Jude Bellingham made it 10 goals in 10 games for Real Madrid with a clinical brace in a 4-0 victory over Osasuna that saw Carlo Ancelotti’s men return to the top of LaLiga.
The England midfielder struck in either half before Vinicius Junior and Joselu wrapped up the points as Madrid reclaimed top spot from Girona, who had won earlier in the day.
Madrid needed just nine minutes to get their noses in front at the Bernabeu and, almost inevitably, it was Bellingham who did the damage.
Luka Modric picked out Dani Carvajal’s run into the area and the full-back cleverly laid the ball back to Bellingham, who took a couple of touches before drilling a left-footed shot into the roof of the net.
That was a third goal in eight days for Bellingham as he continued his phenomenal start to life in Spain since his £88.5million summer move from Borussia Dortmund.
It was also all that separated the sides in the first half, with Madrid unable to break through again despite trying their luck through a Vinicius shot that went over and an attempted Carvajal chip that Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera was equal to.
Osasuna, meanwhile, had threatened little in the opening 45 minutes but gave their hosts a double scare just before half-time when Jon Moncayola’s strike from distance went inches wide before Ante Budimir spurned a great chance to level in stoppage time.
Ruben Pena’s cross was left by Lucas Torro for team-mate Budimir, who was unmarked near the penalty spot, but the Croatia international fired over.
Perhaps spooked by those let-offs, or inspired by Ancelotti’s half-time input, Madrid came out firing in the second half and Joselu looked to have made it 2-0 only to see his shot skim the far post.
Madrid continued to push though and, after Eduardo Camavinga tried his luck from range, Bellingham doubled their lead in the 54th minute.
The 20-year-old drove at the Osasuna defence on the edge of the area, played a one-two with Federico Valverde and then coolly finished between Herrera’s legs.
If that did not end Osasuna’s challenge, then Joselu’s goal to make it 3-0 in the 65th minute most definitely did.
Madrid broke quickly after winning possession, with Valverde threading Vinicius through from the halfway line and the winger sprinted clear before rounding Herrera and slotting home.
Vinicius then turned provider as rampant Madrid added a fourth goal in the 69th minute.
The Brazil international superbly brought down a long ball forward from Aurelien Tchouameni, then showed good strength to hold off his marker before slipping in Joselu to fire into the corner of the net.
Madrid had chances to add to their tally after that, the best of which saw Joselu denied from the penalty spot by Herrera following a handball in the area, but the result was long settled by then.
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
