As the final weeks of 2023 come to a close and as we hope to see some more drama and excitement occur into the new year, there is still have some business to get sorted as we wrap up another weekend of the best action across Europe.
On Saturday in the Premier League, a new leader of the pack emerged after Liverpool moved up to the top spot following their 2-1 comeback win over Crystal Palace. In Spain, Jude Bellingham was on the scoresheet again to help Real Madrid salvage a point in a 1-1 draw against Real Betis. And in Germany, we saw Eintracht Frankfurt put five past a stunned Bayern Munich in a 5-1 win.
Here is your look back at all the fun from the weekend.
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SATURDAY REVIEW
The Saturday lead: Elliott winner puts Liverpool top of the Premier League
It’s at about this time of year when the cold weather snaps and the midway point nears when the Premier League title race starts to form. Liverpool have so far proved they should be regarded as one of this season’s contenders, and they did so again on Saturday, all despite playing a game that, for 76 minutes, Jurgen Klopp said they “deserved nothing” from. In the end, he even called the result “lucky.”
A 75th-minute red card for Jordan Ayew changed it all, with Mohamed Salah scoring his 200th Liverpool goal a minute later before substitute Harvey Elliott netted a superb winner in stoppage time. “I am a very happy manager,” Klopp said. “If you only win when you’re really good then you have no chance of being really successful, that’s just how it is.”
Saturday’s result marked Liverpool’s seventh come-from-behind victory in all competitions this season — the most in Europe’s top five leagues alongside LaLiga contenders Girona. There’s another stat too: This was the 16th game that Liverpool have won with a stoppage-time winner under Klopp.
The title race is barely in view yet, and maybe it’s too soon to judge. But Liverpool earned another three points when they could easily have got none. Given the razor-thin margins, the Premier League title has been defined by in recent seasons, that will always be a perfect antidote to a bad performance. — Connor O’Halloran
Harvey Elliot snatched a late winner in stoppage time to help Liverpool go top of the Premier League. (Photo by Adam Davy/PA Images via Getty Images)
Saturday talking points around the leagues
Frankfurt stun Bayern after scoring five against Bavarians
Ansgar Knauff‘s shot after 32 seconds looked like it had gone in at first look. Only a replay, and a reminder of physics, helped show it hit the side netting, but it was that ominous moment suggesting Bayern Munich could be in for a rough afternoon. And yet, by full-time, nobody could have predicted just how rough it would be.
Despite Harry Kane in dominant form, the defending Bundesliga champs were rinsed 5-1 away to Eintracht Frankfurt in a driving December rain. Eintracht have needed something to cheer amid a difficult season, which saw them dumped out of the DFB Pokal last week by lower-tier Saarbrucken during a five-game winless streak in all competitions. What a way to rebound, eh? With Bayern in town expecting yet another good result — Eintracht’s last head-to-head win was in February 2021 — their hosts instead put on a show in front of a delirious Deutsche Bank Park crowd.
After that shot in the opening minute, Eintracht only needed nine minutes more to open the scoring, with Omar Marmoush scoring the rebound after Farès Chaïbi hit the bar. Then, on the half-hour mark after a spell of Bayern pressure, the hosts doubled their lead via Eric Ebimbe, who skipped between three defenders to bundle it past keeper Manuel Neuer from close range after Bayern gave the ball away cheaply in their own half. Hugo Larsson would make it 3-0 five minutes later, calmly slotting into the bottom corner after another quick counterattack by Marmoush.
Joshua Kimmich‘s impressive first-time shot from the top of the box cut it to 3-1 at the end of the first half, but the break only served to convince Eintracht to keep attacking their fragile foes. Four minutes into the second half, Ebimbe scored his second of the game after another lost Bayern possession in midfield, speeding onto Chaibis’ pass and slicing a shot past Neuer at his near post. After VAR review, Knauff was left to complete the rout, slashing beyond Neuer after another slick attack.
Should Bayern panic after a result like this? Perhaps not – one result in isolation is rarely that profound — but they need to ensure that when they next take the field, against Manchester United in the Champions League on Tuesday, they are back on track. — James Tyler