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As expected, it was an action-packed weekend where the top European leagues saw some hard-fought, nail-biting encounters. Though the majority of the games in Serie A were postponed due to the sudden demise of Fiorentina skipper, Davide Astori, other nations provided plenty of footballing action over the weekend.
Manchester City and Liverpool registered clinical victories and the same can be said about Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. FC Barcelona won the tie of the weekend when they beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 last night and virtually sealed the La Liga title.
Many players gave standout performances, shining brightly this past weekend. And in this segment, we will take a look at the European team of the week consisting of the best of the best from this weekend's football action.
Goalkeeper: Florian Müller (Mainz)
Mainz and Hamburg were pitted against one another this weekend in what was a relegation six-pointer clash in the Bundesliga. Both these sides are in the bottom three with Mainz having a seven-point lead over Hamburg. They needed to avoid a defeat against Hamburg at any cost.
The hero for Mainz turned out to be their third choice, 20-year-old debutant goalkeeper - Florian Müller. The youngster was thrown into the deep for this game with Rene Adler out with the flu and Robin Zentner injured.
Müller made a dream start to life in the first division as he made as many as six saves on the night and saved a crucial Filip Kostic penalty. Mainz were under the cosh against Hamburg and if it wasn't for the young goalkeeper, it would not have been possible for them to earn a point. Hamburg attempted 18 shots and had 67% possession against Mainz.
Defence
Right back: Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid)
Real Madrid got back to winning ways with a 3-1 win over Getafe. It was Cristiano Ronaldo who grabbed the headlines with his goalscoring antics but Dani Carvajal's contribution cannot be understated. He was solid defensively and got forward at will.
The fullback and Gareth Bale worked brilliantly in tandem and were involved in some neat attacks. Carvajal shot one agonizingly wide off the mark in what would have been a well-deserved return for his performance. He completed 100% of his dribbles and completed 91% of his passes.
Centre back: Benjamin Hübner (Hoffenheim)
Julian Nagelsmann's side needed a win at all costs in a tricky away fixture against FC Augsburg. Both the sides are fighting for a Europa League spot and Hoffenheim emerged the better side on the night, courtesy of some strong and resolute defending from Benjamin Hübner.
The centre-back made 3 successful tackles and also won all 6 of his aerial duels. Augsburg enjoyed a lion share of the possession in this game and it required the Hoffenheim backline to be switched on at all times. Hübner led the defence brilliantly and also produced an assist to Andrej Kramaric for the opening goal with a pinpoint cross into the box.
Centre back: Andrea Barzagli (Juventus)
Against an in-form Lazio side that has scored for fun this season, the Juventus defence stepped up to the task with Andrea Barzagli particularly catching the eye. Juventus won 1-0 on the night and have to thank Barzagli for his resolute work at the back.
The experienced defender won 4 aerial duels and 4 tackles and also made 2 crucial interceptions. He also won 11 duels against Lazio's attackers and kept the dangerous Ciro Immobile in check. His cross-field balls were also influential as he succeeded in 13 of his long ball attempts.
Left back: Aleksandar Kolarov (AS Roma)
Roma achieved a stunning 4-2 win over Napoli at the weekend. Aleksandar Kolarov has been one of the most consistent performances for the capital side this season and again proved his importance with a commanding display against the league leaders.
He kept the dangerous Jose Callejon silent on the night and also bombarded forward when the need arisen. Kolarov had an assist to his name, made 9 successful cross field deliveries and also played 2 key passes. Defensively, the left-back made 3 timely interceptions and also won 7 duels.
Midfield
Right wing: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
The Argentine was the difference between winning and drawing the game for Barcelona against Atletico Madrid. It was his stunning free-kick that broke the deadlock and ultimately resulted in being the sole goal of the match. This was Messi's third set-piece goal in as many games.
Diego Simeone admitted after the match that the brilliance of Messi was the difference between a draw and a loss for his side. Apart from his goal, Messi looked threatening every time he got on the ball and beat defenders at will.
On one occasion, he got past three Atletico defenders in a flash where he had no right to get the better of them. He also made 5 key passes and succeeded in 100% of his dribbles.
Centre midfield: Lassana Diarra (PSG)
The veteran rolled back the years with a vintage performance in PSG's 2-0 win over Troyes on Saturday. Signed in January, Diarra has proved to be a smart buy for the Parisians and the former Real Madrid man delivered his best performance so far for the French giants.
He was the best player on the field by a mile and set the tempo of the game brilliantly. He made 92 successful passes against Troyes which included 2 key ones. Diarra had 8 successful dribbles on the night and won a staggering 18 duels in the centre of the park. PSG never gave Troyes any chance to mount a comeback and it was all down to the amazing work done by Diarra in midfield.
Centre midfield: Ilkay Gundogan (Manchester City)
In City's 1-0 win over Chelsea last night, Gundogan created history by becoming the player with the highest passes completed in a Premier League game since Opta started keeping track of the numbers. Staggeringly, the German midfielder succeeded in 167 of his 174 passes against the Blues.
Chelsea's negative tactics may have made the task easy for Gundogan but overall, he looked the liveliest of the midfielders on the field and made his case to start regularly for City. It was Gundogan who decided to control the pace of the game and in doing so, delivered a statistically brilliant showing.
Left wing: Son Heung-Min (Tottenham Hotspur)
With a brace against Huddersfield Town, Son Heung-Min reached double figures in the league for the second time running. The South Korean is an underrated member of this Spurs unit who was the best player on the field against the Terriers.
He took up nice positions and emerged victorious in each of his individual duels. His late runs into the box were threatening and so was his link-up play with Kane and Alli. Despite Moura waiting in the wings for a chance, performances like this have only enhanced Son's importance to this Tottenham setup.
Strikers
Centre forward: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
The great man warmed up for the clash against Paris Saint Germain in the best possible way by scoring a brace against Getafe. In doing so, Ronaldo reached the landmark of 300 La Liga goals and also notched up 30 goals in all competitions this season.
His first one on the night was a neat finish which involved some quick feet and sharp reactions. His second was a thumping header from a Marcelo cross. Ronaldo could have had his 50th career hattrick on Saturday but his third was wrongly judged offside by the linesman.
Centre forward: Edin Dzeko (AS Roma)
Roma needed a gigantic effort from its striker Edin Dzeko in their top of the table clash against Napoli. The Bosnian has been in a sensational run of late and it was the turn of the side from Naples to face the wrath of Dzeko. He scored an all-important brace and guided Roma to a famous 4-2 win.
For his first, he rose the highest and headed home the equalizer. Dzeko then gave Roma the lead through a stunning left foot hit from outside the box that nestled against the top corner. He was a constant menace to the Napoli defenders and showed the best aspects of his game in a huge match.
Bench: Ralf Fahrmann (Schalke), Mats Hummels (Bayern Munich), Virgil Van Dijk (Liverpool), Ki Sung-Yeung (Swansea City), Leroy Sane (Manchester City), Paulo Dybala (Juventus)
