In Spain, an Antoine Griezmann double fired Barcelona to a 2-1 win at Villarreal to keep his side on the heels of La Liga leaders Atlético Madrid. The Nigerian forward Samuel Chukwueze gave Villarreal the lead in the 27th minute but Griezmann responded immediately with a coolly taken chip before pouncing on a defensive slip to put Barca in front in the 35th.
Villarreal put the Catalans under renewed pressure in the second half but were reduced to 10 men in the 65th minute when Manu Trigueros was given a straight red card for a crunching tackle on Lionel Messi. The victory took third-placed Barca on to 71 points after 32 games, level with second-placed Real Madrid who have played 33.
In Italy, a superb strike from substitute Álvaro Morata was only enough to earn Juventus a 1-1 Serie A draw at Fiorentina in a result that could prove costly for the Turin club’s Champions League qualification hopes.
Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic calmly dinked a penalty past Wojciech Szczesny to give the hosts a deserved lead but Andrea Pirlo brought on Morata at half-time and was immediately rewarded as the Spaniard curled a shot into the top corner from a tight angle 31 seconds into the second half.
The result moved the champions level with second-placed Milan in the standings on 66 points, but the two teams behind them –Atalanta, on 65 points, and Napoli on 63 – have a game in hand. Fiorentina are six points clear of the relegation zone.
Matteo Darmian was Inter’s unlikely saviour once again as the defender came off the bench to score in a 1-0 win over Hellas Verona that moved Antonio Conte’s side a step closer to the title.
The runaway league leaders were heading for a third consecutive draw until the wing-back fired home in the 76th minute, his second winning goal of the month.
Inter moved on to 79 points, 13 clear of second-placed AC Milan with five games remaining, as they close in on their first league title since 2010.
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Lautaro Martínez went one-on-one with the goalkeeper early on but lifted his finish over the bar before Achraf Hakimi twice threatened with a shot off target and another saved by Marco Silvestri. Inter went close again after the break when Martínez forced a good stop from Silvestri and Hakimi was inches away from an extraordinary goal when a superbly struck bending free-kick cannoned off the post. But the hosts eventually broke through when Darmian was left unmarked on the wing and he composed himself before tucking a finish past the goalkeeper to spark wild celebrations.
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