The weekend in review
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Welcome to FIFA.com’s rolling round-up of the weekend’s action, where we’ll be keeping you abreast of all the most eye-catching action from around world football. Check back in as the days tick by to get your bitesize guide to the biggest talking points from the weekend.
This weekend saw a notable clash of familiar faces in Germany, while survival and success met in England, plus key battles from around the world as titles could be sewn up, new seasons gained traction and the battles at top and bottom heated up.
Want to find out more from the globe’s top divisions? Check out the World Match Centre for results, scorers and tables from right across the planet.
The big matches
Rostov 2-0 CSKA Moscow
Poloz (45), Doumbia (90+4)
Russia has a proper league title race on its hands. Rostov showed their title credentials with a 2-0 home win over league challengers CSKA Moscow thanks to goals scored at the end of each half. With the league hitting the two-third marker, the teams are now tied on points (40) and goal differential (+10) at the top of the table. The closest side, Spartak Moscow, are seven points behind Rostov and CSKA, however if Lokomotiv Moscow can get three points at home to Ufa on Sunday, they will decrease the gap to five points. Either way, it's looking increasingly like the Russian Premier League will have a thrilling, two-horse title-race to watch.
Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Mainz
Reus (30), Kagawa (73)
Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel invited former club Mainz to his new home with his side in sparkling form, having not tasted defeat since the new year rang in. Their draw in Der Klassiker with Bayern Munich last weekend was only the second time in eight that they have let Bundesliga points slip. Bayern Munich returned to winning ways, though, and defeated Werder Bremen 5-0 on Saturday, so Tuchel's side needed a win to get back to within five points of the league holders and they did just that. The hosts showed no significant signs of fatigue following their 3-0 UEFA Europa League win over Tottenham midweek and looked comfortable throughout the match. Goals from Marco Reus and Shinji Kagawa in each half rewarded Dortmund, who had the majority of possession, as they now look forward to a trip to London for the return leg.
The talking points
PSG clinched a fourth successive French Ligue 1 title in record time with a sensational 9-0 victory at Troyes after Monaco dropped points in a 2-2 home draw against Reims. Zlatan Ibrahimovic grabbed four, including a ten-minute hat-trick, to steer Laurent Blanc's men to the title - 62 days before the season's end. Meanwhile in Italy, Juventus defeated Sassuolo 1-0 on Friday to go three points clear at the top of the table. With their clean sheet, Juventus set a new Serie A record by conceding no goals in ten consecutive league matches. Napoli edged relegation-threatened Palermo 1-0 thanks to Gonzalo Higuain's converted penalty, helping his side move three points behind leaders Juventus. In Germany, Hertha Berlin won an important match 2-0 at home to Schalke to go four points clear of their opponents and, more importantly, remain in the third and final UEFA Champions League spot.
In Spain, Barcelona continued their flawless form with a 6-0 home win against Getafe. Barça extended their unbeaten streak to 37 matches and are also unbeaten in their first 20 matches of 2016, which is the best start of a calendar year in club history. Elsewhere in the country, Atletico Madrid defeated Deportivo La Coruna to remain eight points behind leaders Barça. Arguably the match of the weekend saw Sevilla beat Villarreal 4-2 as the Andalucians clawed themselves back into the top-four frame. Real Madrid edged Las Palmas 2-1 in what was a dramatic game with late goals and red cards. Zinedine Zidane's side are now four points behind local rivals Atleti and 12 behind leaders Barcelona.
England’s FA Cup-disrupted schedule kicked off with Manchester City losing ground in the title race, with a goalless draw at Norwich City. Bournemouth beat Swansea City 3-2 in an entertaining match for neutrals, while Southampton edged Stoke City 2-1 thanks to a Graziano Pelle first-half brace. On Sunday, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Aston Villa 2-0 at Villa Park thanks to a Harry Kane brace and moved back to within two points of leaders Leicester, albeit with a game in hand.
Guangzhou Evergrande bounced back from an opening-day defeat with Jackson Martinez and Ricardo Goulart scoring early goals, setting the Chinese Super League 2015 champions on their way to a 3-0 win over Changchun Yatai. Elsewhere in China PR, Henan Jianye continued their perfect start to the season with a 1-0 away win against Chongqing Lifan thanks to a first-half Eddi Gomes strike.
In Brazil, Palmeiras won the O Choque Rei (The Big Derby), defeating rivals Sao Paolo 2-0. The goals both came in the second half courtesy of Dudu and Robinho. The result put Palmeiras top of their group by one point, while Sao Paolo dropped from the summit of theirs on goal differential to Ferroviaria.
Elsewhere, David Villa scored a first-half double for New York City FC, only for Toronto FC to force their way back into the contest for a 2-2 draw as the fledgling MLS season continued. Over 30,000 were on hand at Yankee Stadium for the club's first home game of the season, with even the Empire State Building decked out in blue and white to celebrate the occasion.
Back in Europe, Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk ended a three-game losing run with a strong 4-1 win against Shakhtar Donetsk. Dynamo Kyiv are now top of the Ukrainian Premier League by three points, while Dnipro climb towards third-place Zorya.
What is still to come
Arsenal - who exited the FA Cup at the hands of Watford - could also slip back in the race at the top, with relegation strugglers Newcastle United facing leaders Leicester City on Monday.
What they said: "Thirty-seven games without losing is astonishing, and we want to extend it further. We're going to try to keep our winning streak in the league, because it will help bring us the title. We didn't let our opponents breathe and taking an early lead made it easier.”
Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta after his side's 6-0 win against Getafe