Compiled by Ranjika Perera
Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez pressed his hands together to ask forgiveness after deepening Barcelona’s crisis with his first goal against his former club on Saturday (2).
The Uruguayan hit late in the first half to put Atletico 2-0 up over the struggling Catalans at the break, which turned out to be the final score. Suarez remained respectful of Barcelona’s plight, refusing to celebrate even as his team-mates mobbed him in jubilation.
Saturday’s strike takes him up to four in La Liga after eight games, while he also netted midweek to engineer a last-gasp Champions League win over AC Milan. Suarez has now also scored against every Liga opponent he has faced in the last seven years - with Barca becoming his 31st victim.
Barcelona Captain Gerard Pique admitted the outlook is currently bleak for his side after their latest defeat at the hands of Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
“It is a complicated situation. We’re suffering. I have to be honest about that,” Pique told Movistar. “It is just not one problem. There are several. Despite this, I think we will recover. These are difficult times. We have not experienced them before. The atmosphere in the dressing room is very good and we want to turn it around.”
* Arsenal struggles as ‘offence’ continues
Arsenal have reached a 35-year offensive low after their 0-0 draw against Brighton, also on Saturday. The scoreless affair meant the Gunners now have just five goals from their opening seven league games, their lowest total since the 1986-87 campaign. The result left the Gunners in ninth in the table, having three wins, one draw, and three defeats in 2021-22 thus far.
The Gunners saw their Premier League campaign starts off in disastrous fashion, losing their first three games while scoring no goals and conceding nine! Since then, however, Mikel Arteta’s men have won three and drawn one of their next four, getting themselves back into the top half of the table.
“We have conceded one goal in the last five games which is really positive,” Arteta told the BBC after the game. “It is a really positive block of games that has helped us change the situation. We can now focus on the things we are doing well and work on the ones we need to improve.”
* Juventus carry on the winning run
Manuel Locatelli scored an 86th-minute winner as Juventus downed brave Torino to record all three points in the Derby della Mole.
After a bright opening in which Moise Kean and Weston McKennie created a chance apiece, Juventus struggled to get on the ball for the remainder of the first half, as Torino dominated with some slick play.
Despite creating few exciting moments inside the first half, Juventus struggled to find the target. Just as the Derby della Mole appeared to be finishing goalless for the first time in a century, Locatelli rediscovered his shooting boots, stroking the ball into the bottom corner to nick all three points for Allegri’s side.
The late goal ensured Juventus extended their winning streak to four consecutive games as they climbed up a place to eighth, while Torino drop to 10th.