Chelsea wins Premier League; PSG closes on French title

Chelsea wins Premier League; PSG closes on French title

Published May. 3, 2015 7:11 p.m. ET

LONDON (AP) Chelsea clinched the Premier League title with three games to spare thanks to a hard-fought win against fellow London side Crystal Palace, while Paris Saint-Germain took a step closer to a third straight title with a 2-0 victory at Nantes in the French league.

Roma and city rival Lazio continue to scrap for second place in Serie A, while Valencia is closing in on a Champions League place in Spain.

Here is a look at the action from Europe's major leagues:

---

ADVERTISEMENT

ENGLAND

Eden Hazard scored the only goal as Chelsea beat Crystal Palace 1-0 to win the Premier League for the first time in five years.

It is the third time the London club has won the title under the guidance of Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho.

''The day I don't feel that passion to try to do it again, I stop,'' Mourinho said. ''I still enjoy to be tired after a very difficult match. So I think I am in the right place.''

Hazard, recently voted the English league's best player, hit a weak penalty that was saved by goalkeeper Julian Speroni at the end of the first half, but reacted quickly to head in the rebound.

Chelsea takes the Premier League title from Manchester City, which won 1-0 at Tottenham thanks to Sergio Aguero's league-leading 22nd goal to stay in the race for second place. City is three points clear of Arsenal, which has played two games less and travels to play relegation threatened Hull on Monday.

---

FRANCE

Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned to spearhead Paris Saint-Germain's attack, but it was Edinson Cavani who set the tone with his fourth goal in four games as PSG won 2-0 at Nantes to move three points clear of Lyon and move closer to a third straight title.

Ibrahimovic had missed three games for insulting officials after a league game against Bordeaux in March, giving Cavani the chance to shine at center forward.

Despite being pushed wide on Ibrahimovic's return, Cavani struck after only three minutes and then midfielder Blaise Matuidi made it 2-0 after 31 after running onto a pass from Ibrahimovic.

Lyon, which beat struggling Evian 2-0 on Saturday, has a slightly better goal difference but the title is PSG's to lose with three games to play.

Also, Monaco consolidated its grip on third place with a 4-1 win over Toulouse and Lille beat Lens 3-1 in the northern derby to stay in the chase for a Europa League spot.

---

ITALY

Roma overtook Lazio for second spot in Serie A with a 2-0 win over Genoa as its city rival Lazio drew 1-1 at relegation-threatened Atalanta.

Forward Seydou Doumbia and defender Alessandro Florenzi scored as Roma moved a point above Lazio and 15 points below Juventus, which clinched a fourth straight title on Saturday.

Fourth-place Napoli moved to within four points of Lazio and the final Champions League berth after it won 3-0 at home against AC Milan, which had defender Mattia De Sciglio sent off after 49 seconds.

Lazio plays Roma and Napoli in its final two matches.

---

SPAIN

Valencia eased to a 3-1 home win against Eibar to strengthen its hold on Spain's last Champions League berth.

Valencia's 10th win in the last 11 games at Mestalla Stadium kept in fourth place, three points clear of Sevilla as they battle for a top-four finish. Valencia's goals came from center half Nicolas Otamendi, midfielder Dani Parejo and forward Paco Alacer.

Granada striker Youssef El Arabi scored twice to secure a 2-1 win at Getafe, as the struggling club tried to mount a late-season surge to avoid relegation.

Ten-man Elche sealed it spot in the top flight for next season with a 2-1 win over Malaga, while Espanyol salvaged a point in an ill-tempered 1-1 draw against Rayo Vallecano to keep both sides in mid-table.

---

GERMANY

Gojko Kacar scored late for Hamburger SV to beat Mainz 2-1 and escape the Bundesliga's relegation zone, while Borussia Moenchengladbach won 2-1 at Hertha Berlin to reclaim third place.

Hamburg moved a point clear of Freiburg in the relegation playoff place after its second successive win.

Moenchengladbach substitute Ibrahima Traore's 85th-minute strike moved his side within two points of second-place Wolfsburg and restored its two-point advantage over Bayer Leverkusen.

share