European review

Real top in Spain; Celtic stunned; McClaren the man

By James Dall   Last updated: 23rd November 2009  

European review

Higuain: Fired Real top

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Real Madrid climbed above Barcelona in Spain, Celtic were leapfrogged by Rangers while AC Milan continued their resurgence under manager Leonardo.

Elsewhere, Auxerre recorded an impressive seventh win on the spin, the battle at the summit in Germany rumbles on while FC Twente continue to march on in Holland.

Primera Division

Real Madrid leapfrogged rivals Barcelona at the summit after the latter fell to a third draw of the season. Having taken the lead through Dani Alves, Athletic Bilbao's Gaizka Toquero denied Barca all three points.

The champions' slip-up allowed Real Madrid to open up a one-point lead at the top after Gonzalo Higuain's strike saw off Racing Santander. Sevilla remain third after they defeated Tenerife while Valencia's fine form continued.

SPL

There was change at the top also in Scotland after Celtic fell to a shock loss at Dundee United on Sunday. Barry Robson had given the Hoops the lead from the penalty spot but late goals from Jon Daly and Darren Dods stunned the SPL champions.

Rangers, who played 24 hours earlier, made light work of Kilmarnock as they strolled to a 3-0 win at Ibrox. Falkirk recorded their first win of the season, beating Hamilton 2-0, while Hibernian were held at St Mirren.

Serie A

A resurgent AC Milan played out a seven-goal cracker with Cagliari on Sunday. The Rossoneri triumphed 4-3 as they clinched a fifth win in six outings. Their rivals Inter Milan remain five points clear at the summit after a 3-1 win over Bologna.

Elsewhere, Parma edged out 10-man Fiorentina 3-2 to move up to fifth while Palermo's 1-1 draw with Catania signalled the end of manager Walter Zenga's time in charge at Stadio Renzo Barbera.

Ligue 1

Table-toppers Auxerre's outstanding form continued as they disposed of Monaco 2-0 to record a seventh consecutive three-point haul. They now boast a one-point lead at the summit after Bordeaux surprisingly lost at home to Valenciennes.

Lyon also stumbled after Grenoble snatched a point despite playing the last 20 minutes with 10 men. Lorient rose to fourth on Sunday while on Friday Marseille returned to winning ways thanks Gabriel Heinze's winning goal against PSG.

Bundesliga

The top of the table in Germany continues to be a tight affair, with just four points separating the top five teams. Bayer Leverkusen lead the way, despite being held to a 1-1 draw at Bayern Munich on Sunday.

Second-placed Werder Bremen were emphatic 6-0 winners over Freiburg while Schalke saw off Hannover. Hoffenheim were 4-0 victors against Cologne, but Hamburg were beaten at home by VfL Bochum.

Eredivisie

Steve McClaren's Dutch leaders FC Twente notched a remarkable ninth straight win in Holland, as Bryan Ruiz's late goal downed Vitesse. But PSV Eindhoven remain hot on their heels after their comfortable 4-0 win over 10-man Heracles.

Ajax hammered Heerenveen 5-1 in their encounter at the Amsterdam Arena, AZ Alkmaar recorded an impressive 4-2 away win at Roda JC while there were also six goals at Rat Verlegh stadion, as NAC and NEC drew 3-3.

Best of the rest

AIK wrapped up the title in Sweden, Benfica moved top in Portugal after they capitalised on Braga's loss while Anderlecht recorded a fifth successive three-point haul in Belgium. Elsewhere, Turkey's table-toppers Fenerbahce went down to a 3-0 loss at Besiktas and Austrian leaders RB Salzburg were victorious.