To borrow a line from Meatloaf, two out of three ain't bad for Real Madrid.
A 2-1 triumph over Barcelona sees Zinedine Zidane's side take over at the top of the table. Their stay at the LaLiga summit could only last 24 hours - long-time leaders and noisy neighbours Atletico can go back above them if they take a point from their game in hand - but, make no mistake, Los Blancos are in the thick of a three-way title race.
A Clasico win - meaning they have won both league meetings in a season for the first time since 2007-08 - followed on from a 3-1 result against Liverpool in the Champions League.
Just like in their midweek success in European action, Madrid scored twice before half-time to seize control. Barca will rue the deflection on Toni Kroos' free-kick that doubled the advantage, but they were undone for the opener by an audacious finish that capped a flowing attack.
Karim Benzema's 13th-minute goal continued a hot streak for a striker who keeps on scoring while seemingly waiting to see which rival will turn up to try and take his job.
His back-heeled finish to beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen at the near post made it seven league games in a row where he has found the net. He becomes the fourth player for the club to manage such a streak in LaLiga: Cristiano Ronaldo achieved the feat four times, while Ruud van Nistelrooy (2007) and Gareth Bale (2018) are the other names on the list.
Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland have been heavily linked with Madrid, but Benzema remains the man right now.
Since Ronaldo departed the club in 2018, the Frenchman has stepped up to become the focal point in the front line. He has scored 21 LaLiga goals in each of the previous two seasons, while this term he is already up to 19. With plenty of games remaining, his career-best tally of 24, managed in 2015-16 despite making just 27 appearances, is well within his sights.
If Madrid were to retain their title, his role was always going to be significant, despite the transfer speculation. Hopes of a second successive crown appeared distant, however, when they suffered a 2-1 defeat to Levante on January 30, at which stage the champions sat seven points behind Atleti, who also had two games in hand.
Eder Militao was sent off in that Levante loss, dismissed after just eight minutes and 12 seconds. It was a short-lived third start in LaLiga this term, while the Brazilian defender had also been in the Madrid team that suffered a shock Copa del Rey exit to Alcoyano 10 days earlier.
The big-money signing from Porto in 2019 had yet to convince in the Spanish capital, to put it nicely.
His role may have remained as someone on the periphery of the first-team picture, too, had Zidane not suddenly been faced with a shortage of options to line up at the heart of his defence. However, with captain Sergio Ramos again sidelined and Raphael Varane self-isolating after testing positive for COVID-19, Militao stepped up to show his value during a critical stretch for his club.
The centre-back made a game-high six clearances on Saturday, as well as three blocks. Forget the heavy rain that beseiged Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano throughout the second half; a Barca tide came his way, yet - alongside Nacho - he made sure Madrid did not go under.
Just like against Liverpool, the makeshift pairing defied expectations. A potential point of weakness has instead helped fortify the team, with a partnership born out of necessity helping to change the outlook ahead of the run-in. If they can do something similar in the second leg at Anfield on Wednesday, a double remains distinctly doable.
Perhaps, too, Militao has shown that there can be life after Ramos, whose contract is fast running out at Madrid, just as there has been since Ronaldo said his farewells and headed for Turin.
Sheffield United v Burnley: Kompany wants fearless approach
Vincent Kompany knows his team need to take more risks as Burnley prepare for another huge game in the fight for Premier League safety when they face fellow strugglers Sheffield United.
Burnley dropped two points in a 1-1 draw with Brighton at Turf Moor last weekend, as Arijanet Muric's own goal denied them a win that would have inched them closer to safety.
While Luton Town and Everton both suffered defeats, Nottingham Forest's draw means that Burnley sit six points from safety, though they are four points better off than the Blades ahead of Saturday's game.
Asked about the approach his side will take against another team in the relegation zone, Kompany said: "Sheffield is another different game for us, it has a bit of a cup final feeling to it as well. We know we have to go there, attack the game, and show no fear.
"Going there on Saturday, we have nothing to lose. We approach it with no fear, we have to show our strengths and go there to play our hearts out and run our socks off. We're playing to be in the Premier League and that's our goal."
United head into Saturday's match with their survival hopes having been further diminished by a 2-0 defeat to Brentford.
After failing to win any of their last eight games, Chris Wilder explained how his side has struggled to cope with the demands of the Premier League.
"Like us, they've [Burnley] found results difficult to come by, and they've taken the beatings when they've had to – as have we," Wilder said.
"They've picked up points recently. We’ve not picked up enough points that I believe our performances have deserved. We need to marry up decent performances with a big result. That's what we’re there to try and get.
"Both teams are after three points, I think we all realise where we are with that. We're in it to win it, and so will they be."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sheffield United – Oli McBurnie
McBurnie has been involved in eight goals in his last eight Premier League home games, scoring six and assisting twice. The only game in this run in which he has not registered a goal or assist was in the Blades' 6-0 defeat to Arsenal last month.
Burnley – Josh Brownhill
Brownhill has been directly involved in two goals in his last three Premier League appearances (one goal, one assist), as many as he managed in his 16 before that, with his goal last week opening the scoring.
MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW
United have lost just one of their last 20 home league games against Burnley (W14 D5), going down 3-2 in December 2008. They have won both of their Premier League games against the Clarets at Bramall Lane.
However, only one of the five Premier League games between two newly promoted teams this season have been won by the home team (D1 L3), though that occurred in the reverse fixture between Burnley and United back in December (5-0).
Since a 1-0 win against Brentford, the Blades are winless in seven home league games (D3 L4), conceding at least twice in each match. Only twice has a team conceded 2+ goals in eight consecutive Premier League home games – Wolves in 2011-12 (11) and Norwich in 2019 (nine).
United have also conceded 84 goals in their 32 Premier League games this season; it is the most at this stage ever in a Premier League campaign, and the most the Blades have conceded overall in a league campaign since 1954-55 (86 in 42 games).
Burnley, meanwhile, have dropped 24 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, with only Brentford (30) losing more.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sheffield United – 31.4%
Burnley – 38.8%
Draw – 29.8%
Michail Antonio felt officials were against West Ham after European exit
Michail Antonio felt West Ham were up against 14 players as they bowed out of the Europa League to Bayer Leverkusen.
Antonio’s early header gave the Hammers hope of overturning a 2-0 first-leg deficit and inflicting a first defeat of the season on Xabi Alonso’s new Bundesliga champions.
But the bustling striker claimed he did not get a decision all night from card-happy Spanish referee Jose Maria Sanchez and his two assistants.
“It doesn’t feel like you’re playing against 11 men, it feels like you’re playing against 13 or 14 including the two linos,” Antonio told TNT Sports.
“You just have to keep pushing and try and make the decisions go your way. And they just weren’t. We had to keep playing our way and keep being professional.”
West Ham pushed gamely for a second goal to take the tie to extra-time, but as they inevitably flagged Leverkusen substitute Jeremie Frimpong scored with a deflected shot in the last minute to make it 1-1 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate.
It was a valiant effort but ultimately a sad end to another European adventure for last season’s Conference League winners.
“We’re very proud of ourselves, to achieve what we’ve achieved over the last few years is incredible,” added Antonio.
“Three back-to-back years in European quarter-finals I would never have thought that. We were a yo-yo team, fighting relegation, then into Europe.”
Sanchez booked 11 players and sent off West Ham coach Billy McKinlay, and Sebastian Parrilla from Leverkusen’s staff after a touchline altercation.
Asked if that skirmish had anything to do with some bad-tempered exchanges between the benches in last week’s first leg, Alonso said with a grin: “I wouldn’t say no.”
Hammers boss David Moyes was not keen to be drawn on the officiating, but he did say: “I watch a lot of Spanish football but if that’s the way it is you wouldn’t want to watch too many Spanish matches.”
On his side’s performance, he added: “It was a brilliant team performance, I have to say over the two games.
“We played a really good team and we had chances to be two or three up. I couldn’t fault the players at all. If I was going out of Europe I wanted to go out like that.”
In the first half Leverkusen looked as though they may have celebrated their first Bundesliga crown on Sunday a little too much, and Alonso admitted they needed to improve after the break.
“For sure it was a thrilling game,” he said. “Two different halves. First half we knew West Ham would come with high intensity and we were not comfortable with that.
“After they scored one we were lucky not to concede a second one. But we showed character in the second half and the substitutes had a good impact. It was a lesson for us.”
Jurgen Klopp accepts lack of threat cost Liverpool dear in European exit
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp accepted their lack of goal threat failed to put enough pressure on Atalanta to help turn their Europa League quarter-final back in their favour.
Mohamed Salah’s seventh-minute penalty had raised hopes of a Barcelona 2019-style comeback but the Egypt international missed a relatively straightforward lob to make it 2-0 towards the end of the first half and they faded badly after the break as they exited the competition 3-1 on aggregate.
That meant for only the third time in the 21st century, England have no teams in the semi-finals of the Champions League or Europa League/UEFA Cup.
“We didn’t lose the tie tonight, we lost it at home,” Klopp said after a 3-0 first-leg defeat proved decisive.
“It’s very easy to congratulate Atalanta because they deserved to go through. When you win a tie against us 3-1 in especially this way you deserve it absolutely.
“But I loved our game, especially the start. I loved the commitment, desire and power we developed in this game but it was clear we had better score from time to time otherwise it could be tricky over 90 minutes.
“The second goal could have helped a little bit. We have to create a little bit more than we did in the first half as it’s clear you need a result to help destabilise the opponent.
“If you have a second goal it’s a tricky one as the next goal is extra time but we didn’t get to that point and we will never really know how that would have looked.
“Disappointed we didn’t go through but not frustrated or angry. If you don’t deserve it, it’s all good.”
Salah has looked well short of his clinical best since returning from almost two months out with a hamstring problem.
Even though he has scored six in 11 game since he came back two of those have been penalties and he is squandering more chances he would normally be expected to take.
“I’m not particularly concerned. That’s what strikers do. That’s how it it is. We have to go through it, he has to go through it,” added Klopp.
“He is one of most experienced players in the squad. That’s pretty much all.
“It’s not that Mo didn’t miss chances before in his life, that’s part of the game. The penalty was super convincing, a super penalty then the next chance that was unlucky, but it’s not the first time has has missed chances like that.
“I won’t make a big story of it. I’m not particularly concerned.”
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