(Reuters) – Talking points from the weekend in European soccer leagues:
FRANCE
NICE IN A RUT
Nice’s impressive start to the season seems like a distant memory as they continued their streak of six matches without a win, losing 2-1 to Montpellier on Friday.
Manager Francesco Farioli acknowledged the challenging period the club is going through, given how unstoppable they appeared just four months ago.
“The efforts the players made to keep the team at the top of the table for six months demanded a lot of physical and mental exertion,” he noted.
Sitting in sixth place and trailing Paris St Germain by 16 points, Nice’s hopes of a Ligue 1 title are fading away.
“Everything we achieved at the start of the season has slipped away in recent weeks,” Farioli lamented.
Their upcoming match is against PSG in the French Cup quarter-final.
GERMANY
BAYERN TURNAROUND?
Bayern Munich appears to have turned a corner this week after securing a spot in the Champions League quarter-finals and routing Mainz 05 8-1 in the Bundesliga on Saturday, earning praise for coach Thomas Tuchel.
Tuchel, who will depart at the end of the season, a year before his contract ends following earlier struggles by Bayern, seems to have found the right formula with the team and is still in contention for silverware.
With Harry Kane scoring consistently and the defense, which had been porous throughout the season, showing signs of solidity, Bayern seems to be hitting form following the announcement of Tuchel’s departure in February.
Although the league title seems out of reach with the team trailing leaders Bayer Leverkusen by 10 points with nine games remaining, they still have the Champions League to look forward to.
SPAIN
REAL MADRID CEMENT TOP SPOT
Real Madrid maintained their seven-point lead over second-placed Girona by thrashing Celta Vigo 4-0 on Sunday, making Carlo Ancelotti’s team look like favorites for the title.
Even without midfielder Jude Bellingham, who was serving a two-match ban, Real put on a dominant display against Celta, with 19-year-old Arda Guler scoring his maiden goal for the club and Vinicius Jr. notching his 10th goal of the season.
“We have performed well; this is a crucial point in the season where every match can be a potential stumbling block, but we are motivated and focused,” Ancelotti commented.
However, Girona still harbor hopes of challenging for the title after reigniting their campaign with a 2-0 victory over Osasuna, putting them one point ahead of third-placed Barcelona.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund, Karolos Grohmann and Angelica Medina; Editing by Toby Davis)
