Yaya Toure
Yaya Toure made a thunderous return to Manchester City with a brace to lead them to a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace as Diego Costa display predator instincts in Chelsea’s victory over Middlesbrough.
Costa scored his 10th goal of the season as Chelsea won 1-0 at Middlesbrough to record a sixth consecutive victory and take over at the Premier League summit.
Costa struck for the third straight game with half-time approaching in Sunday’s game as Antonio Conte’s side underlined their title credentials by posting a sixth clean sheet in a row.
It took them a point clear of Liverpool and Manchester City, and three ahead of fourth-place Arsenal. Meanwhile, defending champions Leicester City suffered their sixth defeat of the season in the 2-1 loss to Watford.
Liverpool relinquished their top spot with a 0-0 draw against Southampton in a weekend that saw Sunderland grab a rare victory (3-0 against Hull City), their second of the season.
The match of the weekend – Manchester United v Arsenal produced little spark as it ended 1-1.
Downs on the up, Wits top
Mamelodi Sundowns gave a performance befitting African champions to defeat Kaizer Chiefs 2-1 this weekend in a high-profile Absa Premiership showdown.
Trailing to a Ramahlwe Mphahlele cross-cum-shot, the Caf Champions League title holders levelled within two minutes through Tebogo Langerman.
Recent signing Sibusiso Vilakazi snatched the early second-half winner by slamming a loose ball into the net after a Percy Tau attempt to score was blocked.
Although Sundowns lie 12th in the 16-club standings, the Pretoria outfit have five matches in hand on most rivals owing to postponements caused by African commitments.
A second defeat of the season left four-time former champions Chiefs four points behind pacesetters Wits, who won 1-0 at Platinum Stars, after nine rounds.
Wits have 19 points with two matches in hand, Golden Arrows and Cape Town City 17 each, SuperSport United 16 and Chiefs 15.
Ronaldo hat-trick as Real surge ahead
Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick delivered Real Madrid’s first success over Atletico Madrid in La Liga for three years with a 3-0 win in the last meeting between the sides at Atletico’s Vicente Calderon.
Real now lead second-placed Barcelona by four points after the Catalans paid a heavy price for the absence of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in a 0-0 draw with nine-man Malaga earlier on Saturday.
Ronaldo struck the decisive spot-kick as Real edged Atletico on penalties in the Champions League final in May and was the match winner once more, albeit with a slight hint of fortune.
The Portuguese’s opener took a wicked deflection on its way past the excellent Jan Oblak.
Ronaldo doubled Real’s lead from the penalty spot 19 minutes from time before a brilliant Gareth Bale cross teed him up for the simplest of finishes to complete his hat-trick.
Barca trail leaders Real Madrid by four points after stumbling to a 0-0 draw at home to Malaga on Saturday and have lost all of their trips to Anoeta in the last three seasons.
BVB stun Bayern; Leipzig stay top
Borussia Dortmund stunned champions and arch-rivals Bayern Munich 1-0 on Saturday in a bad-tempered “Der Klassiker” clash to leave RB Leipzig the shock Bundesliga leaders.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang prodded in on 11 minutes at a frenzied Signal Iduna Park to propel Dortmund up to third on 21 points, three points behind Bayern, for whom this was a first defeat of the league season.
RB Leipzig are top, unbeaten and three points clear of the mighty Bayern, after a thrilling 3-2 win at Bayer Leverkusen on Friday signalled another milestone in their fast, but controversial rise to the top of German football.
Aubameyang scored the only goal of the game – he should have gone on to grab at least two more – poking in the ball from close range after ex-Bayern man Mario Goetze’s cross.
The striker celebrated with three push-ups and the home side were on the attack again moments later, the Bayern rearguard creaking as the fans at the intimidating 81 000 arena ratcheted up the volume once more. – supersport.com