TW3 #12

Well that was dramatic...

On a quite remarkable day in the Premier League, the title ended in the hands of Manchester City, Sergio Aguero's late, late goal capping a turnaround of quite large proportions. City were looking good to do something that only they ever could and chuck it all away, even after Joey Barton confirmed his idiot status by getting sent off after a contretemps with Carlos Tevez. Djibril Cissé, Lord of the Manor of Frodsham, kept up his record of either scoring or getting sent off in every game this season, but Edin Dzeko and Aguero struck in injury time to deny United who had won up at Sunderland.
At the bottom, Bolton join Blackburn and Wolves in relegation after conceding two sloppy goals - one to a clear foul as the keeper was charged into the net like it was 1899 and one a very dubious penalty - to draw at Stoke. Bolton are massively over-leveraged and what happens to them from here could be very painful indeed. Arsenal, after a shambolic start to the season, finish third and in the Champions League places with Tottenham fourth and sweating on the result of the Champions League final next weekend. If Chelsea win that, it's the Europa League for Spurs.

Speaking of Germany, Dortmund claimed a first ever league and cup double after a brilliant performance in Berlin's Olympiastadion against Bayern. From the off, they were unplayable. Shinji Kagawa, in what appears to be his last game for the Schwarzgelb, put them in front early on and, despite Arjen Robben equalising from the penalty spot, they looked in little danger from there. Mats Hummels bagged a penalty of his own, but Robert Lewandowski grabbed the headlines. The lanky Pole was unstoppable, countryman Kuba Blasczykowski similarly good and Kevin Grosskreutz also impressed. It was as complete a performance by any team in Europe this season.

Galatasaray are champions of Turkey after a 0-0 draw with Fenerbahce. It wasn't the most noteworthy of games other than that, though both sides finished a man short, Issiar Dia for Fener and Gala's Tomas Ujfalusi both cautioned twice and sent off.

Juventus completed a season without a defeat in winning Serie A. They beat Atalanta 3-1 and Alessandro del Piero, in his last game for the club, on the socresheet. Milan also bade farewell to a number of players - Gattuso, Nesta, Inzaghi, van Bommel, Zambrotta - after a 2-1 win over Novara. Udinese finish third and in the Champions League, another veteran helping them to a 2-0 win over Catania. Antonio di Natale, as if you couldn't guess. Lazio beat Inter to finish fourth and leave Inter outside the European places and Napoli finish fifth after Andrea Dossena scored twice in a 2-1 win over Siena. Genoa got the win that ensured survival - 2-0 against Palermo - which means that Lecce go down with Cesena and Novara. Lecce lost anyway, away to Chievo. Coming up are Pescara, but the other promotion and play-off places are to be decided in midweek.

Villarreal drop out of Spain top division after a dramatic final day. Sporting Gijón lost to Málaga and go down - Málaga make it to fourth and Champions League - while Villarreal were sunk by a late Radamel Falcao goal. With 88 minutes on the clock, they were safe. Even after the goal, they were OK, but then Raul Tamudo bagged a winner for Rayo Vallecano against Granada and they were down. Zaragoza completed a remarkable escape in a foul-tempered match against Getafe who finished with eight players. A fourth straight win for Zaragoza where once they couldn't buy one. Incredible.
Pep Guardiola's last league game in charge of Barcelona finished with a 2-2 draw against Real Betis while Real Madrid beat Mallorca to hit the 100-point mark. Falcao's goal gave Atléti fifth place and Levante beat Athletic to make it to sixth and Europa League football. Deportivo La Coruna are Segunda División champions, but there's one more round to go to decide the second promoted side and who goes into the play-offs.

Montpellier are almost champions of France after beating Lille with a last-minute Karim Ait-Fana goal. Lille will be third and in the Champions League places. Nene hit a hat-trick to ease PSG past Rennes, but a point next week against relegated Auxerre will be enough for the south coast team to lift the title. Auxerre's 3-0 loss at Marseille condemned them to the drop, but it's two from seven to join them after next week's last round. Bastia are Ligue 2 champions and Reims and Troyes are also promoted.

FC Twente have had a really poor end to the season, capped by a loss to RKC Waalwijk in the Europa League play-offs. RKC were promoted last season and this marks quite a rise. Furkan Alakmak got the only goal of the second leg after a 1-1 draw last Thursday to make it to the final where they'll face Vitesse who beat nine-man NEC 2-0 in the other game to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first leg.
De Graafschap are down after a loss to Den Bosch. VVV are still in with a chance of maintaining their Eredivisie status after beating Cambuur Leeuwarden 4-3. At 3-3 with seconds left, Cambuur were through on away goals, but Michael Uchebo ensured they live to fight on. Willem II and Helmond Sport also won and progress to the final stage. It's Willem II against Den Bosch and Helmond against VVV, the winners of which will be in next season's Eredivisie.

We marked your cards with a bit of South American football, but omitted to mention the Bolivian Clausura which came to a quite thrilling climax this weekend. San José led the way by a point from Oriente Petrolero and three from The Strongest and Real Potosí. Universitario and Blooming were only a point further back. The Strongest and San José went head-to-head with Luis Melgar sealing a 2-1 win with little over ten minutes to go. That wasn't enough as Oriente were leading by the same margin away to Nacional Potosí. But with five minutes of the season remaining, José Rios found an equaliser for Nacional and suddenly Oriente were dropped to third and The Strongest were top. The final table shows The Strongest win from San José and Oriente on goal difference, all three sides on 38 points. Universitario and Blooming are a point further back after both won, Blooming against Real Potosi who drop to sixth, but only three points from the summit. Incredible scenes, more than matching the drama in England.

Marking your card #8

The major leagues of Europe are winding down now and play-offs for everything are in full swing. There are some issues still to be resolved though, but it's time to start looking a little further afield for footballing kicks. Here's what we'll be keeping an eye on this weekend.

The big one is in Turkey. Fenernahce v Galatasaray clashes are always tasty and Saturday sees the two clash at Fener's Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in a winner-takes-all title decider. Any winner will take the title. A draw, and it's Gala's. Gala went into the play-off series as league leaders, but haven't been at their best once there having drawn two and lost one of their five games. Fener, meanwhile, have won four and lost one to draw within a point. You don't want gambling advice from us, but back the draw and Gala to take the title.

The big game in France sees Lille - in third place, five points off the lead - take the long trip south to Montpellier. A win for Lille will boost their hopes of retaining the championship, but could also play into the hands of rivals PSG who are away to Rennes this week and three points behind leaders MHSC. It's a pivotal week. At the bottom, Auxerre could be relegated if they lose and a series of results go against them, but it's so tight down there that it's likely to go to the final round.

It's the final round in Spain where Gijón will be relegated unless they can beat Málaga. Even then, a point for Rayo in their game against Granada - both those sides are in trouble and desperate for points - will send them to the Segunda. Zaragoza occupy the third relegation place, but are on a great run and play Getafe this week while Villarreal play Europa League winners Atlético Madrid. They'll be hoping the celebrations have been wilder than is professional. It's a little more clear-cut in Italy. If Genoa get a point, Lecce are gone with Novara and Siena no matter what. Genoa play Palermo at home, Lecce are away to Chievo.

And that's really that for the big leagues. The multitudinous play-offs are ongoing and we'll wrap that up later, but now it's time to look further afield.

We'll be keeping an eye on Scandinavia. The Danish league looks like a race between FC Kobenhavn and Nordsjælland, but nothing catches the eye this week. Elfsborg have started the Swedish league like a train and Rosenborg and Stromsgodset have set quite a pace in Norway.

There are six games to go in Argentina's Clausura and it is, typically, tight as a drum. Boca, defending champions, lead the way, but Arsenal in fifth are only three points behind. Vélez are fourth and play Boca this week at la Bombonera in the big game of the week. Estudiantes play Godoy Cruz, the last time Juan Sebastian Veron will take the field as a professional.

The Uruguayan Clausura is similarly tight, with Defensor Sporting leading by a point from Nacional and Liverpool. Serial trophy winners Peñarol are on the move though and their game away to Montevideo Wanderers is the pick of the week. Chile isn't quite as tight, but the clash between Universidad de Chile and Universidad Catolica is a mouth-watering one. U de Chile are away and clear at the top, but with the title decided on play-offs it's far from over. There's a real logjam to try and make that finals series with four clubs locked on 20 points. Two of those - Santiago Wanderers and Cobreloa - face off this weekend.

Finally, the MLS. In the Eastern Conference, Sporting KC are the class outfit, but two defeats in a row have allowed the field to close in, New York mainly. The Red Bulls take on Philadelphia Union this week and any New York/Phillie clash in any sport is normally tasty. It's high time football acted likewise. The West looks a three-way battle between Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes and Seattle, the latter of whom are on a tremendous run. The stand-out fixture sees RSL go to Seattle.

We, however, are off to Wembley. It's the FA Trophy final, the highlight of the British sporting calendar. It's York City against Newport County this year. Newport have the upper hand in the league clashes between the two this season, but York finished the league far higher. Let's just hope York football is the real winner.

TW3 #12

A busy weekend all over the place and for all sorts of reasons, so let's get to it.

For the first time since 2003, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not a league champion. It was the Milan derby on Sunday evening and it turned out to be one of the games of the season. Having cut Juventus's lead to a single point in midweek, Milanese hopes were high, especially as a brace from Zlatan put the Rossoneri ahead after Diego Milito had put Inter ahead early. Two Milito penalties restored Inter to the lead and a complete thunderbastard from Maicon put the tin lid on it. As job interviews go, it was a pretty good one for Andrea Stramaccioni who now looks like being confirmed in the role full-time. More remarkably, with Inter three points from third, he could yet get them back into the Champions League. While it was all going off in Milan, Juventus were cruising to a 2-0 win over Cagliari in Trieste. Mirko Vucinic had them in front early on and an own goal from Michele Canini sealed the game and, as it turned out, the championship. The club, or elements within it, still claim it's their 30th Scudetto and another star needs adding to the badge, but that conveniently ignores the 2005 and '06 championships that were stripped for... well, y'know... that massive cheating scandal. They've earned this one though. Still unbeaten, they've conceded just 19 goals in the league all season.
At the bottom, Novara beat Cesena, but both were down anyway. Nine-man Genoa lost to Udinese and need a point from their last game at home to Palermo to make sure of survival. Lecce need a win to draw level with them and force a play-off. They're away to Chievo. Speaking of Udinese, Antonio di Natale gave hints that he will be finishing at the end of the season. Now 34, he has been fighting through injuries for a while and the sudden death of Piermario Morosini has seemed to give him pause to reflect on the potential issues inherent in carrying on.

Anderlecht are champions of Belgium after a 1-1 draw with Club Brugge left the gap at seven points between the two clubs with two games remaining. A last-minute penalty from Guillaume Gillet snatched a point after Maxime Lestienne had looked like wresting the initiative back. The top four in Holland all won, so Ajax finish top with Feyenoord in second and in the Champions League play-offs. PSV and AZ go into the Europa League directly with Heracles taking a spot after their cup final loss to the Eindhoveners. Heerenveen and Twente go into the play-offs for the remaining Europa League spot along with Vitesse and NEC, but the Eredivisie has an extra place through the fair play league. Twente will get it if they don't make win the play-offs. If they do, the extra place goes to Excelsior who were relegated. De Graafschap and VVV go into the promotion/relegation play-offs with Eerste Divisie sides Den Bosch, Cambuur Leeuwarden, Willem II, Sparta Rotterdam, Helmond Sport and FC Eindhoven. FC Zwolle replace Excelsior.

With things tied up at the top end of the Bundesliga, all eyes were on the bottom this week and big black clouds - metaphorically and literally - descended over Koln. Lautern were already down and they were joined by Koln who were thumped 4-1 at home by FC Bayern. Fans reacted by letting off smoke bombs leaving the pitch shrouded in thick black smoke causing the game to be called a few minutes early. Hertha BSC face a play-off to maintain their Bundesliga status as they beat ten-man Hoffenheim to leapfrog Koln. Greuther Furth sealed the 2.Bundesliga title after a 2-2 draw with bottom placed Hansa Rostock as Eintracht Frankfurt - also promoted - lost to Karlsruher, a win that gives Karlsruher a shot at survival in a play-off. The push for the promotion play-off place was a three-way affair with two sides facing each other, St Pauli beating Paderborn 5-0 at the Millerntor. It wasn't enough as Fortuna Dusseldorf drew 2-2 with MSV Duisburg to finish ahead on goal difference. St Pauli needed another five.

The title is sewn up in Spain as well, so again we look down the table for action. Racing are down already, but the other two spots are still open. Sporting and Zaragoza both won while Rayo - in horrible form - Villarreal and Granada were all beaten and could all go. Sporting have it all to do - They go away to Málaga next week needing a win and a run of results to go for them - but that final relegation place is wide open. Granada are away to Rayo in what appears the pivotal clash, but Granada will be depleted after having two sent off at the end of their defeat to Real Madrid on Sunday as tempers boiled over with the Zaragozan referee.
Valencia sealed third, but Unai Emery - as has been rumoured for some time - will be leaving the club. Mauricio Pellegrino will take over.

Intrigue in Portugal surrounds the fate of União de Leiria. Having olnly raised eight players last week, they at least had 14 for the loss to Benfica this week as players who have been unpaid for some time decided to withdraw their labour. Leiria are done as a Primeira Liga side. The other relegation place is a straight fight between Feirense and Académica. Feirense need a win on final day and hope Académica lose. Anything else and they're gone. Estoril are promoted with one of Moirense and Desportivo Aves joining them.

The gap in Turkey is down to one point, Galatasaray leading despite being held by Besiktas this week. Fenerbahce beat Trabzonspor to close the gap so it's all on next week's Fener/Gala clash next week. Manchester City's Yaya Touré bagged a crucial brace against Newcastle to leave his side ahead of United in the race for the EPL with a game to go while Chelsea won the cup. Shakhtar Donetsk completed the first part of what they hope is a double with a cup win over city rivals Metalurh. A draw on the final day of the league will seal that double. Still two games to go in France and little is decided. Any one of seven sides could still go down while the top three all won, so Montpellier still lead by three from PSG who are two clear of Lille. Lille go to Montpellier next week.

Another big week awaits, the headline event being Wednesday's Europa League final between Athletic Club and Atlético Madrid in Bucharest. Atlético are the nominal home side and will wear the red and white stripes.

TW3 #11

That was the (mid)week that was. Lots of action all over the place with more champions decided and a whole host of quite outstanding goals. Oh, and a manager cuffing a player.

Real Madrid were crowned champions of Spain after beating Athletic in Bilbao. With a couple of huge Cup finals, Athletic did rotate their squad and had Javi Martinez sent off, but it's doubtful whether it would have made a huge amount of difference. Indeed, had Real not won, it would only have been delaying matters. They've been comfortably the best side all season long. Earlier in the evening, Barcelona beat Málaga 4-1 with Lionel Messi bagging yet another hat-trick and going past Gerd Muller's goals in a season record in the process. The little feller is on 68. Valencia took advantage of Málaga's downfall by stuffing Osasuna to take a grip on third. Sporting Gijón are all but down after a loss to Villarreal, but Zaragoza won again - 1-0 over Levante - and can still save themselves.

While Real Madrid were celebrating title number 32, Ajax made it 31 after a win over VVV. Siem de Jong got both in a 2-0 win and they're six clear of Feyenoord with a game to go. Yes, Feyenoord, whose revival this year has been the big story. They duffed up Heracles, but PSV remain on their heels after tubbing ADO. The second coming of Steve McClaren at FC Twente is turning into a bit of a nightmare and they blew a 2-0 lead - Luuk de Jong with both - before going down 4-3 at home to upwardly mobile Heerenveen. Twente slump to sixth, one place behind AZ who were held by NEC. The European places are complicated, to say the least, not helped by PSV's Cup win over Heracles. Rather than go through it here, we'll just wait for events to unfold next weekend and see where we are. Totalfootballnl.com had a look ahead of this round of fixtures and the picture hasn't become much clearer after it.

Juventus's lead in Serie A is down to a point after a blunder by Gianluigi Buffon allowed Luis Muriel to snatch an equaliser for ten-man Lecce. His first touch on a routine back-pass was awful, showing far too much of it to the diminutive Colombian who nipped in to equalise Claudio Marchisio's early opener. Milan won 2-0 at home to Atalanta to close the gap. Lecce's point keeps them in with a shout of stopping up, but a win for Genoa and a draw for Novara consign the latter to Serie B. But the big story of Novara's game was the sideline shenanigans between Delio Rossi and Adem Ljajic. After being subbed off, Ljajic gave his manager a sarcastic round of applause. Rossi reacted the only way that can be expected - by diving in windmilling and slapping the cheeky bastard. Rossi has been sacked, so we know where the power lies at that club.

PSG close the gap to Montpellier at the top of Ligue 1 to three points, MHSC effectively having their mulligan this week in a fiery draw at home to Evian. They had a chance to win it after winning a last-minute penalty that sparked a scuffle that ended with four players sent off. Souleymane Camara missed. PSG beat St Etienne 2-0 the following day. Lille remain in touch, two points back from PSG. Auxerre - seemingly dead and buried a couple of weeks ago - play Dijon tonight (Thursday) and a win would move them out of the bottom three. Dijon are in the worst form of anyone in Ligue 1.

Anderlecht and Club Brugge both won - at home to Gent and Standard Liege respectively - meaning the gap between the two remains seven points. They play each other on Sunday and a draw will win the title for Anderlecht. Dynamo Kiev dropped points in a 0-0 draw at Zorya while Shakhtar won again, 2-1 away to Metalist. That means a draw will do for Shakhtar against rock bottom Oleksandria in the final round of games this weekend. Galatasaray were held by Trabzonspor in the Turkish championship play-offs which gives Fenerbahce the opportunity to go top on goal difference if they beat Besiktas tonight (Thursday).

A range of stunning goals were scored all over the place, but the top three and this screamer from Seattle's Fredy Montero and these two from Newcastle's Papiss Demba Cissé. That's 13 in 12 for the ex-Freiburg man. And there's only one word for that: Woof!

TW3 #9

Protests. Two of them this weekend and for very different reasons. Sevilla fans weren't taking the fact their game at home to Levante was held back until 10:30 - meaning it finished the following day - so that TV could analyse every last second of the clasico that went before it. With banners such as "stop the game, Mou is talking", a shower of tennis balls rained down onto the field in scenes reminiscent of those at FC Basel when their game was held back because Roger Federer was playing tennis. Heaven help us if the World Snooker Championships ever takes precedence over a football game. You could really hurt someone with a cue ball.

A protest of a different sort in Genoa where they're in all sorts of trouble at the wrong end of Serie A having spent a fair wedge to get there. Supporters launched fireworks onto the field which left the referee with no option but to take the players from the field. The Genoa players stayed out to remonstrate with the fans, but a number demanded that the players hand over their shirts as they were not worthy of them. Ten shirts were handed over, Giuseppe Sculli the refusenik. Eventually, the fans were persuaded to return to the stands where they observed the remainder of the game with backs turned to the pitch. Siena ran out 4-1 winners and on Monday morning Alberto Malesani was sacked. To be sacked from a club once in a season is bad. For the same club to sack you twice is perversely impressive. Genoa sit one point and one place above the drop zone.

On to the actual football and that clasico then. Real Madrid won it against a tired looking Barcelona. El Real are not about to drop eight points in the remaining four games and the title will be theirs. Valencia strengthened their grip on third place after thumping woeful, nine-man Real Betis, but are a whopping 33 points behind El Real. Racing are down after losing to Athletic. A win for Granada and a point for Villarreal means that Sporting and Zaragoza are going to join them before too long.

Dortmund sealed their second successive championship with a 2-0 win over Gladbach. Bayern came from behind to beat Bremen with Franck Ribéry scoring a last-minute winner, but it mattered not with Dortmund's win. Bayern will finish second, Schalke and Gladbach are fighting for third while Stuttgart need a series of events to go their way to pip Gladbach for fourth. Lautern won for only the fourth time this season, a 2-1 win in Berlin against Hertha, a result that leaves Hertha in deep trouble. The problem for Lautern is that Koln's point against Stuttgart was enough to condemn them to 2.Bundesliga football next season. They'll be replaced by Greuther Fürth whose point against FSV Frankfurt on Friday was enough to seal promotion and they're joined by Eintracht Frankfurt who beat bottom side Alemannia Aachen on Monday.

When is a championship not a championship? When it's mired in the increasingly odd world of Swiss football. Basel took an unassailable 16-point lead in the standings after a 3-0 win over Sion, but refused to celebrate as second-placed Luzern are appealing against a decision regarding two competition points they feel should be theirs after the Sion ineligibility row. Basel have said they'll only celebrate when they're out of range even should the points be reinstated. Meanwhile Young Boys and FC Zurich have been refused licenses to operate next season, joining Servette and Neuchatel Xamax in that regard. Seven second-tier clubs are also subject to the same penalty.

Sint-Truiden were relegated from Belgium's top flight after losing the fourth game of their play-off with Westerlo. The fifth game will not now be needed, Westerlo having won three of the first four. Anderlecht opened up a five-point gap in the championship play-offs by beating Club Brugge. Five games remain there. In the Turkish championship play-offs, Galatasaray were beaten by Fenerbahce, closing the gap to two points with four games to go. Besiktas and Trabzonspor cannot win it - it's a straight fight between Gala and Fener. Ajax need one more win for a second successive Eredivisie title as the top five all won. They're six clear of AZ, but one point covers second to fifth in the chase for Champions League football. A draw for Heerenveen at home to Vitesse sees them drop back. The French title race rumbles on as Montpellier and PSG both won - the Parisians 6-1 at home to Sochaux - leaving the gap at two points. Zenit's lead in Russia was trimmed to 12 points after a draw with Kuban Krasnodar, but with just four games to go, one more point will do it. They're at home to second-placed Dinamo Moscow next week as well.

Marking your card #6

What we'll be looking out for this weekend. We feel quite sure there's a big game going off somewhere on Saturday evening. Errmmm.... errrr.... Oh, it'll come to us. Onward...

Lots of things can be resolved in Germany this weekend. A win for Dortmund over Gladbach in the big Borussia derby will seal the championship for the second year running for the Schwarzgelb no matter what FC Bayern do at Bremen. Gladbach need a win to secure at least fourth place and the Champions League qualifying berth and Schalke, away to Augsburg, need a win to be safe in that top four. Anything other than a win for Lautern will condemn them to relegation and even that might not be enough if Koln get anything out of their game against Schalke. In the division below, Greuther Fürth just need a point for promotion and play away at FSV Frankfurt tonight. Eintracht Frankfurt need a win to seal an immediate return to the top flight and are also away, to Alemania Aachen on Monday. Paderborn, Fortuna Dusseldorf and St Pauli are all still in the mix for third and the promotion play-off against the 16th placed team in the Bundesliga which looks like being either Hertha BSC or Koln.

Ajax opened up a six-point gap at the top of the Eredivisie last week, not a decisive lead, but one big enough to make one think they're almost home. Four games to go here and everyone else is looking for them to slip up at home to Groningen this weekend. Twente are away to Excelsior, Feyenoord - all of a sudden in third place - got to Den Haag, AZ have VVV at home, PSV - outside the European places now - play NEC at home and Heerenveen host Vitesse. With only one down automatically, one of Excelsior and De Graafschap - at home to Heracles - look doomed. There's a point between them.

Still six games remaining in Ligue 1 which means nobody from 12th down can consider themselves safe. Auxerre are beginning to be cut adrift though and look like one of the three to go down. The top two look clear, Montpellier leading from PSG, and they are both at home this week to Valenciennes and Sochaux respectively. A midweek loss for Lyon has all but ended their hopes of Champions League football and locked with Toulouse for fourth. Lille run in a lonely third.

If Genoa beat Siena on Sunday, Cesena will be relegated from Serie A even if Cesena manage to beat Palermo. Novara - away to Napoli this week - also need to start picking points up before it's too late. A point continues to seperate Juventus and Milan at the top. Milan are at home to Bologna this weekk while Juve have the game of the round, at home to Roma who still have chances to make the Champions League places.

Another big game in Turkey this week with Fenerbahce going to Galatasaray. A win for the latter and they'll have an almost decisive lead.

Spain now and if Villarreal beat Real Sociedad and Granada beat Getafe, Racing will be relegated. Even if not, it's a long road back for Racing who host Athletic on Sunday. Sporting Gíjon and Zaragoza also remain deep in the mire and are at home to Rayo and away to Mallorca respectively.

And that's it for this week.

Oh no, wait. There's the small matter of Barcelona v Real Madrid on Saturday. The Catalans are four points behind. Both come off Champions League defeats. A draw will probably do for El Real. Nothing but a win will suffice for Barcelona. It will probably be a pissy, whiny bitch-fest, but some football could break out. Strap in.

Us? Well we're off to Huddersfield v Scunthorpe, so you don't have to. Enjoy the game wherever you end up.

TW3 #8

The weekend's football was largely overshadowed by the tragic death of Piermario Morosini in a Serie B clash between Livorno, with whom he was on loan from Udinese, and Pescara. The Lega Calcio immediately cancelled the rest of Italian programme for the weekend - Milan and Genoa learning this during their pre-match warm-up - with nobody in the mood for a game. Questions are being asked. There is a rigourous testing regime in place, but all the screening in the world isn't going to help, especially if pitchside treatment isn't up to scratch or ambulance staff are prevented from accessing a stricken player by a badly parked traffic officer's car.

Morosini has been talked about in glowing terms in the aftermath and seems a genuinely liked person. Not that he'd had it easy. Both his parents died when he was still a teenager, his severly disabled brother committed suicide in between. And yet at no point does it appear to have affected him negatively, rather to spur him on. If anyone had the right to dwell on things and wear 'why always me?' t-shirts, it was Morosini. That he took such a philosophical outlook on things only serves to increase the sense of tragedy. He leaves behind a physically handicapped sister, but just when you thought you couldn't respect Antonio di Natale any more, he goes and pledges to ensure she's looked after. When tragedy strikes, real heroes emerge. Di Natale has always been a footballing hero. He's so much more than that now.



Football does pale in light of that, but it did go on as it always will, the unstoppable behemoth that it is. We'll have a whizz round the leagues very quickly.

Cup joy for both Marseille and Benfica. Brandao's extra-time goal settled a dull Coupe de le Ligue final in St Denis while a late Javier Saviola strike snatched glory for Benfica just after Zé Luís had equalised for Gil Vicente. In Ligue 1, Montpellier still lead despite losing to Lorient as PSG were held by bottom club Auxerre.

Dortmund won the big derby in Germany at the home of their rivals Schalke. Bayern and Mainz struggled to a goalless draw, opening the gap out to eight and almost certainly ensuring that the salad bowl remains at the Westfalenstadion. Gladbach hammered sorry Koln - without a manager after offing Stale Solbakken in the week - to all but seal a place in the Champions League qualifiers. In 2.Bundesliga, Greuther Fürth and Eintracht Frankfurt are all but promoted. It would take a monumental collapse to deny either as with Fortuna beaten by Dynamo Dresden on Monday night, Greuther need one point, Eintracht two.

AZ losing to PSV and Twente drawing with NAC has allowed Ajax to pull out a six-point gap at the top of the Eredivisie. Zwolle will be promoted after a 0-0 draw with FC Eindhoven sealed the Eerste Divisie title. In Spain, wins for the top two left everything as was, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi both moving on to 41 league goals for the season.

Unseemly goings-on in Turkey where Didier Zokora accused Emre Belozoglu of racially abusing him during the Fenebahce v Trabzonspor game. Emre coughed to it and apologised, in fairness. In the big game, Galatasaray triumphed over Besiktas and remain five points clear.

The Champions League semi-finals take centre stage in midweek while Lega Calcio have confirmed that Italian football resumes next weekend.

Marking your card #5

Herewith the highlights of the coming weekend around Europe.

Biggest game of the weekend is the Ruhr derby as Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund make the short trip to Gelsenkirchen to take on rivals Schalke. Dortmund built up a six-point buffer by beating FC Bayern midweek and the Bavarians are at home to Mainz awaiting a slip-up by the Schwarzgelb. And if it's derby action you want, try Galatasaray travelling to face Besiktas in the Turkish league. Slightly more tame than that is the game on Sunday in Vienna between Rapid and Austria.

Saturday is League Cup final day in France and Portugal as Lyon take on Marseille - the Olympique derby - at the Stade de France and Benfica meet Gil Vicente in Coimbra. Marseille go into it in stinkingly rotten form and Lyon are huge favourites to take the first silverware of the year. Benfica are even stronger favourites in their final.

Inter travel to Udine in a big clash in terms of the minor European placings. Udinese have just gone off the boil a little lately while Andrea Stramaccioni has had a solid start to his Inter career, already taking more points in four games than Claudio Ranieri did in his last ten.

The Eredivisie became a lot more clear-cut after the midweek matches. PSV are at home to AZ in the one clash between the top six. Twente are at home to NAC, Heerenveen go to Nijmegen and Feyenoord face their feeder club Excelsior at De Kuip. Anyone hoping for a slip-up from leaders Ajax will be disappointed - they're at home to De Graafschap.

The top two in Spain are both in action on Saturday ahead of Champions League assignments midweek with Real Madrid at home to Sporting Gíjon and Barcelona with the marginally tougher assignment of playing away at Levante.

And in English non-league football, Fleetwood Town can confirm their promotion to the football league with a win over Lincoln City at Highbury tonight. They will win that. Lincoln are rubbish.

Enjoy the game wherever you end up.