Bellingham's F-bomb, Leverkusen fails to win and hostage homecoming wish
Kick your Monday off with all the news from this past weekend
Happy Presidents Day!
We cap off the long weekend with some of the big storylines to come out of the soccer world.
Real Madrid — more specifically Jude Bellingham — made headlines this past weekend, but not for good reasons.
Meanwhile, the Bundesliga title race seems to be all but over after Bayern played Bayer Leverkusen to a draw. In Italy, Inter Milan blew a chance to go top, where Napoli remain in first place.
Here are the top stories from this past weekend:
La Liga: Real Madrid's lead slips after Bellingham red card
Real Madrid’s grip on the La Liga lead slipped on Saturday after they were held to a 1-1 draw at Osasuna. Jude Bellingham’s red card proving costly in the draw.
Kylian Mbappe, who has been on fire this season, gave Real Madrid the lead in the 15th minute, netting his 11th goal in as many league games. However, just before halftime, Bellingham’s frustration got the better of him. The English midfielder was sent off after using an expletive to protest the referee’s decision, leaving Madrid down to 10 men for the second half.
“Bellingham didn’t do anything that deserved a sending off,” Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said. “[Bellingham] said ‘f—- off,’ not ’f—- you.’ I don’t think that was meant to be offensive.”
With the man disadvantage, Osasuna capitalized on a penalty decision following a video review. Eduardo Camavinga was booked for stepping on Ante Budimir’s foot in the box, and Ante Budimir made no mistake with the 58th-minute equalizer, sending the ball past Thibaut Courtois to level the score.
The draw leaves Real Madrid’s lead at risk. While Atletico Madrid couldn't take full advantage and remain just one point behind, Barcelona has the chance to pull level with the leaders if they defeat Rayo Vallecano on Monday.
Bundesliga: Bayern draw inches them closer to the title
Defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were unable to narrow the gap at the top of the Bundesliga as they played out a 0-0 draw with leaders Bayern Munich.
Second-placed Leverkusen stopped Bayern from winning 12 consecutive league titles last season when they won the championship.
Bayern currently remain on course to regain the crown as they held off Xabi Alonso's side to maintain an eight-point lead. The visitors were by far the weaker side, with Leverkusen enjoying the majority of possession and chances while Bayern failed to register a shot until the 73rd minute.
Harry Kane, who has scored 21 goals this season, had a rather lackluster day as England manager Thomas Tuchel looked on in BayArena stands, heading his only chance over the crossbar.
Leverkusen came very close to scoring in the first half with Jeremie Frimpong and Nathan Tella hitting the bar within five minutes of each other.
Israel: Freed hostage asks his chopper to pass over field of favorite team
Iair Horn, a dedicated fan of Hapoel Beersheba, made a memorable return to Israel after being released from Hamas captivity on Saturday. After 498 days of being held hostage, Horn was airlifted to a hospital in central Israel as the crowd below cheered. His release was part of the ceasefire and hostage agreement between Gaza and Israel.
Upon his return, Horn was greeted by his brother, Amos, and mother, Ruth Strop, who wore Hapoel Beersheba's team colors. The moment was captured in footage released by the IDF.
Horn, 46, had spent over a year in captivity but remained connected to his team throughout his ordeal.
As Horn was flown to Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv, he requested a special detour over Hapoel Beersheba’s Turner Stadium, which was granted. His request was symbolic of his devotion to the team, as they had just won a 4-0 victory over Ironi Tiberias that Saturday.
The team’s message on X expressed their joy for Horn’s safe return, stating, “We’re excited and delighted for the Horn family.” They promised to continue supporting Horn’s family until his son, Eitan Horn, and all hostages come home.
In other news: In Serie A, defending champion Inter Milan missed its chance to move top of Serie A on Sunday after losing 1-0 at Juventus. Francisco Conceicao scored the only goal in the 74th minute of a high-tempo Derby d’Italia. Inter wasted a number of chances and remained two points behind league leader Napoli, which was held to a 2-2 draw at Lazio on Saturday. Juventus is fourth. … American forward Daryl Dike returned from his second torn Achilles tendon, playing his first match in just over a year when he entered for West Bromwich Albion in a 1-1 draw at Millwall on Saturday in the Championship. Dike tore his left Achilles against Ipswich on Feb. 10, 2024, just five games after returning from a ruptured right Achilles tendon. Dike ruptured right Achilles tendon against Stoke on April 15, 2023, and returned on Jan. 7, 2024, when he played the first half in an FA Cup match against Aldershot. … Seven players from two clubs in Mexico’s third division were suspended for a combined 57 years on Saturday for involvement in sports betting and fixing matches. Six of them played for Real Apodaca, and the other for Correcaminos UAT. Neither the Mexican FA disciplinary commission nor the two clubs revealed the names of the players and did not say which matches were manipulated.