Inter Milan remain 14 points clear atop Serie A after twice being pegged back in a 2-2 draw at home to Cagliari.
After closest challengers AC Milan drew 3-3 at Sassuolo earlier on, Inter could have moved 16 points ahead with six fixtures left and they led at the interval courtesy of Marcus Thuram’s early strike.
Eldor Shomurodov drew Cagliari level and while Hakan Calhanoglu put Inter back ahead from the spot, Nicolas Viola made sure of a point apiece with his 82nd-minute strike from close range.
The stalemate might just be a mere hiccup for Inter, who can seal a first Scudetto in three years by beating city rivals Milan next Monday although twice squandering one-goal leads will doubtless frustrate head coach Simone Inzaghi.
The hosts started brightly as Nicolo Barella had an early sight at goal which Simone Scuffet did well to push away before Cagliari’s defence scrambled to snuff out Thuram from latching on to the rebound.
But the visiting backline was split open as Matteo Darmian slid through to Alexis Sanchez, who hared to keep the ball in play and his cutback was tucked away by the onrushing Thuram after 12 minutes.
Zito Luvumbo made a nuisance of himself with a shot at Yann Sommer before chipping over while, at the other end, Inter were denied by the offside flag after Barella had headed past Scuffet.
The Cagliari goalkeeper was alert to paw away Calhanoglu’s long-range free-kick just after the hour mark, which proved crucial as the visitors drew level a few moments later.
A speculative long ball forward from Adam Obert was brought down by Luvumbo with his knee and led to Shomurodov lashing low beyond Sommer from the edge of the area in the 64th minute.
The equaliser spurred Inter into action and they had a golden opportunity to retake the lead when Davide Frattesi’s header hit the outstretched hand of Yerry Mina.
While the Colombian defender protested his innocence after the penalty was awarded, the decision stood and Calhanoglu directed his 74th-minute spot-kick beyond Scuffet, who guessed the right way and got fingertips to the ball but not enough to stop it from hitting the back of the net.
But it was Cagliari who had the final say as Inter half cleared a cross and Matteo Prati’s header back into the area ricocheted off fellow substitute Gianluca Lapadula, with Viola drilling low beyond Sommer.
Viola might have nicked it at the death as Cagliari hit Inter on the counter but his header was straight at Sommer and the spoils were shared.
Barcelona 4-2 Valencia: Lewandowski hat-trick leads Barca to 4-2 win over 10-man Valencia
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski scored a second-half hat-trick to help his side fight back to claim a hard-fought 4-2 win over Valencia, who were leading 2-1 when they were reduced to 10 men just before the break.
Fermin Lopez's header from a Raphinha cross put Barca in front after 22 minutes, but Valencia's Hugo Duro struck in the 27th and Pepelu scored from the spot after a foul by Ronald Araujo 11 minutes later to give the visitors the lead.
But after Valencia keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili saw red for a handball outside the box before the break, Xavi's side dominated and Lewandowski scored with two headers from corners in the 49th and 82nd minutes before getting his treble with a free-kick in added time.
The win postponed Real Madrid's almost inevitable LaLiga title celebrations for a couple of weeks as Carlo Ancelotti's side sit atop the standings on 84 points.
Barcelona moved back to second in LaLiga on Monday with 73 points as they leapfrogged surprise package Girona, who are third with 71. Those two teams will meet in a Catalonia derby on Saturday.
Data debrief
Barcelona conceded two goals in the first half of a home game for the second time this season, after also doing so against Girona in LaLiga in December 2023.
However, Lewandowski's goals have been invaluable to La Blaugrana this season as he's earned 17 points with his 16 goals in the league.
Kimmich ready to open Bayern Munich talks amid Barcelona speculation
Joshua Kimmich is ready to open talks with Bayern Munich over his future at the club amid speculation linking him with Barcelona.
The Germany international has spent nine years at the Allianz Arena, but he is due to become a free agent at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
Barca have been repeatedly linked with Kimmich in recent transfer windows and are said to retain an interest ahead of next season.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, the midfielder talked up Barca - as well as fierce rivals Real Madrid - but fell short of saying he is open to a move.
"I want to talk to Bayern. When I do that, I won't go out and talk to the press about it," he said.
"I'm not thinking about this. I will speak to Bayern first. But of course, Barcelona and Real Madrid are amazing clubs with an amazing history."
Kimmich has played 37 times in all competitions this season for Bayern, whose last remaining hope of silverware is in the Champions League.
Bayern will face Real Madrid over two legs for a place in the final, with the first match in that double-header taking place in Bavaria on Tuesday.
Thomas Tuchel will depart the dethroned Bundesliga champions at the end of the season, with Ralf Rangnick the favourite to succeed him.
The managerial uncertainty is not helping with regards to the Kimmich rumours, but he insists that will not be a deciding factor on his future.
"It's not the most important thing right now," he said. "I know that when you sign a contract you don't sign it with the coach.
"You sign it with the club. For me, the most important thing is the club, not just the coach.
"But it's also important to know what the coach thinks about you and the team. Other people in the club can worry about choosing the coach."
Desailly calls on LaLiga to do more to protect Vinicius Junior
Marcel Desailly has called on LaLiga to do more to protect Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior and other players who have been targeted by racist abuse.
Vinicius broke down at a press conference earlier this month as he opened up about the abuse he has received from the stands while representing Madrid.
The Brazil international is not alone in that regard, with team-mate Aurelien Tchouameni another example, and World Cup winner Desailly wants more to be done.
"Vinicius has spoken out, but it's not about him - it's about LaLiga and the people who can take action," he told Stats Perform.
"We have the power to change things, but we are not doing enough. Samuel Eto'o had the same issue before.
"Vinicius is one of those who is suffering because the administrative people in charge are not willing to hit harder than they are."
Vinicius has been a key player for LaLiga champions-elect Madrid once again this season with 13 goals and five assists in 23 outings.
Desailly regards Vinicius, who scored the winning goal in the 2022 Champions League final, as one of the finest players of his generation.
"He's a very ambitious player," Desailly said. "I think he's improved a lot because he is now clinical in assisting and finishing.
"When you look at someone like Ousmane Dembele, his stats are not as good.
"Then you look at Jadon Sancho, Bukayo Saka, another who has improved - there is potential for each of those to get close to Vinicius."
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