Tyson Fury is set to defend his WBC world heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte on Saturday, and while all logic points to smooth sailing for the champion, there may be more factors at play than meets the eye.

Fury is arguably the top pound-for-pound talent in boxing, and at six-foot-nine with a seven-foot wingspan, he is one of the sport's toughest puzzles to crack.

The 33-year-old sports a record of 31 wins and one extremely controversial draw against Deontay Wilder, which he avenged twice with back-to-back finishes of the heavy-handed American.

In a vacuum, 'The Gypsy King' by unanimous decision seems like the overwhelmingly likely result as his physical gifts and boxing skill should allow him to rack up rounds on the judges' scorecards as he picks apart the slower, smaller Whyte from the outside.

Whyte, at six-foot-four, is the shortest opponent Fury has faced since Sefer Seferi in June 2018.

But fights are not fought in a vacuum, and there are some familiar storylines clouding over the head of the reigning champion that could mean the Fury we see on Saturday may not be the same animal that dominated Wilder.

Fury's last dance

First and foremost, Fury is adamant that this will be his last fight, and he will retire in the ring this weekend – win, lose or draw.

Fighter retirements must always be taken with a grain of salt, given the fact that it has now become a common tactic among top attractions in order to drum up massive interest in their eventual return. 

However, Fury's feels different. This week he has been outspoken with the media about his desire to retire after his last fight with Wilder, but the prospect of returning home and fighting in front of 94,000 at Wembley convinced him to go around one more time.

"It's been a long old ride, it’s quite emotional to be honest," he said.

"All this, the ride of starting as a little kid and wanting to be heavyweight champion, and then to finally be hanging up the gloves. 

"And I know nobody believes me, because they all think I'm after money or whatever else – there's only a certain amount of people who know that money doesn't mean anything to me."

Simply put, Fury is only fighting for the honour of retiring undefeated, and the biggest fights of his career – taking the world championship off Wladimir Klitschko, and coming to America to take on Wilder – are behind him.

Fury will still have his skills, his size and his experience when he steps into the ring against Whyte, but the history of combat sports is littered with examples of fighters who have fought with one foot out the door, and that desire to continue to be great, and dominant, is something that can fade.

'Marvelous' Marvin Hagler once said "it's tough to get out of bed to do roadwork at 5am when you've been sleeping in silk pyjamas", and there is no heavyweight alive with silkier pyjamas than Fury right now.

Whyte, on the other hand, is heading into the fight of his life, and his last real opportunity to propel himself into the realm of boxing royalty.

At 34, with two losses on his record, the only way someone at Whyte's level can leap into the next stratosphere as a prize-fighting main attraction is to win a marquee fight against someone currently wearing the crown. 

Add in the fact that he is an Englishman, raised in Brixton, living out the dream of competing at Wembley in the biggest fight of his career, and from a motivational standpoint, it appears the advantage is clearly in Whyte's corner.

Fury the boxer, or Fury the entertainer?

Much has been made of Fury's change in trainers late in 2019, where he began training under the tutelage of SugarHill Steward.

The stylistic changes have been apparent, and in Fury's own words: "I punch a lot harder, I use a more aggressive style, and I'm looking to get people out of there rather than out-box them."

He has only fought twice with Steward in his corner, and both times were against Wilder – a boxer solely focused on landing a knockout, with no interest in stacking up rounds with patient boxing.

Whyte approaches things far differently. He does not head-hunt – a trait that earned him the nickname 'The Body Snatcher' – and he is more than happy to win by decision.

Given Fury's incredible size and movement skills, a game-plan centred around attacking the body – which moves around far less than the head – is the most sustainable way to tally scoring punches.

Whyte has never been knocked out in 52 combined professional fights across boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts, so if Fury is in there looking to end his career on a high with one big shot, Whyte can steal three or four early rounds and turn it into a tight decision.

Great Whyte hope

Not to get lost in Fury's skill superiority is the fact that Whyte is, obviously, very talented in his own right.

His first loss came against Anthony Joshua back in 2015, and it was the first time Whyte had been faced with an undefeated professional opponent with more than five fights.

Needless to say, he was not ready, but was still able to take multiple rounds off the Olympic gold medallist before his eventual demise in round seven.

Since then, Whyte has successfully dealt with fellow world title contenders Dereck Chisora (twice), Lucas Browne (by knockout) and Joseph Parker, and after being derailed by Alexander Povetkin in August 2020, he responded by knocking him out in the rematch eight months later.

That knockout earned Whyte this shot at Fury, and in his long, winding road to his chance at the taking the throne, he has proven his ability to respond to adversity, win close fights and do damage to elite heavyweights.

If Fury is truly done, Whyte could be the man tasked with carrying the torch for British heavyweight boxing going forward, and a win could set up another English mega-fight – this time with Joshua.

An imposing Shohei Ohtani claimed his first win of the MLB season as the Los Angeles Angels defeated the Houston Astros 6-0 on Wednesday.

Ohtani threw 81 pitches on a night where an 85-pitch limit seemed likely, as well as getting two at-bats in a six-run first inning.

The reigning American League MVP pitched perfect into the sixth inning, with a career-best 12 strikeouts, while also getting two hits and two RBIs in the shutout.

With the Astros traditionally providing him trouble, the 27-year-old did not allow a baserunner until Jason Castro hit a single with one out in the sixth.

The Angels moved to 8-5 with the win, leading the Seattle Mariners by a game atop the AL West.

Tapia leads Blue Jays to win over Red Sox

Raimel Tapia hit his maiden home run since joining from the Colorado Rockies, with a two-run slam in a five-run second inning as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Boston Red Sox 6-1.

Jose Berrios claimed his first win in three starts this season, giving up just one run and eight hits in six innings, with six strikeouts and a solitary walk.

Meanwhile, Nick Pivetta gave up five runs, seven hits and four walks on the way to being pulled before the fifth inning – a second time in as many starts for the Canadian.

Giants ride Rodon to victory

Carlos Rodon broke a franchise record for the San Francisco Giants in their 5-2 win over the New York Mets.

After signing from the Chicago White Sox, Rodon struck out eight over five scoreless innings and moved to 27 over his first three starts, breaking the previous record of 26 set by Cliff Melton in 1937.

While Joc Pederson, Brandon Crawford and Wilmer Flores helped build an early 3-0 lead, Rodon was the star of the show, limiting the National League East-leading Mets to three hits and two walks on 95 pitches.

The Boston Celtics overturned a 17-point deficit to go 2-0 up over the Brooklyn Nets in their playoff series, winning 114-107 on Wednesday.

The Nets' lack of off-ball movement eventually told against the NBA's best defensive team, as Kevin Durant scored 12 points in the second half but went zero-of-10 from the open floor and the Nets went 11-of-36 collectively.

Kyrie Irving shot one-of-seven after the main break and the Nets' iso-ball provided such a net loss, the second-half collapse came despite the Nets holding advantages in team rebounding, fast-break points and points off turnovers for the game.

Derrick White was the only Celtic not to score in double digits as Ime Udoka went with the eight-man rotation. Even with the relatively low 27 assists for the team, the Celtics still had a +11 margin over the Nets in that category.

Jayson Tatum was the only player on the floor with a double-double, putting up 19 points, 10 assists and six rebounds as the Celtics protected home court.

Sixers inch closer to series sweep

The Philadelphia 76ers took a commanding 3-0 lead in their series with the Toronto Raptors, claiming a 104-101 win in overtime on the road.

After protecting home court, the Sixers also fought their way back from a 17-point deficit to take a huge step towards claiming the first-round series.

With the game tied at 101, Joel Embiid scored the game-winning basket with 0.8 seconds remaining, evading Precious Achiuwa and receiving the inbound to bury a turnaround three-pointer off the catch.

The MVP candidate finished with 33 points on 12-of-20 shooting and 12 rebounds, while James Harden and Tyrese Maxey contributed 19 points each.

It was yet another poor shooting night for Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr, combining for 36 points but off 12-of-32 shooting from the floor, with VanVleet's two-of-10 from beyond the arc particularly damaging.

Bulls split series in Milwaukee

The Chicago Bulls have managed to split the opening two games and can potentially gain home-court advantage in the series after their 114-109 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

There was a sense the Bulls could take at least one game from Milwaukee after the opener, which saw them almost claim the win despite a horrible shooting night from Nikola Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine.

After a combined 21-of-71 in Game 1, the three Bulls bounced back with a combined 33-of-62 from the floor, while Alex Caruso gave them a reference point with primary ball-handling duties.

The Bucks just could not stop DeRozan getting to his mid-range spots and the five-time All-Star finished with 41 points. Caruso did a bit of everything on both ends with nine points and 10 assists as well as two blocks and two steals.

While Giannis Antetokounmpo put up 33 points, Milwaukee ultimately could not work their way back from a poor first half that opened up an 18-point deficit.

Phoenix Suns top-scorer Devin Booker is reportedly unlikely to play in Game 3 or Game 4 of their first-round series against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Booker, 25, scored 31 points in the first half of Game 2, but tweaked his hamstring with five minutes remaining in the third quarter when trying to contest Jaxson Hayes at the rim, immediately leaving for the locker room.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that while the injury is considered "mild" and Booker is not being ruled out for the series, "it appears unlikely he will be able to play in Games 3 and 4".

The injury could have seismic repercussions for the favourites to take out this year's NBA Championship, as what was once considered to be a likely sweep, may now become a case of the Suns being on upset-watch.

From the point Booker was substituted out of Game 2, the Suns were outscored 48-40 in just under 17 minutes, allowing 69 second-half points in the process. For the season, Phoenix only allows opposition teams to score an average of 54 in second-halves.

While the Suns are clearly not a one-man team, if there is one player they could not afford to lose, it is Booker.

In games this season where Booker has played, Phoenix have a record of 56-12 – and winning percentage of .824 – and were just 8-6 in games he missed.

In addition, the Pelicans are a much better side than their 36-46 record indicates.

After starting their season with just one win from their first 14 games, New Orleans went 32-30 from their last 62 contests, banking wins over playoff teams including the Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Toronto Raptors – and the Suns.

Since the All-Star break – around the time they added key starter C.J. McCollum through a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers – the Pelicans have been a top-10 offense and a top-10 defense, with a net-rating of 4.7, only slightly behind Phoenix's 6.0 over the same time period.

New Orleans are a team playing their best basketball at the right point of the season, and have a young star looking poised to elevate himself into the conversation of the game's most elite offensive players.

In the Pelicans' four postseason games, including the two play-in fixtures, Brandon Ingram is averaging 28 points, 6.8 rebounds and six assists, including going off for 37 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in the Game 2 win to even the series.

Health and momentum are now on the Pelicans' side, as they head back to New Orleans for Game 3 and Game 4 in games Booker is unlikely to suit up for.

While the Suns have kept their head above water in games he has missed, they are just 2-5 on the road when Booker has not played, and they will need at least one more win before heading back to Phoenix for Game 5, or else it could shape up as an upset for the ages.

An eighth seed has only defeated a one seed on four occasions in NBA history: the 1993-94 Denver Nuggets defeated the Seattle Supersonics; the 1998-99 New York Knicks toppled the Miami Heat en route to the NBA Finals; the 2006-07 'We Believe' Golden State Warriors against the Dallas Mavericks; and the 2010-11 Memphis Grizzlies beating the San Antonio Spurs.

Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti backed Karim Benzema to bounce back after missing two penalties in the 3-1 win over Osasuna on Wednesday.

Ante Budimir cancelled out David Alaba's 12th-minute opener before Marco Asensio restored Madrid's advantage at El Sadar.

Benzema was then twice denied by Sergio Herrera from 12 yards as the France star became the first player to miss two penalties in a LaLiga game since Raul Tamudo against Real Betis in April 2006.

Lucas Vazquez sealed victory for the league leaders in stoppage time as Madrid moved 17 points clear of nearest challengers Atletico Madrid, with distant chasers Sevilla and Barcelona playing on Thursday.

Speaking after the game, Ancelotti was quick to defend Benzema, who leads LaLiga scoring charts with 25 goals to this season.

"Penalties are missed by those who take them, it won't affect Benzema. Karim played a super game, he's going to score the next game," he said.

Alaba limped off at half-time and was subsequently withdrawn at the interval, but Ancelotti did not appear concerned about the centre-back's injury.

"We are optimistic with Alaba. We removed him as a precaution, he has been overloaded with a lot of work," the Italian added.

Madrid will now turn their attention to the Champions League semi-final first-leg clash at Manchester City on Tuesday, and Ancelotti insists his focus will be solely on that tie and not securing the league title.

"The title? We plan to prepare well for the next match, which is the semi-final of the Champions League," he continued.

"Then let's see what happens. We need to win. We are focused on the semi-final match and I think we are going to arrive in good form."

Diego Simeone explained Atletico Madrid's lack of "brilliance" in Wednesday's disappointing draw with Granada was down to fatigue.

Atletico were held to a goalless stalemate by struggling Granada at the Wanda Metropolitano, doing little to improve Los Colchoneros' Champions League qualification hopes.

Although the draw did move them up to second, Barcelona and Sevilla – both a point behind – each have at least one game in hand, while their inability to win ensured Atletico did not take full advantage of fifth-placed Real Betis losing on Tuesday.

Atletico recorded 1.4 expected goals (xG) against Granada but were wasteful in front of goal, hitting the target just once from their 22 attempts.

For Simeone, the explanation was simple.

Asked what was missing for Atletico, Simeone told reporters: "[We needed to] generate more chances to score, especially being more forceful in dangerous situations. Granada defended very well.

"We looked at the different options we had [in attack]. We had the [Manchester] City game, we played after three days against Espanyol and we ended up with one [player] less [Joao Felix], and in another three days we played against Granada.

"It's not an excuse, [but] we lacked brilliance due to the team's fatigue. There are five games left, and game by game we have to fight. Whoever is most engaged will go into the Champions League."

Atletico were frustrated late in the first half when a penalty was not given against Victor Ruiz for a challenge on Antoine Griezmann.

But Simeone opted against putting too much emphasis on that incident, again pointing to his team's recent workload instead.

"I didn't see the Griezmann incident. Apparently there is contact," he continued. "There's the VAR to make decisions, I am just here to improve my team.

"The boys came from making a great effort and they gave everything they had because they came here very tired.

"We lacked a goal, we lacked brilliance – that is achieved when you are fresh."

The Atletico coach gave his 19-year-old son Giuliano his LaLiga debut right at the end, though in typical Simeone fashion, he did not look at the situation with any particular sentimentality.

"I thought of him as being a footballer," the former Argentina international said. "We had one more option [on the bench] as a striker.

"He showed in a few minutes that he has a lot of intensity, aggressiveness."

Luka Doncic has been upgraded to questionable for Game 3 between the Dallas Mavericks and the Utah Jazz on Thursday. 

Mavs point guard Doncic missed the first two games of the Western Conference first-round series with a left calf strain sustained in the team's last outing of the regular season. 

The Slovenian is reportedly optimistic of making his return in Game 3 or Game 4, which are scheduled to take place on Thursday and Saturday respectively. 

The series is tied at 1-1 ahead of the first game at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City. 

Massimiliano Allegri says he could not ask for any more from his Juventus players after they booked their Coppa Italia final spot with a 3-0 aggregate victory over Fiorentina on Wednesday. 

The Bianconeri claimed a 1-0 win in the first leg last month, and Federico Bernardeschi doubled their advantage in the tie with a fine finish shortly after the half-hour mark in the return fixture. 

Danilo added a second deep into stoppage time at the end of the game as Juve reached their 21st Coppa Italia final – at least five more than any other side in the competition's history. 

They will play Inter in the final at the Stadio Olimpico on May 11 after Simone Inzaghi's side overcame Milan in their last-four tie.  

Juve did not have it all their own way, with Fiorentina taking 17 shots and enjoying 68.3 per cent possession, but Allegri was pleased with how his side bounced back from the disappointing 1-1 draw with Bologna at the weekend. 

"I could not ask for more from these players, as for the last four months it's basically been the same players all the time. They're giving it everything out there," he told Mediaset. 

"We should congratulate the lads, as reaching the final was an objective for the season. It had been a tough few days after the draw with Bologna, when we failed to make the most of many chances. 

"Fiorentina are dangerous with their passing and pace if you give them a chance to run at you, but we did well to create those spaces in attack and defend well. 

"This is football, we suffered and won. Those who came off the bench all did really well, we had a team spirit to reach this final. 

"Now we must prepare for the next game in Serie A and try to recover some players." 

Allegri's position as Juve boss has come under scrutiny in recent weeks, with some supporters unimpressed by the club's failure to challenge for the Serie A title. 

While Allegri shares that frustration, he says he has every intention of being in the dugout as they look to launch a title bid next season. 

"Juventus must always challenge to win," he added. "The thing that most disappoints me is losing the head-to-head with Inter, because that is the result that decided the league. 

"Being five games from the end and not being in the Scudetto race does annoy me. It can be motivation for next season, we can learn from that experience and also realise that in football and life you can't always win." 

Juve are next in action on Monday when they visit Sassuolo in Serie A. 

Mauricio Pochettino declared himself 'satisfied' with PSG's win over Angers despite victory for Marseille delaying their coronation as Ligue 1 champions.

The Paris club needed to better their title rivals' result on Wednesday to clinch a 10th championship, and held up their end of the bargain as goals from Kylian Mbappe, Sergio Ramos and Marquinhos secured a 3-0 win.

However, Marseille twice overturned Nantes leads in their game to secure three points and take the title race into the weekend.

Not that Pochettino was too disappointed, the Argentine saying: "Winning the championship as soon as possible is the best possible [outcome].

"It's not possible at the moment, but we had a good game and took the three points. That is most important. 

"It's never easy, but I think it's a good performance from us. I am very satisfied with my players and these three points.

"I hope we can do it all together on Saturday at the Parc des Princes."

PSG's win was somewhat soured by the controversial late dismissal of young substitute Edouard Michut following a VAR review.

Replays appeared to show that the 19-year-old had only caught Romain Thomas with a high challenge as a direct result of a foul on him from Enzo Ebosse.

Of the decision, Pochettino added: "Edouard didn't do it on purpose. I do not understand the red card even if the action was of course dangerous. 

"It really wasn't [his fault]. I am very disappointed with this and hope they can review the images and remove the card." 

Pep Guardiola felt Manchester City were "exceptional" as they beat Brighton and Hove Albion 3-0 to return to the top of the Premier League.

Second-half goals from Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday moved City a point clear of Liverpool with six games to play.

Mahrez and Foden found the back of the net with the help of deflections before Silva put the icing on the cake with a clinical left-foot finish late on.

Liverpool had made a statement by thrashing Manchester United 4-0 on Tuesday, but City responded with a comfortable win of their own 24 hours later.

It was a 250th victory of his City tenure for Guardiola and the Spaniard was full of a praise for his side, knowing they can ill afford any slip-ups in the title race.

He told Match of the Day: "It was a good test and we behaved exceptional. That is why we won the game.

"We didn't let them play. Brighton have this quality. In the second half we found the goals that we could not find in the first half."

He added: "The feeling today is that we are now mathematically going to play in the Champions League. People can say it is normal, but it is not. You only have to look at the incredible teams fighting to get into the Champions League.

"Now for the Premier League, we are not stupid. If we drop just two points, Liverpool will be champions. If we win all games we will be champions. The players know it.

"We know the tough games we have and we must try to perform like today and win all the games. If we do that we will celebrate, if not we will congratulate Liverpool."

Kevin De Bruyne was outstanding on his return to the starting line-up and Guardiola says the midfielder is stepping up when City really need him.

He said: "What a signing. The club sign him before I come here so a big congratulations to the club. A special player and human being.

"When fit and happy mentally like all of us and is fit to show his potential he is unstoppable in that position, in transition especially. He is playing the last part of this season amazingly."

Ruben Diaz made his return from a hamstring injury as a half-time substitute after Nathan Ake sustained a twisted ankle, while John Stones was withdrawn late on. 

Guardiola said: "Nathan Ake has a twisted ankle. It is not perfect but it was good to give minutes to Ruben. John was a little bit tight.

"Hopefully [it is] nothing too bad but we will see tomorrow. Ruben is important. It is difficult seven weeks out to come back and pick up the rhythm. He is mentally so strong and that is why he show so many good things."

Mikel Arteta expressed his delight for Eddie Nketiah after the striker's first Premier League double saw Arsenal respond to a poor run of form with victory at Chelsea on Wednesday.

A frantic first half at Stamford Bridge saw Arsenal twice pegged back by Chelsea, after Timo Werner cancelled out Eddie Nketiah's opener, and Cesar Azpilicueta restored parity following Emile Smith Rowe's goal.

Nketiah delivered again after the interval before Bukayo Saka's penalty sealed a 4-2 victory as Arsenal moved level on points with fourth-placed Tottenham in the battle for Champions League qualification.

In Nketiah, Smith Rowe and Saka, Arsenal also saw three English players score in the same Premier League match versus Chelsea for the first time since September 1996.

Arteta reserved much of his praise for Nketiah, who proved his worth to the Gunners by scoring his first top-flight goals in over a year – since an injury-time equaliser versus Fulham in April 2021.

"What I've been saying all the time about Eddie, when you look at him in training and how humble he is all the time, good things happen," Arteta said of the forward.

"Good things happen to good people. He has proven that all season and he hasn't given any signs of anything different. If I'm happy for anyone it's him, because I know what he's been through. 

"The same with Mohamed Elneny and Rob Holding."

Manager Arteta also hailed the adaptability of his side, who ended a three-game losing streak with the success over Thomas Tuchel's European champions.

"The way they started the game was tactically really demanding, they kept changing their shape and we had to adapt," the Spaniard told Sky Sports.

"We managed to grab a little bit of the game, we looked dangerous on the counter-attack, we scored four goals and conceded twice.

"After two difficult weeks it's a great day. What I love is the spirit of these players. When you lose matches you get punished and criticised but with these players I don't care because they're growing.

"For us to win a London derby away the way we did it I'm really happy as well."

Arteta then added to reporters: “I said to them if you want to play Champions League football you have to come to places like this and win.”

Arsenal will be hoping to carry the impetus from the win over Chelsea when they on Saturday host fellow top-four chasers Manchester United, who have played a game more and are three points behind the Gunners.

Cesar Azpilicueta confronted a fan after Chelsea's 4-2 loss to Arsenal and Thomas Tuchel understood why the supporter was angry. 

Chelsea suffered their third straight home defeat in all competitions on Wednesday and the Chelsea captain approached an individual in the stands after the final whistle. 

Timo Werner and Azpilicueta cancelled out first-half strikes from Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe, but the Blues went on to suffer a bitter defeat. 

Azpilicueta's stray pass preceded Nketiah scoring a second, while he gave away a penalty that Bukayo Saka converted in stoppage time to leave Chelsea just five points clear of the fifth-placed Gunners. 

The Blues have now lost three straight home games in all competitions for the first time since November 1993, while December 1989 was when they previously conceded at least four goals in successive home league matches.

Still, Azpilicueta was seemingly angered by the response of the fans and approached a group of spectators, with one appearing to hold their hands up in apology. 

Asked about the incident, Tuchel said: "I saw it. Honestly, I can understand the fan. 

"It was a totally wild and open game in the first half – already a 2-2 after we came back twice. We had a good start but again gave the first goal away which is impossible to do these things in consecutive matches. But we're doing it. 

"We came back twice and we scored another two in the second half, unfortunately for the wrong side. 

"It's the level of mistakes, the number of mistakes in consecutive games here at home, it's impossible at this kind of level. You don't see this. It's simply impossible. But we're doing this at the moment and you cannot win football games like this. 

"To say the pitch is difficult to play here, it maybe sounds like an excuse, but it is a very, very difficult pitch that we have here. It’s not in our favour. 

"The ball bounces very awkwardly in front of Andreas [Christensen] when he wants to play this ball. But still, we had the same mistake against Real Madrid that cost us the next round of the Champions League and this one cost us the next match. I can't remember when we got two goals like this 

"Look at the penalty, it is an unbelievable goal from our ball possession. There are no tactics behind that. We have three ball losses in 10 seconds. Then we do a foul where there's not even the slightest danger. We foul a person, it is a penalty and we rob ourselves six minutes for an equaliser.   

"It must be something, but it is also possible to not do it because we proved it in the last three matches and we thought we learned our lesson from Brentford and Real Madrid, but obviously not." 

Real Madrid moved one step closer to the LaLiga title with a 3-1 victory at Osasuna despite Karim Benzema twice failing from the penalty spot on Wednesday.

Madrid needed a stunning comeback to win 3-2 at Sevilla after a slow start on Sunday, but were quick out the blocks at El Sadar as David Alaba struck after 12 minutes before Ante Budimir immediately equalised.

Marco Asensio restored Madrid's lead in the 45th minute and, after Benzema saw two penalties saved by Sergio Herrera in the second half, Lucas Vazquez sealed victory in stoppage-time.

Victory moved Madrid 17 points clear of Atletico Madrid, with distant chasers Sevilla and Barcelona also in action against Levante and Real Sociedad respectively on Thursday.

Rodrygo forced a smart Herrera stop with a long-range effort in the opening exchanges, but Madrid were soon ahead.

A quick free-kick from Asensio and Dani Ceballos found space for Benzema, before the striker squared for Alaba, who fortuitously bundled home on the rebound from a Herrera reflex save.

Osasuna responded a minute later when Chimy Avila whipped across from the right for Budimir to tap-in.

Asensio pounced on Ceballos' saved close-range effort to poke Madrid ahead again on the stroke of half-time, before Thibaut Courtois excellently denied a looping Budimir header after the interval.

Avila then handled when trying to stop Rodrygo to offer Madrid a penalty, which Herrera saved against Benzema.

Benzema went for the same bottom-left corner after Rodrygo was felled by Nacho Vidal, with Herrera again guessing the right way.

Vinicius Junior then rolled wide on the counter before teeing up Vazquez, who finished into the bottom-left corner to confirm the win.

What does it mean? Title procession continues for Madrid

Madrid's title charge has been characterised by their fighting spirit to come through adversity to secure victory, and their performance at El Sadar was no different.

Los Blancos weathered an early storm from the hosts to take the half-time lead and, although Benzema twice failed from 12 yards, battled to victory over Osasuna, who have not defeated Madrid in 14 top-flight meetings.

Now, Ancelotti's team will tick off another fixture as they edge closer towards lifting the LaLiga trophy.

Rampant Rodrygo spares Benzema blushes

Winger Rodrygo was the star of the show as his half-time introduction sparked a comeback against Sevilla, and he was on form again against Osasuna as he won two penalties and laid on a game-high four chances.

The Brazil international's creative excellence did not prove fruitful for Benzema, who became the first player to miss two penalties in a LaLiga game since Raul Tamudo against Betis in April 2006.

Budimir efforts in vain

Budimir has scored in each of his last five LaLiga games (five goals in total) as he became only the second Osasuna player to score in five successive top-flight games in the 21st century after Richard Morales in 2004. However, the striker's efforts ultimately proved in vain against the league leaders.

What's next?

Madrid visit Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final clash on Tuesday, before hosting Espanyol on Saturday – the day before Osasuna are away at Elche.