Top 10 Performances from Around the World for Weekend of April 24-26
Another impressive weekend in the world of football has seen a plethora of entertaining matches, exciting encounters, telling moments at the top and bottom of domestic leagues and goals aplenty all over the globe.
Then there was also Arsenal against Chelsea.
We've rounded up the very best team displays, taking into account opposition, scoreline, league standings and more factors, to come up with the top 10 performances of the weekend, this time taking in teams from Europe's top leagues and MLS.
10. Mainz and Borussia Monchengladbach
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We start off with a triple mention from the German Bundesliga, firstly for Bayern Munich who beat Hertha Berlin 1-0 to secure another title triumph—though they don't figure in our top 10 for that.
Borussia Monchengladbach do, however, for taking a late 1-0 win over fellow top-four side Wolfsburg, with Max Kruse hitting a 90th-minute winner to see BMG leapfrog Bayer Leverkusen back into third place. That position carries an automatic Champions League spot for next year.
One team who won't be in that tournament next year is Schalke, who were beaten by our other mention for 10th place, Mainz.
A 2-0 win on Friday night came courtesy of a Stefan Bell brace, lifting Mainz back into 10th.
9. Leicester City
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The all-important battle at the foot of the Premier League saw bottom club Burnley take on the team that had been bottom for most of the season, Leicester City.
The Foxes emerged triumphant on Saturday thanks to a 1-0 win, their fourth in succession in an improbable recent run which has lifted them out of the bottom three entirely. The minute of the game came on the hour, as Burnley hit the post with a penalty, then Leicester ran up the other end and scored themselves, with Jamie Vardy netting.
Leicester go 17th with five games left to play.
8. New England Revolution
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In MLS, the big win of the weekend came for the New England Revolution, who put four past Real Salt Lake.
New England turned things around from last year and have made a great start to the 2015 season. They currently sit top of the Eastern Conference after winning four of their last five, while Real Salt Lake fell out of the Western Conference playoff spots with the defeat.
Chris Tierney, Juan Agudelo, Charlie Davies and Scott Caldwell hit the goals for New England.
7. Atletico Madrid
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Atletico Madrid took a big step toward claiming third place in La Liga with a convincing and dominant 3-0 win over Elche on Saturday.
With manager Diego Simeone suspended from involvement after being sent off last week, Atleti put in a strong second-half showing to open up a four-point gap to fourth-placed Valencia and six-point gap down to Sevilla in fifth.
Antoine Griezmann continued his penalty-box exploits with another brace, and Raul Garcia also scored for Atletico.
6. Inter
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In the midst of an awful season, Inter Milan at least gave their fans something to cheer this weekend as they beat third-placed Roma by a 2-1 scoreline.
A late winner from Mauro Icardi came after Hernanes had earlier put Inter ahead, with Roma pegging them back after the break. It's just a second win in 10 for Roberto Mancini's side, and Inter remain only in ninth place in the table. But Saturday's result offered a silver lining.
A big summer of rebuilding awaits.
5. Torino
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Staying in Serie A for a while yet, Torino now sit in eighth place after they produced an effective performance to take a Turin derby win Sunday over Juventus.
Despite an Andrea Pirlo opener, Matteo Darmian and Fabio Quagliarella struck either side of half-time to hand Torino a memorable three points. This was the side's fourth win in its last six games in all competitions.
Finishing in the top eight would be an excellent achievement for Torino, and they are actually now level on points with Genoa in seventh and just two points off Fiorentina in sixth, who have lost three in a row.
4. Napoli
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While Fiorentina's Champions League charge has faltered, Napoli have rebounded after a March slump to win four of their last five in all competitions, including a 4-2 beating of Sampdoria this weekend.
That victory opens up a six-point gap between Napoli in fourth and Samp in fifth, while Rafa Benitez's men have also closed the gap to third-placed Roma to just two points after Inter's victory over the capital side.
Gonzalo Higuain scored twice, Lorenzo Insigne and Manolo Gabbiadini once apiece. Benitez is expected to leave at the end of the season, but he could yet leave Napoli with another Champions League campaign to look forward to.
3. FC Lorient
8 of 10
To France and Ligue 1 now, where Marseille's challenge under Marcelo Bielsa has crumbled entirely and the mental exhaustion of the team looked evident on Friday night. The team had to come from behind twice, 2-0 down and 3-2 down at home against relegation-threatened FC Lorient. They collapsed late on and eventually suffered a 5-3 defeat as the away side scored twice more in the last five minutes.
Jordan Ayew scored the first and last for Lorient, moving into double figures for goals this season in the process.
Four defeats in a row have seen the early-season league leaders drop to fifth, while Lorient escaped the relegation zone and climbed to 16th with Friday's result.
2. Everton
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Back to the Premier League now. Manchester United's good run might have come to an undeserved end last week after a 1-0 loss to Chelsea, but they were comprehensively beaten this time around by Everton.
The Toffees ran out 3-0 winners through a blistering start and a committed performance. They overwhelmed United in key areas of the pitch and showed a clinical edge inside the penalty box. James McCarthy, John Stones and Kevin Mirallas hit the goals.
It leaves Everton in 10th place after four wins in five.
1. Paris Saint-Germain
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Paris Saint-Germain take top spot for the weekend after dismantling Lille and briefly moving top of the Ligue 1 table, until Lyon regained their place on Sunday night.
PSG beat Lille 6-1 on Saturday, with Ezequiel Lavezzi nabbing a hat-trick and Edinson Cavani scoring twice, as the secondary strikers shone in the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Maxwell scored the opening goal in the first minute.
ESPN's Jonathan Johnson made the case for PSG midfielder Javier Pastore as the game's deciding influence:
"Javier Pastore's masterful display should not go unnoticed. The Argentinian put in another scintillating showing and once again demonstrated his exceptionally good passing and vision from his preferred No. 10 role on the pitch."
The win was PSG's fourth in succession as they continue their title push.
