Man U leaves it late
Maguire’s extra-time goal lands spot in FA Cup semis
Captain Harry Maguire fired Manchester United into the semifinals of the FA Cup with a winner deep into extra-time against 10-man Norwich City at Carrow Road on Saturday.
The game looked to be heading for a penalty shootout after Norwich, which had Timm Klose sent off in the 89th minute, defended superbly against constant pressure from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team before Maguire’s goal two minutes from the end.
The 2-1 win extends United’s unbeaten run in all competitions to 14 matches and secures a 30th appearance in the last four of the FA Cup for the club.
“It wasn’t a spectacle, we didn’t threaten enough or create enough chances,” said Solskjaer.
“But I am delighted we are into the last four and it was a good workout, we got some minutes for a lot of players. We are through and that is what counts in the Cup,” said the Norwegian.
ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
Wolverhampton Wanderers boosted their Champions League qualification hopes with a 1-0 West Midlands derby win at Aston Villa on Saturday as Leander Dendoncker grabbed a 62nd-minute winner.
The victory lifts Wolves above Manchester United into fifth place, two points behind fourth-placed Chelsea, although they have played a game more than both teams.
The loss is another blow for Villa in their battle against relegation and leaves them second from bottom on 27 points.
The decisive moment came when Raul Jimenez swung a ball in from the left flank and Jonny did well to set up Dendoncker, who opened up enough space to drill the ball into the bottom corner.
FA Cup quarter-finals this weekend mean the match was the only Premier League fixture on Saturday.
SPANISH LA LIGA
Spain striker Iago Aspas dealt a fresh blow to Barcelona’s La Liga title hopes by striking a late free kick to snatch a 2-2 draw at home to the Catalans on Saturday as Quique Setien’s side twice threw away the lead in a thrilling match.
The draw put Barca back on top of the table on 69 points after 32 games but
Real Madrid, on 68, can go two points clear at the summit if they beat Espanyol away from home on Sunday.
Luis Suarez headed Barca in front in the 20th minute thanks to a piece of ingenuity from Lionel Messi, who looked certain to fire at goal from a free kick but instead lofted the ball towards his Uruguayan strike partner.
Russia striker Fedor Smolov equalized for Celta early in the second half, knocking in a pass from Okay Yokuslu to complete a quick counterattack after Barca’s Ivan Rakitic had given the ball away.
But Suarez restored Barca’s lead in the 67th minute after combining again with Messi, swivelling to fire into the bottom corner.
ITALIAN SERIE A
Serie A leading scorer Ciro Immobile converted a contentious second-half penalty to set second-placed Lazio on the way to a 2-1 comeback win over Fiorentina that kept them four points behind leaders Juventus on Saturday.
Franck Ribery stunned the hosts with a solo goal in the 25th minute and Lazio were struggling to get back into the game until Felipe
Caicedo went down under a challenge from goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski, and Immobile converted his 28th goal of the season in the 67th minute.
Although replays suggested that Caicedo fell before any contact was made, the referee pointed to the spot, there was no VAR review, and Immobile sent Dragowski the wrong way.
Luis Alberto grabbed the winner with seven minutes left to leave Lazio with 65 points, with Juve on 69, and keep the title race well and truly alive with 10 matches each to play.
GERMAN BUNDESLIGA
Fortuna Duesseldorf’s poor away form came back to haunt them as they were relegated from the Bundesliga on Saturday after a final-day 3-0 defeat at in-form Union Berlin.
Uwe Rosler’s side went into the match knowing victory would guarantee finishing third from bottom and securing the side a relegation playoff against the third team in the second-tier.
Even a draw would have been enough as long as
Werder Bremen did not beat Cologne by four clear goals.
But Duesseldorf’s day turned into a nightmare.
Union, who had already guaranteed their safety in an impressive first season in the Bundesliga, took the lead when visiting keeper Florian Kastenmeier could not prevent Anthony Ujah’s shot crossing the line after 26 minutes.
When Christian Gentner made it 2-0 shortly after halftime and news filtered through that Werder were 5-0 ahead, Duesseldorf’s plight became desperate.
They threw bodies forward and created several chances but it was too little too late. When Union’s substitute Suleiman Abdullah scored a third in stoppage time, Duesseldorf knew they would be returning to the second tier after only two seasons.
“I’m sorry for our fans and the club. We fought week after week and in the end we didn’t manage to get it across the line,” Rosler told the club’s website.
Werder Bremen ended up winning 6-1 to finish third from bottom with 31 points, while Duesseldorf ended on 30 and are automatically relegated along with SC Paderborn.
Four-time German champions Werder Bremen, ever-present bar one season since the Bundesliga began in 1963, will face archrivals Hamburg or Heidenheim in a home-and-away playoff in a bid to avoid their first relegation from the top flight since 1980.
Borussia Moenchengladbach capped a successful season by booking a spot in the Champions League, beating Hertha Berlin 2-1 on the final day to finish fourth in the Bundesliga.
Gladbach, who had leapfrogged Bayer Leverkusen into fourth place last week, finished on 65 points, two ahead of Leverkusen.
Bayern Munich, already crowned Bundesliga champions last week, lifted the league trophy in an empty stadium after crushing hosts VfL Wolfsburg 4-0.
Bundesliga top scorer Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty for his 34th goal of the season.
The Polish striker earned his fifth Bundesliga top scorer award and his third in a row.