If Gareth Bale had woken up earlier, or if he had found a common language with Jose Mourinho earlier, maybe Tottenham would be talking about the chances of the title today, and not about the fight for placement on the European stage.
For the first time in a long time, the Welshman looks ready and motivated to compete, and when he is like that, there are not many players who can match him. In the last 10 days, Bale scored four goals, and his form was seen on Sunday in the easy victory over Burnley (4:0) when he scored twice.
Ruben Dijas and John Stones scored for Manchester City and brought them their 20th consecutive triumph, while Stevan Jovetic launched Monaco to victory in the duel with Brest.
We present the players who marked the European football weekend:
THE GOALKEEPER
Pau Lopes (Roma) - conceded two goals and had a double-digit number of saves. And from his game, it can be concluded how much Roma's defense was struggling against Milan. Defeat was simply inevitable.
DEFENSE
Tomori (Milan) - he came on loan from Chelsea, and he is slowly establishing himself as perhaps the best central defender at Stefano Pioli's disposal.
Dias (Manchester City) - the forwards had a bad day against West Ham, but in Guardiola's team everyone contributes. The Portuguese scored for 1:0...
Stones (Manchester City) -... and the former Everton stopper signed the victory in the second half.
THE MIDDLE
Malinovskii (Atalanta) - the "goddess" continued the fight for placement in the Champions League. She defeated Sampdoria in Genoa, and the path to victory was opened by a diminutive Ukrainian.
Gnabri (Bayern) - he returned after his injury and proved in just twenty minutes how much he was missed by the Bavarians. He was a double scorer in the fireworks against Cologne...
Rainier (Borussia Dortmund) - The 19-year-old Brazilian will remember the match against Arminia for his first goal in the jersey of the "millionaire".
ATTACK
Rebic (Milan) - tormented Roma, he was often elusive. Then he scored the winner when next to him Gianluca Mancini looked like he was playing at a semi-amateur level.
Bale (Tottenham) - only they know what happened between Jose Mourinho and him in recent months. Now the Welshman is the strength of Spurs, he has an impact on the game and the results like in the first term when he became one of the best players in the world.
Jovetic (Monaco) - shook the Brest net in his own style and helped the "princes" to win three points. Monaco is safe at number four, just four points behind leaders Lille.
Lukaku (Inter) - already after 32 seconds, he started Genoa, then everything was easier for the leader of Serie A. The Belgian reached the 18th goal, later he distinguished himself with an assist.
Bonus video:
