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PIX: Madrid fight for win at Celta Vigo; Kane tricks

October 20, 2024 10:21 IST

IMAGES from football matches played across European leagues on Saturday

IMAGE: Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior challenges Celta Vigo's Damian Rodriguez as they vie for possession, diuring their La Liga match at Estadio de Balaidos, Vigo, Spain. Photograph: Miguel Vidal/Reuters

Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr scored in each half to give Real Madrid a hard-fought 2-1 win at Celta Vigo in LaLiga on Saturday.

Mbappe gave Real the lead with a brilliant strike from long range in the 20th minute. However, Swedish forward Williot Swedberg equalised for the home side with a first-touch effort from a counter-attack in the 51st minute.

Real went ahead again when substitute Luka Modric played Vinicius through and the Brazilian took the ball past the goalkeeper before finishing in the 66th minute.

Real are second in the LaLiga standings on 24 points, level with leaders Barcelona who have a game in hand and host Sevilla on Sunday.

Real were aggressive from the start but left themselves exposed to counter-attacks, with Swedberg missing two clear chances from close range within the first 15 minutes.

Celta misplaced a pass that was intercepted by Mbappe who picked up the ball outside the box and fired an unstoppable strike into the top corner to give the visiting side the lead.

Vinicius was a constant menace up and down the left side but was wasteful as Real could have easily reached halftime further ahead.

However, in a quick counter-attack six minutes into the second half Oscar Mingueza boosted up the right wing and crossed to Swedberg who beat the offside trap to tap-in a first-touch effort to the left of Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

As Celta tried for a winner, it was Real who snatched victory through a terrific pass by 39-year-old Modric, who saw Vinicius ghosting between two defenders and delivered a pass that the Brazilian finished to seal the three points.

Ten-man Lazio score late own goal to gift Juventus 1-0 win

IMAGE: Lazio's Mario Gila in action with Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic during their Serie A match at Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy. Photograph: Massimo Pinca/Reuters

Lazio defender Mario Gila scored a late own goal to give Juventus a 1-0 home win in Serie A on Saturday after visiting Lazio side were reduced to 10 men midway through the first half.

Juventus provisionally moved up one place to second on 16 points, level with leaders Napoli and two points above third-placed Inter Milan, who both have a game in hand.

Lazio were off to a good start and had the front foot until they were left with 10 men in the 24th minute, after defender Alessio Romagnoli was sent off for a tackle on Pierre Kalulu.

Juventus, however, struggled to make their numerical advantage count against a resilient Lazio side, who kept up the grit and fight to stay on level terms going into the break.

The visitors continued their focus on defending their goal after the restart.

Juventus, meanwhile, had chances through Dusan Vlahovic, who hit the bar before the hour mark, and Douglas Luiz, who sent his header slightly wide minutes later.

But the hosts continued without a shot on target until the 81st minute, when Vlahovic had Provedel intervene for the first time as the Serbia striker tried his luck from the edge of the box.

Lazio's Gila eventually put Juventus in front five minutes from full-time when he attempted to block Juan Cabal's cross from the side, sending it past Provedel and into the net instead.

Juventus, still unbeaten in the campaign across all competitions, host VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League on Tuesday before they visit Inter Milan in their next league outing on Oct. 27.

Lazio, who sit fifth in the standings with 13 points, will hope to maintain their perfect Europa League start at Twente on Thursday after wins against Dynamo Kyiv and Nice.

Kane bags hat-trick in leaders Bayern's 4-0 demolition of Stuttgart

IMAGE: Harry Kane celebrates his second goal against Stuttgart durong their Bundesliga match, in Munich. Photograph: Kind courtesy Bayen Munich/X

Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane scored a hat-trick to steer his team to a 4-0 victory over visiting VfB Stuttgart on Saturday, snapping their three-game winless run across all competitions and keeping them top of the Bundesliga.

Kane, who had missed a golden chance in front of goal in the 51st minute, broke the deadlock six minutes later, rifling in from outside the box.

The England captain, who had not scored in his previous two Bundesliga games, the loss to Aston Villa in the Champions League or the recent two England matches earlier in October, then drilled in following a goal mouth scramble on the hour.

He secured his hat-trick in the 80th minute with his eighth league goal of the season after Joao Palhinha's shot was blocked with substitute Kingsley Coman curling in Bayern's fourth goal in the 89th.

"To be honest, I didn't waste any second thinking about whether he scored or not (in past games)," Bayern coach Vincent Kompany told a press conference.

"I know what qualities he has. He's always hungry, even in training. Sometimes we forget how hard Harry works for the team. He has always scored.

"I am happy with how the game went. I was not surprised that it was not easy and at halftime the main thing for us was to stay calm."

Bayern had midfielder Aleksandar Pavlovic taken off after eight minutes with a broken collarbone that will sideline the Germany international for several weeks according to the club.

But they still had control of the game but could not make their dominance count in the first half.

Stuttgart, last season's runners-up, gradually ran out of steam and could no longer keep up after the break when Bayern struck three times in 23 minutes with Kane, now on eight goals in the league, to kill off the game.

The visitors' best chance was in the 53rd minute when Josha Vagnoman missed the target, firing over the bar from 10 metres out.

The Bavarians are top of the standings on 17 points, ahead on goal difference of RB Leipzig, winners 2-0 at Mainz 05.

Freiburg are third on 15 with champions Bayer Leverkusen in fourth a point behind after their 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

PSG beat Strasbourg 4-2 to claim top spot

IMAGE: Paris St Germain's Vitinha, Lee Kang-in and Fabian Ruiz celebrate after their Ligue 1 win over RC Strasbourg at Parc des Princes, Paris. Photograph: Stephanie Lecocq/Reuters

Goals from Senny Mayulu, Marco Asensio, Bradley Barcola and Lee Kang-in helped Paris St. Germain to thrash Strasbourg 4-2 in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

PSG are level on 20 points with AS Monaco at the top of the standings after eight matches, while Strasbourg are seventh with 10 points.

PSG midfielder Mayulu broke the deadlock after finding himself unmarked in the box and unleashing a powerful shot that soared into the roof of the net after 18 minutes.

Asensio extended the lead just two minutes after the break, deftly kneeing in a rebound from goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic, who had parried Desire Doue’s attempt.

While PSG dominated the match, Strasbourg seized their opportunity when Sekou Mara reduced the deficit in the 58th minute.

PSG extended their lead when Barcola scored the team's third goal in the 66th minute, and Kang-in added a fourth in stoppage time. Pape Daouda Diong responded for Strasbourg two minutes later with the last goal of the night.

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