Spain

“His character, hard-work, belief and pure will to improve himself makes him the man he is,” asserted Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone when questioned on the topic of star striker Radamel Falcao ahead of Saturday’s clash with stuttering Valencia. The Colombian international had scored in every La Liga game
he participated in for the Rojiblancos to date this season, and propelled the club to second place in the table only behind Barcelona on goal difference and eight points ahead of city-rivals Real Madrid. However, a tense night at the Mestalla proved to be a step too far for Atletico and Falcao.

Atletico Madrid travelled to Valencia on a 13-match consecutive winning streak, and had not been beaten in almost seven months, having lifted the Europa League and qualified for Europe once more late last season.
Falcao was unquestionably the man of the hour in Madrid. Having admitted to being “weak” at free kicks prior his side’s narrow victory over Real Sociedad a fortnight ago, he proceeded to glide home the winning strike from a free just outside the box that very weekend, proving that the possibilities are truly endless with the former Porto man leading the line.

Valencia on the other hand approached Saturday having lost to lowly Real Betis the week before, and were slowly losing the run of themselves under manager Mauricio Pellegrino. Having secured third place in La Liga last season despite finishing 30 points behind Barcelona in second, complacency was always going to set in knowing full well that catching Spain’s big two is virtually impossible. The loss of tactician Unai Emery to Spartak Moscow in May also proved to be a devastating blow, and they have floated in midtable throughout this entire campaign.

Simeone’s men started the brighter at the Mestalla, as Arda Turan went close and the home side had Diego Alves to thank for keeping them in the game. The breakthrough came at the other end, however, as Soldado met Adil Rami"s long pass, dropping over his shoulder, with a superb volley into the far top corner after 20 minutes of play. The local faithful erupted, but only conservatively in the full knowledge that Madrid still had the abilities to get the result.
Los Che boss Mauricio Pellegrino was sent to the stands before half time for protesting as one of his players lay injured, and things appeared to be going down hill after the interval too. They continued to hold out but Ricardo Costa was harshly sent off for a second bookable offence as his arm caught Raul Garcia with minutes
left to play. Pellegrino’s assistant manager Carlos Compagnucci was subsequently sent to the stands for protesting as Atletico piled on the pressure.

Despite the upheaval Valencia netted a second goal deep into injury time when man of the match Sofiane Feghouli played in Nelson Valdez to round on-loan Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and finish. The Valencia supporters truly celebrated this time around, as Falcao was left to rue several chances created and
he finished as the player that took the most shots. On the night it was the underdog that triumphed despite the other team’s star man possessing apparent unstoppable qualities.

France

Top of the table Paris Saint-Germain were beaten at home at the hands of Saint Etienne as star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was sent off in dramatic fashion. Marseille capitalised by beating Ajaccio, but remain level with the Parisians with a game in hand. Lyon kept up the pace with a 5-2 victory over Bastia
in a game that involved two red cards for either side. Newly promoted Troyes maintained their superb run with a draw at home to current champions Montpellier.

Germany

Bayern Munich got back to winning ways with a convincing performance to see off Hamburger SV by 3-0 and stay top of the table. Title contenders Schalke 04 were beaten narrowly by Hoffenheim to end their excellent run of form. Borussia Dortmund settled for a scoreless stalemate with VfB Stuttgart
in the biggest match of the weekend. Surprise package Eintracht Frankfurt remain third after a draw with Greuther Furth at home in the Friday night game.

Italy

Juventus saw their unbeaten run end at game 49 in dramatic fashion, as a spirited Internazionale came back from a goal behind to win 3-1 in Turin. Milan claimed victory over Chievo by 5-1 as the continue to improve slightly. Napoli dropped two points in the final minute at home as Torino earned themselves a draw. Roma recovered from a poor run to see of Palermo in entertaining style. Catania beat
third place Lazio 4-0 in the game of the weekend.