Palmer scores 4, NYCFC wins Hudson River derby and Barca's streak ends
Kick your Monday off with all the news from this past weekend
The final weekend of September was one that rendered a series of verdicts.
In England, Cole Palmer showed that he’s one of the Premier League’s best playmakers, scoring four goals in the first half to down Brighton. Chelsea are now a title contender for the first time in years.
Over in Spain, Barcelona went down in defeat after starting the season with seven wins in as many games. That keeps the La Liga title race — and it rivalry with Real Madrid — wide open.
Here are the major storylines you may have missed:
Palmer puts on one-man show
Chelsea’s star attacking midfielder Cole Palmer became the first player in Premier League history on Saturday to score four goals in the first half of a game.
Palmer’s goals came in just a 20-minute span in Chelsea’s 4-2 win against Brighton at Stamford Bridge. He scored in the 21st, 28th, 31st and 41st minutes, with the goals including a penalty as well as a long-range free kick that completed his hat trick.
“I should have had five or six,” Palmer said after the game. “When I missed my first chance I was upset but with the way they played and their high line, I felt we’d get more chances.”
The win leaves Chelsea in fourth place with 13 points. League leaders Liverpool are at 15 points following a 2-1 on Saturday against Wolves. Mo Salah scored the winning goal in the 61st minute on a penalty kick.
In second place with 14 points, a two-way tie between Man City (1-1 against Newcastle) and Arsenal (4-2 winners versus Leicester).
NYCFC takes Hudson River derby
Maxi Moralez opened the scoring in the fifth minute, Alonso Martinez added two others as New York City FC defeated the New York Red Bulls 5-1 on Saturday night, ending a nine-game winless streak.
NYCFC won for the first time since a 2-0 victory over CF Montreal on July 3.
“To me, the biggest games are like boxing matches,” NYCFC coach Nick Cushing told reporters. “If you just keep throwing punches, you’re going to get tired. And if you throw a few and they throw them back, you gotta throw them back.”
The win allowed NYCFC to clinch a playoff berth. The team joined fellow Eastern Conference sides the Columbus Crew, FC Cincinnati, Inter Miami, Red Bulls and Orlando City SC who have also made it to the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Over on the Western Conference, the Colorado Rapids, Houston Dynamo, Los Angeles Galaxy, Los Angeles FC, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders FC and Vancouver Whitecaps have also clinched playoff spots.
Barcelona win streak ends at 7 games
Bryan Zaragoza scored one goal and set up another to spark Osasuna’s shock 4-2 win against Barcelona on Saturday, dealing the La Liga leaders its first defeat of the season.
The striker — on loan from Bayern Munich — crossed for Ante Budimir to open the scoring in the 17th minute. Zaragoza then showed some high-speed dribbling to round goalkeeper Iñaki Peña to make it 2-0 in the 28th minute.
Barcelona was playing with three youth players and one, Pau Victor, pulled one back for the visitors in the 53rd minute, but Budimir converted a penalty kick to put the result beyond doubt in the 72nd. Osasuna’s Abel Bretones made it 4-1 in the 85th and substitute Lamine Yamal scored Barcelona’s second goal in the end.
On Sunday, Angel Correa scored in stoppage time and Atletico Madrid drew 1-1 with Real Madrid, a derby interrupted for more than 15 minutes in the second half after Atletico fans threw objects onto the field.
Correa equalized for Atletico five minutes into added time with a goal that was initially disallowed for offside, but awarded after video review. Eder Militao had given Real Madrid — missing the injured Kylian Mbappe — the lead in the 64th minute.
In other news: Next year’s final of the expanded FIFA Club World Cup will be played on July 13 at MetLife Stadium in suburban New York, site of the 2026 World Cup final. Twelve stadiums will be used for the 32-team tournament, FIFA said Saturday, including five of the 11 U.S. venues for the 2026 World Cup. Sites include six NFL stadiums and four that house MLS teams. … Bayern Munich dominated defending champion Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, but could only manage a 1-1 draw. The Bavarian powerhouse’s inability to find a winning goal ended its six-game winning start to the season across all competitions. But Vincent Kompany’s team will take more from the draw than Leverkusen, which has lost its aura of superiority since completing last season unbeaten to end Bayern’s 11-year reign as champion. … Napoli regained first place in Serie A following a comfortable 2-0 home win against Monza. Torino, meanwhile, fell to its first league defeat of the season, losing 3-2 at home to Lazio. Como beat 10-man Hellas Verona 3-2, while Empoli drew 0-0 with Fiorentina in the Tuscan derby.