Soccer Monday: Barcelona crowned Liga champions, Arsenal falls apart and Red Bulls win NY derby
All the big storylines from this past weekend
This week’s dispatch focuses on three specific areas — Barcelona winning La Liga, the near-conclusion of the Premier League title race and closer to home some of the biggest rivalries in MLS took to the field.
All three were on the menu this past weekend, producing a series of outcomes that will affect the coming weeks and months. This is especially true of what happens next in England with Manchester City close to winning a second straight league title.
Here’s what to know about this past weekend:
3. Barcelona crowned Spanish champions
Two goals by Robert Lewandowski propelled Barcelona to a 4-2 win on Sunday against city-rivals Espanyol, a win that helped the Catalan club clinch the Liga title.
The win gave Barcelona 85 points from 34 matches — 14 points more than Real Madrid, which defeated Getafe 1-0 on Saturday.
It was the cash-strapped club’s first league title since Lionel Messi left two years ago and the team’s first since 2019. The last time Barca won the league without Messi on the roster was in 1999.
The victory came in a heated derby on the road at RCDE Stadium, forcing the Barcelona players to run for safety and into their dressing room after enraged Espanyol fans invaded the field.
2. Arsenal falls apart and Man City close to repeating
Are Manchester City the best team in England or did Arsenal choke. Both can be true, but many are calling the Premier League finale a case of Arsenal “bottling” it.
While few thought the Gunners could be in a position to win the title this season, Mikel Arteta’s side did lead for much of the campaign and only dropped points this spring, including a 3-0 defeat on Sunday at home to Brighton.
Man City, meanwhile, remains on course to win the treble. Pep Guardiola’s side defeated Everton 3-0 and a win this Sunday at home against Chelsea would clinch them the title.
Man City currently have 85 points, four more than Arsenal, with a game in hand. At the other end of the table, Leicester can climb out of the relegation zone with a victory Monday at home against Liverpool. Leicester are looking to avoid the drop with just three games to play this season.
1. Hudson River derby and other MLS rivalries
It was “Rivalry Week” in MLS and many of the contests lived up to the hype.
The New York Red Bulls, with a new coach at the helm after Gerhard Struber was canned, defeated NYCFC 1-0 on Saturday at home in the Hudson River derby. A goal by Omir Fernandez 14 minutes from time gave coach Troy Lesesne his first career MLS win.
In other big games played Saturday, Montreal CF blanked Toronto FC 2-0 in an all-Canadian affair, while FC Dallas edged Austin FC 1-0 in the Texas derby.
The Los Angeles Galaxy earned a much-needed win Sunday against the San Jose Earthquakes in the Cali Clasico. A goal by Dejan Joveljic in stoppage time gave the Galaxy the win.