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The NBA and European soccer once again captured the attention of the sports world this weekend. The Premier League delighted us with a great game between Tottenham and Manchester City, while the NBA greats hung up their team uniforms for a day and put on the jerseys of Team LeBron and Team Durant at the annual “All-star” game gala.
Spurs score heroic last-minute win
The Londoners struck first, with an early goal by Kulusevski in the 4th minute, however, the joy was short-lived as City equalized in the 33rd minute with a goal by Gundogan. In the 59th minute, Tottenham’s “killer” Harry Kane gave his team the lead after a clever assist from Son.
The most eye-catching game of the weekend pitted Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City against Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Spurs. Pep’s 11 came off the back of a comfortable victory in the last 16 of the Champions League, being the undisputed leaders of the English Premier League, while Harry Kane’s Tottenham was on a three-game losing streak.
City equalized in stoppage time after an unfortunate handball by Cristian Romero awarded a penalty that was converted by Riyad Mahrez. City’s relief lasted less than three minutes, however, as Kane scored again in extremis in the 90+5 with a masterful header.
Spurs’ victory leaves the title race alive, as Liverpool are only six points off the lead, and have a game in hand on City
No surprises in Spain
In Spain’s La Liga, the three most famous teams won their matches without much trouble. Real Madrid bounced back from their loss to PSG in Champions League and dispatched Alaves 3-0 with goals from Asensio, Vinicius, and Benzema. Barcelona, wounded after a draw in the Europa League, overwhelmed Valencia 4-1, with a hat trick from Aubameyang and a goal from Frenkie de Jong. Atlético Madrid defeated Osasuna without much difficulty, beating them 3-0, with goals from Joao Felix, Luis Suárez, and Angel Correa.
Real Madrid’s victory consolidates their position at the top of the table, six points behind Sevilla, which occupies second place. Barcelona and Atletico remain a distant 15 points behind Madrid, and are fighting to stay in the places that will ensure them a place in next year’s European championship.
Lebron and Curry, the stars of the “all-star game”
The NBA left its usual schedule this weekend to concentrate on the annual “all-star game”. This year, the league’s best basketball players were divided into two teams: Team Lebron and Team Durant, who was unable to attend the game due to the death of a family member. Although the intensity of these games is less than a professional game, both teams left us with incredible plays and a great show.
Before Sunday’s game, the NBA had its usual dunk contest, which received strong criticism on social networks from basketball fans, who complained about the multiple failures of the players, even Dwayne Wade only gave the show a 6/10. Despite the negative reviews, Obi Toppin of the New York Knicks won the game.
However, the stars of the night were the players who have dominated the NBA in recent years: Stephen Curry and LeBron James. The Golden Warriors star broke several records on Sunday, being the player with the most three-pointers in a quarter (6), in a half (8) and in an All-Star game (16), Curry was just three points shy of breaking the record for points in an All-Star game. Curry’s heroics led him to win the All-star game MVP, the first of his career.
LeBron James, who did not have a particularly good night, stole the spotlight when he scored his team’s last basket, a fadeaway that ended the game and gave Team LeBron a 163-160 victory. The basket sparked many comparisons to Michael Jordan, who was also a spectator at the game, James himself made reference to this, who said “it’s crazy that the last point was a ‘fadeaway’, and it was inspired by MJ.”
Emmanuel Alejandro Rondón is a journalist at El American specializing in the areas of American politics and media analysis // Emmanuel Alejandro Rondón es periodista de El American especializado en las áreas de política americana y análisis de medios de comunicación.
Contacto: [email protected]
Daniel is a Political Science and Economics student from the University of South Florida. He worked as a congressional intern to Rep. Gus Bilirakis (FL-12) from January to May 2020. He also is the head of international analysis at Politiks // Daniel es un estudiante de Cs Políticas y Economía en la Universidad del Sur de la Florida. Trabajo como pasante legislativo para el Representate Gus Bilirakis (FL-12) desde enero hasta mayo del 2020. Daniel también es el jefe de análisis internacional de Politiks.