Valencia on a roll, Fiorentina grab win
Sunday, February 21, 2016
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Valencia offered further proof that they might be lifting the gloom on a weekend that brought notable wins for Fiorentina and Dortmund along with FA Cup defeat for Tottenham.
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There were notable victories for Valencia, Fiorentina and Dortmund as the UEFA Europa League round of 32 contenders focused on matters closer to home before Thursday's second legs.
So long without a Liga win, Valencia coach Gary Neville has now overseen two in a row. Fresh from beating Espanyol and a joint record 6-0 defeat of Rapid Wien in midweek, Los Che again suggested their fortunes might be changing with a 2-1 success at struggling Granada. A hint of momentum also returned for Fiorentina, who grabbed a second consecutive league victory – for the first time since 6 January – to bolster their hold on third spot in Serie A.
In Germany, Dortmund overcame fellow UEFA Europa League side Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 to stay eight points behind Bundesliga leaders Bayern München, and a pair of competition hopefuls likewise crossed swords in France – where Marseille drew 1-1 with St-Étienne. That was better than Tottenham Hotspur could manage in the FA Cup, the Premier League high-fliers losing at home to Crystal Palace.
WEEKEND RESULTS
Atlético de Madrid 0-0 Villarreal
Athletic Club 0-1 Real Sociedad
Granada 1-2 Valencia
Rayo Vallecano 2-2 Sevilla
Bayer Leverkusen 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
Schalke 1-1 Stuttgart
Hannover 0-1 Augsburg
Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Crystal Palace (FA Cup fifth round)
Atalanta 2-3 Fiorentina
Frosinone 0-0 Lazio
Marseille 1-1 Saint-Étienne
Porto 3-2 Moreirense
Braga 3-3 Guimarães
Galatasaray 2-1 Trabzonspor
Grasshopper-Club 3-0 Sion
Basel 5-1 Vaduz
Olympiacos 4-0 Atromitos
Waasland-Beveren 1-0 Anderlecht
Sparta Praha 2-0 Mladá Boleslav
Sturm Graz 0-2 Rapid Wien
SATURDAY
MONDAY
Shrewsbury v Manchester United (FA Cup fifth round, 20.45CET)
Napoli v AC Milan (21.00)
Sporting CPv Boavista (21.00)
No match: Krasnodar, Liverpool, Lokomotiv Moskva, Midtjylland, Molde, Shakhtar Donetsk