through Nikola Kalinic and Borja Valero, while home midfielder Oliver Kragl fired a free kick against the crossbar.

Both sides went close to grabbing a winner in the closing stages. Substitute Aleksandar Tonev's shot flashed just wide and at the other end Kalinic headed just off target.

Sassuolo's slim chances of qualifying for Europe have all but ended despite coming from behind to earn a 1-1 draw against Udinese at the Stadio Citta del Tricolore.

With Inter Milan dropping points at Roma on Saturday, Sassuolo could have closed the gap on the Europa League places to eight points with a win.

But Duvan Zapata scored his sixth goal of the campaign to give Stefano Colantuono's men an early lead.

The hosts equalised in the 64th minute when Matteo Politano headed in Federico Peluso's cross but the Neroverdi remain seventh while Udinese are now four points above the relegation zone in 16th.

Riccardo Meggiorini netted a first-half winner as Chievo claimed three points from a 1-0 win over Sampdoria at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

Meggiorini's effort midway through the first half was enough to secure victory as the home side failed to get anything from the game despite having seven shots on target.

Sampdoria enjoyed 65 percent possession but it was Meggiorini's header which separated the two sides as Valter Birsa's cross found the Italian forward after 24 minutes for his fifth goal of the season.

Atalanta recorded their first victory in 15 games to potentially save manager Edy Reja's job as they defeated nine-man Bologna 2-0.

Reja had received no assurances on his position following his club's alarming slide, which was eventually halted by first-half goals from Alejandro Gomez and Alessandro Diamanti, before Ibrahima Mbaye and Daniele Gastaldello were both dismissed late on.

Ex-West Ham forward Diamanti squared for Gomez to break the deadlock with a close-range finish before scoring himself as Mauricio Pinilla teed him up.

Pinilla then had a penalty saved, yet it did not prove costly as Mbaye was sent off for a lunge on Gomez and Gastaldello, booked when he conceded the spot kick, followed him for two cautions.

Struggling Carpi secured an important 2-1 win against bottom side Hellas Verona with both sides desperate for points to keep them in Serie A.

The visitors got on the scoresheet three minutes before half-time when Antonio Di Gaudio found the back of the net but Verona came back fighting in the second half and levelled the score just after the hour mark through Artur Ionita.

Verona only managed to keep the score level for three minutes when Kevin Lasagna scored his fourth goal of the season and things got worse for the bottom side when two yellows in eight minutes saw Ante Rebic get sent off in the last minute of normal time.

Liverpool's Klopp: 'Southampton deserved the three points'

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp didn't have an answer for his side's shocking second half performance in their 3-2 loss at Southampton, and admitted the Saints "deserved" the three points on Sunday.

Liverpool went into the game on an eight-match unbeaten run and looked for all the world like extending that after a first-half in which they were by far the better side.

But, with the Reds losing for the first time in Premier League history after leading 2-0 at half-time, Klopp was at a loss as to the contrast in displays either side of the interval.

"I saw lot of good things from my side," he said.

"It was a perfect first half and we could have scored more. We played really good.
"In the second-half Southampton deserved it. We could have done better but that's how it is in football. You have to take your chances and in the first moment of the second half I saw it was not too good.

"It was clear when they scored their first goal that something big would happen in this game. We could have played better. It is like it is. Second half Southampton deserved the three points."

Despite the setback, Klopp has refused to give up on taking Liverpool into the top four before the end of the season.

"There are nine games left, still 27 points to get," Klopp added. "If we can get all of them there is a chance."

Man City expect injured Joe Hart, Raheem Sterling to miss 3-4 weeks

Joe Hart and Raheem Sterling are set to miss England's forthcoming friendlies, with Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini saying he expected muscle injuries to keep them out for up to a month.

Roy Hodgson's England travel to take on world champions Germany next weekend, following that up with a game against Netherlands at Wembley.

However, the 24-man squad named on Thursday for those matches looks set to change after Sterling and Hart were injured as City lost 1-0 at home to rivals Manchester United on Sunday.

Sterling pulled up with a groin complaint midway through the first half and Hart was taken off on a stretcher after half-time having sustained a calf injury while trying to clear a horrible Martin Demichelis backpass.

"Both of them have muscle injuries," Pellegrini said. "Raheem his groin and Joe in his calf. I don't think that with a muscle injury you can be fit in one week. Normally it is three or four weeks."

Pellegrini, who walked out of his TV interview, struck an understandably frustrated figure in his post-match news conference, having seen City's title hopes extinguished as United moved to within a point of them in fourth.

The Champions League quarterfinals may await the Capital One Cup winners, but they have now only won one of six league matches, raising questions of whether Pep Guardiola's impending arrival has negatively impacted the squad.

"I don't think that I lose any control," Pellegrini said. "If you see the attitude of the team today, it reflects that we are involved in what we want to do.

"Of course it is not the best way to finish the season and maybe one thing is linked with the other one, but I repeat I am happy with the attitude.

"The players are focused in this season and want to finish as near the top of the table as we can."

Demichelis had a woeful afternoon at the Etihad Stadium, not only with the back pass that led to Hart's injury but also for his embarrassing role in conceding Marcus Rashford's goal.

Pellegrini rejected the suggestion that Rashford was too good for Demichelis, although accepted his substitution early in the second half was a result of a bad day at the office.

"He was nervous," Pellegrini said, having taken him off in the 53rd minute. "He was not having a good day."

Louis van Gaal: Man United top-four finish 'in our own hands'

Louis van Gaal believes Manchester United have a great chance of securing Champions League football after coming through a "test of survival" at rivals Manchester City. 

Thursday's Europa League exit to Liverpool means only a top-four finish will do if United are to return to European football's top table.

Van Gaal admitted in the build-up to Sunday's match that defeat would all but extinguish their Champions League hopes, but his side produced a strong display to close the gap on misfiring City.

Marcus Rashford's first-half strike at the Etihad Stadium saw his first Manchester derby end in a 1-0 win, making his manager believe a top-four finish is within their grasp.

"I have said in advance that we must win this game and we have done it, so I am very happy because otherwise the gap was too big if they won," Van Gaal said. "Or a draw is still four points, eight matches to go, so then it should be very difficult.

"Now it is in our own hands, I think. We have to win our games, we have more home matches than away matches. We don't lose so much at Old Trafford so we have a big chance."

Van Gaal says that the belief was palpable in the dressing room after a match which left him proud given Thursday's Europa League exertions.

"I think that we have played a fantastic first half," he said. "We started the second half again very good and had the first chances -- after that it was a test of survival because we were very tired.

"We have to recover within two days -- that is nearly not possible and especially not when you play a game against Liverpool like we have done.

"We have and have given everything to beat Liverpool and then you have to play City. You have seen, for example, their result at Southampton -- half-time 0-2, final time 3-2.

"I have not seen the match but I can only conclude that it is because of the tiredness. That is what we have done to them.

"My players have fought to the end with cramp -- Marcus Rashford could still run with cramp. I have never seen that!"
Van Gaal's comments came in response to a question about United targeting City's injury-hit defence.

While coy when asked about that in the news conference, he was far more forthcoming in the broadcast interviews, especially on City centre-back Martin Demichelis.

"Rashford is very quick and Demichelis looked like the years are catching up with him," he said. "He was a very good defender, he was my centre-back in Bayern but that is the life of football."

Louis van Gaal: Man United top-four finish 'in our own hands'

Louis van Gaal believes Manchester United have a great chance of securing Champions League football after coming through a "test of survival" at rivals Manchester City. 

Thursday's Europa League exit to Liverpool means only a top-four finish will do if United are to return to European football's top table.

Van Gaal admitted in the build-up to Sunday's match that defeat would all but extinguish their Champions League hopes, but his side produced a strong display to close the gap on misfiring City.

Marcus Rashford's first-half strike at the Etihad Stadium saw his first Manchester derby end in a 1-0 win, making his manager believe a top-four finish is within their grasp.

"I have said in advance that we must win this game and we have done it, so I am very happy because otherwise the gap was too big if they won," Van Gaal said. "Or a draw is still four points, eight matches to go, so then it should be very difficult.

"Now it is in our own hands, I think. We have to win our games, we have more home matches than away matches. We don't lose so much at Old Trafford so we have a big chance."

Van Gaal says that the belief was palpable in the dressing room after a match which left him proud given Thursday's Europa League exertions.

"I think that we have played a fantastic first half," he said. "We started the second half again very good and had the first chances -- after that it was a test of survival because we were very tired.

"We have to recover within two days -- that is nearly not possible and especially not when you play a game against Liverpool like we have done.

"We have and have given everything to beat Liverpool and then you have to play City. You have seen, for example, their result at Southampton -- half-time 0-2, final time 3-2.

"I have not seen the match but I can only conclude that it is because of the tiredness. That is what we have done to them.

"My players have fought to the end with cramp -- Marcus Rashford could still run with cramp. I have never seen that!"
Van Gaal's comments came in response to a question about United targeting City's injury-hit defence.

While coy when asked about that in the news conference, he was far more forthcoming in the broadcast interviews, especially on City centre-back Martin Demichelis.

"Rashford is very quick and Demichelis looked like the years are catching up with him," he said. "He was a very good defender, he was my centre-back in Bayern but that is the life of football."

Arsene Wenger: I don't know if Arsenal can still win title after Tottenham draw

Arsene Wenger admitted he is unsure whether Arsenal can still win the Premier League title after Saturday's 2-2 draw at Tottenham.

Arsenal were 1-0 up but then had to fight back for a draw with 10 men after Francis Coquelin was sent off in the second half and Spurs went ahead with two quick-fire goals.

The result means leaders Leicester could go eight points clear of the Gunners with a win against Watford later.

Asked about Arsenal's title chances, Wenger said: "I don't know because I don't know what to say anymore about that. Everybody drops points so let's see what happens over the weekend.

"I think we have to take encouragement from our performance today and we have to produce that until the end of the season then we might have a chance."

Arsenal beat Leicester 2-1 three weeks ago, a result that had appeared to have swung the momentum in the Gunners' favour, but they have not won in five games across all competitions since.

Wenger acknowledged that this season may have represented the team's best chance to end a 12-year Premier League title drought.

"Maybe, yes. Last year we had no chance but now I don't know," he said. "We are in a position where we not only depend on our own results but the results of teams like Leicester."

Wenger's team had been relentlessly criticised this week after losses to Manchester United and Swansea dealt a massive blow to their title hopes, but gained a measure of redemption by coming back with 10 men at White Hart Lane.

"[For] a team with low confidence and no belief, we played pretty well today," centre-back Per Mertesacker said. "We don't need that [criticism]. It's nonsense. We just concentrate on ourselves and that's the only way to compete and win games."

Alexis Sanchez ended a scoring drought by netting the equaliser -- his first league goal since October -- and Wenger said he hoped the comeback could boost the team's confidence with crucial games ahead.

Arsenal travel to Hull for an FA Cup replay on Tuesday. Depending on the result of that game, they would either face West Bromwich Albion in the league or Watford in the cup next weekend, and will then go to the Camp Nou trying to overturn a 2-0 deficit in the Champions League.

Given Arsenal's stuttering league campaign and their likely elimination from the Champions League, a loss in the FA Cup -- which the Gunners have won in each of the last two seasons -- would threaten to derail their season completely.

"I must tell you that the pressure from our supporters is relentless and I'm in a good position to tell you that," Wenger said. "We have to deal with that. We have to go on a run again.

"We play on Tuesday night an important game and then we will see if we will play in the FA Cup or the Premier League [next weekend]. We want to win our games."

The Frenchman could still draw some positives from Saturday's game, with Sanchez scoring again and Danny Welbeck looking lively after starting up front instead of Olivier Giroud.

Goalkeeper David Ospina also played well in place of the injured Petr Cech, making a one-handed reaction save to deny Erik Lamela in the first half and keeping the ball out by a fraction of an inch in the second.

Wenger also opted to give Mohamed Elneny his first league start alongside Francis Coquelin in central midfield with Aaron Ramsey on the right wing, adding more defensive solidity to the team.

"Our balance was right today. We looked dangerous going forward, well organised in midfield and at the back and we moved the ball well. We had a solid performance," Wenger said.

"[Sanchez] had a great attitude today. I hope that will give him needed confidence and encouragement to continue and the goal will give him a lift. Certainly, it will give him a bigger a lift now."

Cristiano Ronaldo scores four as Real Madrid put seven past Celta Vigo

Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo scored four times in Saturday's 7-1 win over Celta Vigo as the Portuguese superstar moved into second place all-time in La Liga's goal charts.

Ronaldo, 31, had been whistled by a restless Bernabeu earlier in the game but responded with four goals in the span of 26 second-half minutes, giving him 252 strikes in just 228 La Liga games.

Lionel Messi remains the all-time La Liga record goal scorer, with the Argentine having managed 304 so far for Barcelona in 12 seasons to Ronaldo's seven.

Ronaldo answered his critics by swerving a 30-yard strike into the net with Real already 1-0 up in the 50th minute.

He soon followed that with a superb 25-yard free kick right to the top corner of the Celta goal, then completed his hat trick from close range from Isco's cross, before heading his fourth of the game to the net from Jese's corner.

Ronaldo also now heads this season's La Liga Pichichi top scorer race with 27 goals, two ahead of Barcelona's Luis Suarez, with Messi back on 19 in joint-third. He has also moved one ahead of Benfica's Jonas to top the current European Golden Boot standings.

Gareth Bale marked his return from a hamstring injury by scoring in his first appearance in 50 days, while Pepe and Jese also got on the scoresheet for Madrid. Iago Aspas got Celta's only goal in what was their worst defeat of the season.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Las Palmas took another step towards survival when an unexpected 1-0 win over Champions League hopefuls Villarreal brought them a third consecutive victory.

Captain David Garcia gave the visitors a deserved lead on the half-hour mark, becoming the first player to score against Villarreal goalkeeper Alphonse Areola in the league for 620 minutes.

Villarreal, meanwhile, slipped seven points behind third-placed Real Madrid but are still in pole position to claim fourth spot.