After enjoying a midweek break of unpredictability in the Champions League – or unpredictable referees to be precise, or maybe predictable referees to be conspiratory – Europe’s top leagues eventually returned to their usual weekly trot.

In England, the vacant fourth Champions League spot keeps being the more interesting race than the one for the title. Liverpool generously put their Champions League ticket up for grabs but neither Tottenham, Aston Villa or Man City could yet make their mind up whether they really want it. This weekend it was up to Man City to stake their claim as they hosted Liverpool and battled to a 0-0 draw. Check out the full highlights above. Elsewhere, Portsmouth continue being 48h away from going into administration and 24h away from having yet another new owner.

In Italy, Inter continue playing their game of competing with nine against eleven, to try and keep themselves entertained in the title race. Jose Mourinho keeps enjoying working with the Italian media and referees. Thomas Hitzelsperger keeps riding well paid benches and, given that I’m confident I figured Jogi Löw out by now, this should pretty much guarantee him a starting XI spot in Germany’s midfield in South Africa.

In Spain, Barcelona won and Real Madrid won too.

In Germany, nobody won, at least at the top of the table, changing nothing. With no Norwegian referee in sight, Bayern had to settle for 1-1 draw at Nuremberg for a change, ending their 13 game winning streak. So that’s new.

In France, everyone agreed that Bordeaux were really overdoing it with defending their title in record time, so they were given a rest, allowing Lyon and Marseille to temporarily close the gap by three points and put some pressure on Lauren Blanc’s men. Surprise side Montpellier failed to go level on points, as their five match winning streak turned into a one match losing streak at St Etienne.

February, 22