Euro round-up: Real win despite two Benzema penalty misses
Real Madrid continued their march towards a 35th La Liga title as goals by David Alaba, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez earned them a 3-1 win at Osasuna, despite Karim Benzema missing two penalties.
The victory means Real have 78 points and hold a 17-point lead at the top over closest rivals Atletico Madrid, who were held to a goalless draw by Granada earlier on Wednesday.
Barcelona in third and fourth-placed Sevilla are a point further back and both play on Thursday.
Real need just four more points from their last five games to be sure of the title.
Alaba opened the scoring in the 12th minute, finishing with a close-range strike following a free-kick but Osasuna equalised two minutes later as Ante Budimir scored after a counter-attack.
Asensio was in the right place at the right time to strike home a rebound from a Dani Ceballos shot inside the six-yard box.
Benzema wasted two great opportunities to extend Real’s lead, missing two penalties in less than five minutes in the second half, with both saved by goalkeeper Sergio Herrera.
It was not until the last move of the game when Real sealed the deal with Vazquez finishing a counter-attack led by substitute Vinicius Jr.
PSG on verge of record-equalling 10th title
Paris Saint-Germain are on the verge of a record-equalling 10th French title after goals by Kylian Mbappe, Sergio Ramos and Marquinhos earned them a 3-0 victory at Angers in Ligue 1 on Wednesday.
The result put the capital side on 77 points, leading second-placed Olympique de Marseille, who beat Nantes 3-2, by 15 points with five games left.
Should PSG avoid defeat at the Parc des Princes against RC Lens on Saturday, they will clinch the title that puts them level on 10 with St Etienne, who won their titles between 1957 and 1981.
Stade Rennais are third on 56 points after losing 2-1 at Racing Strasbourg, who are now fourth behind them on goal difference.
Also on 56 points are fifth-placed Monaco who beat Nice 1-0 at home.
The top two qualify directly for the Champions League group stage while the third-placed side will play the third qualifying round.
Juve set up Coppa Italia final with Inter
Juventus set up a Coppa Italia final showdown with Inter Milan after goals from Federico Bernardeschi and Danilo earned them a 2-0 win in the second leg of their semi-final against Fiorentina on Wednesday, sealing a 3-0 aggregate success.
Having snatched a fortunate victory in the first leg in Florence thanks to a last-gasp own goal, Juve set about dominating from the off in the Juventus Stadium, but they struggled to turn their possession into chances early on.
Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic, facing his former club, saw his close-range effort saved before Bernardeschi’s fine finish gave the hosts the lead in the 32nd minute.
Adrien Rabiot had the ball in the net in the second half but his strike was ruled out following a VAR review. With Fiorentina committing bodies forward down the other end, Danilo managed to put the game to bed in stoppage time.
With Massimiliano Allegri’s side trailing Serie A leaders AC Milan by eight points with five games left, Juve’s best chance of landing a trophy this season remains in the Coppa tournament, where they will face Inter in the May 11 final.
RB Leipzig to face Freiburg in German Cup final
RB Leipzig will play Freiburg in the German Cup final after a last-gasp goal by substitute Emil Forsberg gave them a 2-1 home win over Union Berlin on Wednesday, securing them a spot in their third final in four years.
Sweden international Emil Forsberg scored with a bullet header to seal the game for the hosts in stoppage time.
Winger Sheraldo Becker gave Union the lead in the 25th minute after he received a superb lofted pass from Christopher Trimmel and finished with a fine first-time shot from inside the box.
Union could have doubled their lead 12 minutes into the second half when Becker passed across the face of the goal but Nigerian forward Taiwo Awoniyi arrived a fraction late.
Instead, Leipzig striker Andre Silva levelled from the spot after an hour, after Christopher Nkunku was fouled by defender Paul Jaeckel and the penalty was awarded following a VAR review.
Leipzig will head into the May 21 final in Berlin in search of their first major trophy having lost the 2021 final 4-1 to Borussia Dortmund and suffered a 3-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in 2019.