In the early morning of January 7, Beijing time, European football ushered in a number of games, and many giants such as Real Madrid, Chelsea, Inter Milan, and Atletico Madrid appeared one after another. In the end, Real Madrid beat Alandina 3-1 in the Copa del Rey, Atletico Madrid eliminated Lugo 3-1 in the Copa del Rey, Chelsea thrashed Preston North End 4-0 in the FA Cup, and Inter beat Verona 2-1 in Serie A for a crazy night.
Inter beat Verona 1-0 to seal the halfway title
After an early exit from the Coppa Italia, Inter can focus on the domestic league and consolidate the top spot in the standings while trying to get rid of the point difference with Juventus.
As the leaders, Inter played a tough game at home to Hellas Verona, relying on Lautaro's goal in the first half, the Argentine striker continued to lead the scorer with 16 goals in 17 games, and in the second half Verona equalised with a tackle on the counter-attack, with Thomas Henry scoring. In the final moments, there was a miracle in the game, when Bastoni's long-range shot bounced off the crossbar, Frattesi slotted home from the spot-out and Thomas Henry missed the post from the spot-kick.
In the end, Verona missed the whistle and drew the whistle, and Inter won 2-1. After the victory, Inter Milan reached 48 points, five points ahead of Juventus with one more round, and locked the halfway championship in advance.
Real Madrid beat Alandina 3-1
It was Real Madrid's first game as the reigning champions of the season against fourth-tier side Alandina, who knocked out La Liga side Cadiz in the previous round.
In the first half, Güller hit the middle post with a free kick on his debut, and Real Madrid couldn't score it for a long time. In the second half, Dias made a point, Joselu took a penalty to help Real Madrid break the deadlock, and then Dias expanded the score, Rodrygo sealed the victory, helping Real Madrid finally easily eliminate the opponent 3-1 and advance to the round of 16.
With the win, Real Madrid are unbeaten in 19 consecutive matches, with their last defeat coming to Atletico in the league. Coincidentally, Real Madrid's next semi-final opponent in the Spanish Super Cup is Atletico Madrid.
Atletico Madrid eliminated Lugo 3-1
This season, Atletico Madrid are 10 points behind the top of La Liga, the title race is gradually drifting away, coupled with the lack of competitiveness to win the Champions League, the Copa del Rey has become the team's biggest hope.
Just two minutes into the game, Javier Galán set up Correa to strike the back of the net, before Lugo equalised thanks to Antonetti's goal. In the second half, Depay began to explode, shook off the defense in the 66th minute and scored a brace in the 74th minute to help Atletico Madrid finally advance to the fourth round 3-1.
Speaking after the game, boss Simeone commented on Depay's performance, saying that his two goals were important and that the team needed him to be in good form and continue to improve with hard work in order to seize the scoring opportunities.
Chelsea thrashed Preston North End 4-0
Chelsea continue to have a poor run in the Premier League this season, but have reached the last four of the Carabao Cup, are now in the FA Cup and are looking to challenge for the title, opening against Championship side Preston North End.
In the first half, Chelsea were scoreless and unable to knock on the Preston North End goal. Armando Broja broke the deadlock for Chelsea in the second half, and it was not only Thiago Silva who headed home to extend the lead, but Raheem Sterling headed home from a free-kick and set up Enzo to open the scoring in the final moments. In the end, Chelsea came out firing and won 4-0 to advance to the next round.
The win brought Chelsea to a third straight win streak in all competitions, the longest of the season.