Europe's top clubs, several of them with one nervous eye on midweek Champions League deciders, had mixed fortunes on the domestic front over the weekend.
English premier league leaders Arsenal lost 2-0 away to Blackburn Rovers, allowing Manchester United to climb to within two points after they won 1-0 at Aston Villa.
Arsenal, who visit Valencia on Wednesday in a Champions League group in which all four teams have a chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals, fell to goals by Ireland's Damien Duff and Turk Tugay.
David Beckham scored for Manchester United, whose European outing away to Deportivo Coruna on Tuesday is academic after securing top spot in their group last week and with the Spanish side eliminated.
Newcastle United, with Alan Shearer in such good form that an England comeback is being seriously mooted, stayed close in third place with a 2-0 win at Charlton Athletic.
Shearer converted a penalty and Peru's Nolberto Solano scored the other for Newcastle, who are vying with Inter Milan for a Champions League quarter-final place.
TWO-GOAL VIERI
Inter crushed Como 4-0 with two goals from Italy striker Christian Vieri to keep pace with Serie A leaders Juventus, 3-0 winners over Modena with a brace from Czech Pavel Nedved.
Vieri, however, misses Inter's Champions League decider at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday through suspension.
Juventus are almost sure of their place in the last eight of the Champions League -- only a heavy defeat at Basel could unstick them -- and were in confident mood.
Roma, who are clinging to their European hopes in bottom place in the group led jointly by Arsenal and Ajax and need to beat the Dutch side in Rome on Wednesday, did not do their confidence any good with a 1-0 defeat at Perugia. They are stuck in mid-table 25 points behind Juventus.
Spanish champions Valencia, like Arsenal, lost away. They went down 1-0 at Athletic Bilbao to remain fourth on 46 points, eight behind Real Madrid.
Real were in danger of getting little out of a relatively light trip to Villarreal until Ivan Helguera's 90th-minute goal gave them the three points to keep them one ahead of Real Sociedad, 2-1 winners at Racing Santander.
The European Cup holders visit Lokomotiv Moscow on Tuesday needing a win to be sure of a last-eight berth.
Arch-rivals Barcelona, already sure of their Champions League place, continued to under-perform on the domestic front with a 0-0 draw at Alaves. They languish in ninth pace 21 points behind Real Madrid.
Third-placed Deportivo Coruna, three points behind the leaders, beat Rayo Vallecano 3-0 at home.
RUNAWAY BAYERN
Borussia Dortmund, who beat Hanover 2-0, are hoping not to leave Germany without a single team in any of the European club quarter-finals but must beat qualified AC Milan away to stand a chance.
In the Bundesliga they are simply the best of the rest, second on 46 points, 13 behind runaway leaders Bayern Munich who won 4-1 away to VfL Bochum.
Ajax came from behind to beat Excelsior 2-1 in Amsterdam with two goals by their Swedish World Cup striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Dutch champions, however, remain seven points behind leaders PSV Eindhoven, who crushed Vitesse Arnhem 5-0 on Saturday.
There was no Ligue 1 football in France where Paris St Germain secured their second straight success in Provence, a 1-0 win over third division Martigues in the French Cup quarter-finals.
PSG, whose hopes of European football next season are looking up, beat arch-rivals Olympique Marseille 3-0 away in the league last weekend.
