Winner: Bayer Leverkusen
After a record-breaking season when Leverkusen were unbeatable in Germany, only the memory remains. Two defeats to Bayern Munich in the Champions League and a loss to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga have depleted Xabi Alonso's team's chances of glory in 2024/25, all in less than two weeks. But at the weekend, Leverkusen reminded everyone what made Europe love them: dramatic endings.
In Sunday's match against Stuttgart, Leverkusen were losing 3-1 after Granit Xhaka's own goal. Although they had less than half an hour of time to make up for their loss, Alonso's side found a way. Not only did they manage to equalise, but in the fourth minute of added time, Patrik Schick sealed an incredible 4-3 victory.
The win in Stuttgart allowed the team from North Rhine-Westphalia to extend their most admirable run without an away defeat. It is now 30 games since the last time they returned from an away trip in the Bundesliga without a victory. That was in May 2023, when they lost 3-0 to Bochum.
Loser: Diego Simeone
Diego Simeone has had a very difficult week. It started when they threw away a win against Getafe in Laliga, before a gut-wrenching last-16 defeat in the Champions League against Real Madrid on penalties.
On Sunday, a top-of-the-LaLiga encounter awaited, which could have allowed Atletico to extend their championship title dreams if they could win at home against Barcelona. Up until the 70th minute, everything was going perfectly. Diego Simeone's side were leading 2-0, but from then on, they were humiliated.
The Atletico players were on the receiving end of four goals and once again suffered a painful defeat that has seriously hampered their LaLiga chances.
Winner: Jagiellonia
Jagiellonia, after advancing to the quarter-finals of the Conference League, faced PKO BP Ekstraklasa leaders Lech Poznan, who do not play in Europe and were rested and appeared to be favourites for this duel.
Adrian Siemieniec's outfit were in a tiring battle with Cercle Brugge in the last 16 of the Conference League on Thursday evening. Eventually, after a 2-0 defeat, they advanced to the quarter-finals thanks to a 3-0 victory in front of their home crowd. The match started better for Lech, who led 1-0, but in the end, it was Jagiellonia who won 2-1 and advanced up to second.
Jagiellonia is a phenomenon in Polish football, as they have confirmed that it is possible to play every three days in European cups and fight for the national championship at the same time. So far, the coaches of clubs in the Ekstraklasa have not been able to cope with playing on several fronts, but Siemieniec is once again breaking the mould.
Loser: Liverpool and Arne Slot
Arne Slot and his Liverpool can also be counted among the losers, albeit just for this weekend. After dropping out of the Champions League, they played in the EFL Cup final against Newcastle. The Dutchman had an excellent chance to at least slightly redeem himself for the defeat against Paris Saint-Germain.
This match, however, was no consolation for The Reds. Just a few weeks ago, it seemed that Liverpool would be in a position to fight for four titles, as their lead in the Premier League allowed them to focus on fighting in the Champions League and the domestic cups. However, that has not been the case and now all they have left to do is guard their lead in the Premier League because they have no chance of anything else.
Winner: Vedat Muriqi
This season Real Mallorca, under Jagoba Arrasate, are pleasantly surprising their fans by fighting to secure a place that guarantees participation in Europe. Although the American owners are dampening the mood, the table does not lie.
The match against Espanyol was therefore very important, but the second half started disastrously for the hosts. Or rather, for Muriqi himself, who scored into his own net. He had a chance to make amends, but he failed to take advantage from the penalty spot.
Takuma Asano equalised a minute later, but Muriqi still felt a huge burden and responsibility. However, the 97th minute of the match arrived and the striker again stepped up to take a penalty. This time, he put the ball into the net, sending the stands into euphoria.
Before showing his joy, Muriqi apologised to the fans with a humble gesture and then also began to rejoice with his colleagues.
The loser: Dele Alli
The story of the England midfielder has certainly touched many fans. Until a certain point, Dele Alli was regarded as a great talent, being valued at around €100 million. Then his career gradually collapsed, and in 2023, the footballer admitted to having huge mental health problems, an addiction to sleeping pills and unpleasant memories affecting him. He suffered so much that he even considered ending his career.
For this reason alone, many fans kept their fingers crossed that, after all, the still young (28 years old) footballer would still return to world-class football. The chance to rebuild was given to him by Cesc Fabregas at Como, who are struggling to stay up but also with ambitions of their own.
Dele Alli made his debut in the match against Milan, appearing on the pitch in the 81st minute, but had to leave it exactly 10 minutes later. The reason was not the referee's final whistle, but a red card for a foul on fellow Englishman Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Milan's Kyle Walker even tried to get the referee to not show a red card, but it wasn't possible.
Loftus-Cheek fortunately managed to pull himself together, but will Dele Allie himself succeed? It's certainly not the best start at his new club, but all is not yet lost. Maybe more training and rest will help the midfielder recover and get back on track.
Winner: Alassane Plea
Alassane Plea made Bundesliga history on Saturday by becoming only the second player in the competition to score an away hat-trick against the same opponent more than once, bagging three goals against Werder Bremen.
This was previously done by the legendary Karl-Heinz Rummenige, scoring goals serially against Borussia Monchengladbach - the Frenchman's current team. Of course, there is no chance of a race with Harry Kane for the top scorer, but a battle to be in the top 10 or even the top five certainly is. Is this the start of a great end to the season for the attacking forward?
The losers: Montpellier fans
Montpellier's meeting with Saint-Etienne was full of excitement from the start. As early as the 11th minute, Saint-Etienne's Lucas Stassin opened the score, and a few moments after play resumed in the second half, he doubled the score. And this despite the fact that his team was already playing in a weakened position after a red card for Maxime Bernauer.
This apparently enraged the home team's ultras who, half an hour before the end of the match, started throwing smoke bombs and firecrackers on the pitch and setting off flares and smoke candles in the stands themselves. What's more, a fire was lit in the lower sectors. The match was, of course, abandoned and, despite the intervention of law enforcement, the match could not be restarted.
Montpellier's situation in the Ligue 1 table is dire, with the team losing regularly and heading for the second division. With such behaviour, the fans certainly did not help the club.