Atalanta Follows Up Elimination of Liverpool with 2-1 win at Monza in Serie A

File photo: Soccer Football - Europa League - Quarter Final - Second Leg - Atalanta v Liverpool - Stadio Atleti Azzurri, Bergamo, Italy, - April 18, 2024 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah shakes hands with manager Juergen Klopp after being substituted as Harvey Elliott and Darwin Nunez prepare to come on as substitutes. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
File photo: Soccer Football - Europa League - Quarter Final - Second Leg - Atalanta v Liverpool - Stadio Atleti Azzurri, Bergamo, Italy, - April 18, 2024 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah shakes hands with manager Juergen Klopp after being substituted as Harvey Elliott and Darwin Nunez prepare to come on as substitutes. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
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Atalanta Follows Up Elimination of Liverpool with 2-1 win at Monza in Serie A

File photo: Soccer Football - Europa League - Quarter Final - Second Leg - Atalanta v Liverpool - Stadio Atleti Azzurri, Bergamo, Italy, - April 18, 2024 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah shakes hands with manager Juergen Klopp after being substituted as Harvey Elliott and Darwin Nunez prepare to come on as substitutes. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
File photo: Soccer Football - Europa League - Quarter Final - Second Leg - Atalanta v Liverpool - Stadio Atleti Azzurri, Bergamo, Italy, - April 18, 2024 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah shakes hands with manager Juergen Klopp after being substituted as Harvey Elliott and Darwin Nunez prepare to come on as substitutes. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

Atalanta followed up its elimination of Liverpool in the Europa League with a 2-1 win at Monza in a regional Serie A derby on Sunday.
Ademola Lookman assisted on both goals, first providing the corner kick that Charles De Ketelaere headed in and then setting up El Bilal Toure to finish off a counterattack.
Daniel Maldini pulled one back for Monza in the 89th and then nearly equalized when he hit the post five minutes into stoppage time.
The victory moved Atalanta up to sixth place and one point behind Roma in the race for the final Champions League spot, The Associated Press said.
Atalanta could also qualify for the Champions League if it wins the Europa League, having beaten Liverpool on 3-1 aggregate on Thursday. The Bergamo team faces Marseille in the semifinals.
Atalanta will also look to overturn a 1-0 deficit to Fiorentina in the second leg of the Italian Cup semifinals on Wednesday.
With 21 goals and 12 assists, Lookman became the fifth player to score more than 20 goals and deliver more than 10 assists since the start of last season in Serie A, after Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Rafael Leão, Paulo Dybala and Olivier Giroud.
Fiorentina produced two late goals to secure a 2-0 win at last-place Salernitana, moving the Tuscan club up to ninth place and back into contention for a spot in Europe.
Christian Kouame scored with a looping header in the 80th and Jonathan Ikone added another in stoppage time following a rebound of a save by Salernitana goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.
Salernitana, which is 13 points from safety with five rounds remaining, is nearing mathematical relegation.
Fiorentina, which has advanced to the Europa Conference League semifinals, ended a five-match winless streak in Serie A. The Viola also have a game to make up against Atalanta.
There was a brief clash between Salernitana and Fiorentina supporters before kickoff that resulted in injuries to 10 police officers, the Gazzetta dello Sport reported — adding that no fans were arrested.
Also, 10th-place Torino, which is also chasing a spot in Europe, drew 0-0 with Frosinone, which is third from the bottom.
Lecce won 3-0 at Sassuolo to move seven points clear of the drop zone, while Sassuolo remained second from the bottom.
Inter Milan can seal the Italian league title with a derby win over AC Milan on Monday.



De Bruyne Spares Man City Blushes at Leyton Orient

Manchester City's Belgian midfielder #17 Kevin De Bruyne applauds fan after the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Leyton Orient and Manchester City at Gaughan Group Stadium, Brisbane Road in east London on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
Manchester City's Belgian midfielder #17 Kevin De Bruyne applauds fan after the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Leyton Orient and Manchester City at Gaughan Group Stadium, Brisbane Road in east London on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
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De Bruyne Spares Man City Blushes at Leyton Orient

Manchester City's Belgian midfielder #17 Kevin De Bruyne applauds fan after the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Leyton Orient and Manchester City at Gaughan Group Stadium, Brisbane Road in east London on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
Manchester City's Belgian midfielder #17 Kevin De Bruyne applauds fan after the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Leyton Orient and Manchester City at Gaughan Group Stadium, Brisbane Road in east London on February 8, 2025. (AFP)

Manchester City needed a late winner from substitute Kevin De Bruyne to beat Leyton Orient 2-1 and reach the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday after the third-tier side threatened to shock the Premier League champions.

Jamie Donley's audacious long-range effort that came back off the bar and rebounded in off City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega had given Orient an early lead.

They maintained that advantage until 56 minutes when Rico Lewis' shot deflected in off Abdukodir Khusanov for his first Manchester City goal.

Pep Guardiola had to turn to his bench more than he would have liked just four days before a mammoth Champions League tie against Real Madrid.

But the introduction of De Bruyne made the difference as he scored the winner 11 minutes from time.

Guardiola warned on the eve of the match that his side would be made to suffer despite the massive disparity in resources between the clubs.

City lost to third-tier Wigan in Guardiola's second season in charge and he was not surprised by Orient's heroics.

"Yes, because I know the FA Cup," said Guardiola on why he expected such a battle. "Since 2018 against Wigan I know.

"It was a typical FA Cup game, that is why this competition is unbelievable. For the fans, how the crowd support and we knew they are strong."

Victory came at a cost for City, though, as new signing Nico Gonzalez hobbled off just 22 minutes into his debut after a £50 million ($62 million) move from Porto.

By that point, the visitors trailed as Donley spotted Ortega off his line from just over the halfway line.

His shot was inches away from perfection, but bounced back off Ortega and in as the German 'keeper scrambled back towards his goal.

Chances came and went for City to level before the break with Bernardo Silva's effort cleared off the line.

City needed some fortune to get back level. Half-time substitute Khusanov knew little about the equalizer as Lewis' shot hit off the Uzbek to wrong-foot Josh Keeley in the Orient goal.

Guardiola threw on Phil Foden and De Bruyne in desperate search of a winner and the veteran Belgian duly delivered.

"I'm disappointed with the last goal but at least it took the big boys to come on and beat us," said Orient boss Richie Wellens.

De Bruyne prodded in Jack Grealish's forward pass to spare City's blushes from the latest embarrassment of a difficult season.

Guardiola's men sit fourth in the Premier League and narrowly avoided a shock early exit from the Champions League in the group stages.

But they will need to be much improved when the might of Madrid come calling to the Etihad in the Champions League play-off round on Tuesday.