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European Cups

Kane breaks 60-year record and Musiala dazzles in Bayern romp

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Harry Kane broke a 60-year record for most goals in a debut season while Jamal Musiala scored twice as Bayern Munich won 5-2 at Darmstadt on Saturday.

With 31 goals in 26 league games since arriving from Spurs in the summer, Kane overtook German legend Uwe Seeler, who scored 30 goals for Hamburg in 1963-64.

Musiala also had an assist in the win, which keeps Bayern’s slim hopes of defending the Bundesliga title alive, moving them seven points behind Bayer Leverkusen, who play at Freiburg on Sunday

Darmstadt stunned Bayern after 28 minutes, Tim Skarke taking advantage of some sleepy defence from Eric Dier to score and give the home side hope of an incredible upset against the German champions.

Kane would however drag Bayern into the lead before half-time, assisting Musiala’s 36th-minute goal before scoring one of his own, rising high to head in a Joshua Kimmich chip in first-half stoppage time.

Musiala added another midway through the second half when he collected a Thomas Mueller throw-in and danced through the box before shooting between the goalkeeper’s legs.

As he did last week, Serge Gnabry scored moments after coming off the bench to seal the win.

Bayern’s Mathys Tel and Darmstadt’s Oscar Vilhelmsson both scored in stoppage time.

In the German capital, Union Berlin continued their impressive home record, beating Werder Bremen 2-1 thanks to a commanding performance from US midfielder Brenden Aaronson.

Aaronson, who was surprisingly left out of the US squad this week, had a hand in two goals in three second-half minutes to give Union the upper hand.

The 23-year-old laid on Yorbe Vertessen’s 50th-minute goal, before creating and scoring one of his own with some superb dribbling shortly after.

Mitchell Weiser pulled one back for the visitors but Union held on, recording their fifth win in seven home matches under coach Nenad Bjelica.

Augsburg came from a goal down to beat a 10-man Wolfsburg 3-1 away from home, their fourth-straight league win taking them to seventh on the table.

Wolfsburg’s Patrick Wimmer scored after just nine minutes but was sent from the field in tears just before half-time for a last-man foul, with Augsburg’s Arne Maier scoring from the ensuing free-kick.

Kristijan Jakic scored a second-half double to seal the win, piling more pressure on Niko Kovac’s Wolfsburg who have won just one game in 15.

Mainz won 2-0 at home against Bochum to keep their hopes of avoiding relegation alive. Mainz moved past Cologne, who were thumped 5-1 by Leipzig on Friday, into 16th, the relegation playoff spot.

Promoted Heidenheim drew 1-1 at home with Borussia Moenchengladbach to collect another valuable point and go 10 clear of the relegation spots in their first season in the top division.

Later on Saturday, third-placed Stuttgart travel to neighbours Hoffenheim.

 

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European Cups

Europa League leading scorers ahead of semi-final fixtures

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Marseille’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the leading scorer in this season’s UEFA Europa League ahead of the semi-final fixtures in May

Marseille’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the leading scorer in this season’s UEFA Europa League ahead of the semi-final fixtures in May.

The former Arsenal captain is ahead of Roma’s Romelu Lukaku and Brighton’s João Pedro on the goal chart.

The Gabonese has ten goals to his name so far.

UEFA Europa League top scorers ahead of semi-final fixtures:

10 goals – Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Marseille)

7 goals – Romelu Lukaku (Roma)

6 goals – João Pedro (Brighton)

5 goals – Victor Boniface (Leverkusen), Michael Gregoritsch (Freiburg), Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting CP), Fotis Ioannidis (Panathinaikos), Juninho (Qarabağ), Mohammed Kudus (West Ham), Darwin Núñez (Liverpool), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta) and Patrik Schick (Leverkusen).

Meanwhile, Marseille will face Atalanta in the semi-final stage, while Bayer Leverkusen will tackle AS Roma.

 

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European Cups

Liverpool defeat Atalanta 1-0 but crash out of Europa League on aggregate

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Liverpool were knocked out of the Europa League by Atalanta with the Italian side reaching the semi-finals 3-1 on aggregate on Thursday.

Liverpool were knocked out of the Europa League by Atalanta with the Italian side reaching the semi-finals 3-1 on aggregate on Thursday.

Atalanta are in the last four of a European competition for the first time since 1988, despite Mohamed Salah’s early penalty giving Liverpool a 1-0 second leg win, thanks to their three-goal lead established in the quarter-final first leg at Anfield last week.

In what is becoming a sobering climax to the season, Liverpool have won just three of their last nine games in all competitions and again looked tired after already having played 52 games this campaign.

Jurgen Klopp may well only have the League Cup to show for his final season on Merseyside as the German’s team have been eliminated from the FA Cup and Europa League and trail Manchester City in the Premier League title race.

Gian Piero Gasperini called Thursday’s match probably the most important Atalanta had ever played and his players were hailed as heroes at the final whistle by a pulsating crowd at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo.

Fireworks were shot into the air from behind the stands while in the ground supporters bounced and roared at a huge victory for their team against giants of European football.

Atalanta last reached the semi-finals of a European competition in 1988 when they were knocked out of the old Cup Winners’ Cup by Mechelen.

Atalanta were then a Serie B team but the future is increasingly bright for a historically small, provincial club which has been punching well above its weight ever since Gasperini took charge in 2016.

Reaching the last four even trumps their run to 2020 Champions League quarter-finals, where they were desperately unlucky to lose to Paris Saint-Germain.

That run came at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, as Bergamo became the epicentre of a deadly global health crisis.

And Atalanta still have the opportunity to crown Gasperini’s reign with the club’s first major trophy since the Italian Cup in 1963.

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European Cups

Bayer Leverkusen qualify for Europa League semis after edging West Ham

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Newly-crowned Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen reached the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday and stretched their undefeated

Newly-crowned Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen reached the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday and stretched their undefeated run in all competitions this season to 44 matches.

The German side drew 1-1 at West Ham in the second leg of their quarter-final tie and went through 3-1 on aggregate.

Michail Antonio put West Ham ahead on 13 minutes before Jeremie Frimpong levelled in the 89th minute for Xabi Alonso’s side.

Bayer Leverkusen will face Roma for a place in the final.

“I think we felt it in the first half, for me, it was a typical English crowd. They were pushing West Ham unbelievably. We were lucky in the first half if we’re honest,” Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka told TNT Sports.

“It was a different phase in the second half, we controlled the game. We are happy we got through.

“We competed much more. If you see over 180 minutes, the better team go through.”

Last weekend, Bayer Leverkusen won the Bundesliga for the first time, ending Bayern Munich’s 11-year grip on the title.

They remain in contention for a treble trophy haul this season as they also face second-division Kaiserslautern in the German Cup final on May 25.

 

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