JUVENTUS WRAPPED UP their fourth consecutive Serie A football title Saturday, giving the Italian powerhouse the domestic crown they have dominated all season in time for its Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.
In Spain, Madrid’s pursuit of Liga leaders Barcelona intensified with both sides recording wins as Cristiano Ronaldo and rival stars Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi all scored goals by the bunches.
Here is a look at the action from Europe’s major leagues:
Spain
Suarez netted his first hat trick for Barcelona to lead their 8-0 rout at last-place Cordoba, while Ronaldo also scored three to ensure Madrid stayed two points behind the pacesetters with three rounds left.
Messi notched his 50th and 51st goals in all competitions to help Barcelona match their biggest away win in league history and seal Cordoba’s relegation. Barcelona will next face Bayern Munich and former coach Pep Guardiola in the other Champions League semi-final.
Ronaldo almost single-handedly dealt Sevilla their first loss at home in 35 consecutive games going back to February 2014 with a hard-fought 3-2 victory.
Atletico Madrid were held to 0-0 at home by Athletic Bilbao as the soon-to-be-dethroned titleholders remained in third place, while Deportivo La Coruna were left in the relegation zone after drawing 1-1 with Villarreal.
Italy
His appointment protested against, coach Massimiliano Allegri won over any last doubters as Juventus made it four league crowns in as many years with four matches to spare and a treble in sight.
The Italian giant won 1-0 at Sampdoria to claim the first of potentially three trophies as they face Madrid in Europe’s top-tier competition, and Lazio in the Italian Cup final.
After dominating the entire season, Juventus needed just a point to mathematically seal a 31st Serie A title. A first-half header from Arturo Vidal gave them all three.
Sassuolo moved a point closer to mathematically securing their Serie A survival with a 0-0 draw against Palermo.
England
After a third successive loss, Manchester United’s bid to return to the Champions League is stuttering.
A 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion left United still in fourth place but only four points ahead of Liverpool with three games to go.
Liverpool relied on Steven Gerrard’s late goal after the captain missed a penalty, to beat ten-man Queens Park Rangers 2-1 at Anfield.
Newcastle lost a club record eight games in a row after a 3-0 defeat at Leicester. Swansea beat Stoke 2-0 in a mid-table clash, and West Ham beat Burnley 1-0.
Aston Villa edged Everton 3-2 to stay two points clear of Sunderland, after Jordi Gomez converted two penalties to help beat Southampton 2-1.
Bournemouth earned promotion to the Premier League for the first time.
Germany
Bayer Leverkusen substitute Julian Brandt scored on his 19th birthday to inflict a 2-0 defeat on Bayern Munich in the German champions’ first league game since sealing the title.
Klaas Jan Huntelaar ended his goal drought with a brace as Schalke defeated Stuttgart 3-2, while Borussia Dortmund were held 1-1 at Hoffenheim.
Second-place Wolfsburg drew 2-2 with Hannover, Paderborn boosted their survival hopes with a 2-1 win at Freiburg, Werder Bremen beat Eintracht Frankfurt 1-0 and Augsburg drew 0-0 with Cologne.
France
In a frantic race for the French title, Lyon kept the pressure firmly on Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) with a 2-0 win over struggling Evian.
Clement Grenier’s strike and Alexandre Lacazette’s penalty in the first half put Lyon back at the top of the standings on goal difference from PSG.
Bastia stopped Saint-Etienne’s nine-match unbeaten run in the league with a 1-0 win.
Montpellier drew 0-0 with Rennes. Struggling Reims lost 2-0 at Guingamp, Nice drew 0-0 with Caen and Lorient drew 0-0 with Bordeaux.
Scotland
Celtic won a fourth consecutive Scottish Premiership title after challenger Aberdeen lost 1-0 to Dundee United.
Celtic routed Dundee 5-0 on Friday, and the Glasgow club has an unassailable nine-point lead in the standings with three games to go due to its vastly superior goal difference.
