Arsenal made virtually sure of finishing runners up in the Premier League by beating Liverpool 3-1 on Sunday, which guaranteed Everton fourth spot and a place in next season's Champions League.
Two goals in four minutes by Robert Pires and Jose Antonio Reyes put the Gunners in control at Highbury. Although Steven Gerrard replied in a strong Liverpool fightback in the second half, Francesc Fabregas added Arsenal's third in the third minute of injury time.
The victory over Champions League finalist Liverpool means that Arsene Wenger's team is six points clear of third-place Manchester United with two games to go, but it has a far better goal difference than the Reds.
PHOTO: AFP
Chelsea clinched its first title in 50 years a week ago, receiving the trophy on Saturday after beating Charlton 1-0.
The loss for fifth-place Liverpool means that Rafa Benitez' team can't catch neighbor Everton for fourth.
David Moyes' Toffees, which finished just outside the relegation zone last season, now look forward to a place in European soccer's most prestigious competition. They last played in the competition in 1971.
The Gunners took a 25th-minute lead when they were awarded a free kick 22m out after Dietmar Hamann brought down Patrick Vieira. Pires curled his shot well out of reach of goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, who didn't even move.
Four minutes later, Reyes scored his ninth goal of the season. The Liverpool defense failed to close the Spaniard down as he raced onto a pass by Fabregas, and he held off two challenges before shooting home with his left foot.
Liverpool hit back six minutes into the second half, when Reyes needlessly nudged Xabi Alonso just outside the Arsenal area and Gerrard's firmly struck low shot took a deflection off Fabregas and flew past goalkeeper Jens Lehmann.
It was only the second goal Arsenal had conceded in 11 league and cup games.
Liverpool continued to dominate the second half, but 18-year-old Fabregas took a short pass from Dennis Bergkamp to go clear and add the third.
Wigan Athletic gained promotion to the top division in English soccer for the first time in its history by beating Reading 3-1 on Sunday.
Wigan, which joins Sunderland in the Premier League, knocked third-place Ipswich into the playoffs with Preston, Derby and West Ham. Ipswich drew 1-1 with Brighton in the final round of games in the Football League Championship.
Lee McCulloch, Jason Roberts and Nathan Ellington sparked celebrations at Wigan's JJB Stadium, the ground it shares with Wigan rugby league club. Steve Sidwell scored a late consolation for Reading, which finished seventh and just missed out on the playoffs.
Wigan manager Paul Jewell, who led Bradford City to the Premier League in 1999, got close to getting Wigan promoted last season. The club was in the playoff places but tumbled out after failing to win its last four games.
This time, Wigan had been in the top two for most of the season.
"We've finished where we deserved to finish," Jewell said. "I would love to have won [the championship] but good luck to Sunderland. They must be the best team because that's what the league [table] says. We're second best and we're both in the Premiership, and I'm just delighted we're not going into those playoffs."
Ipswich faces sixth-place West Ham in a two-leg series in the playoffs, and fourth-place Derby takes on Preston, which finished fifth.
At the bottom, Gillingham was relegated along with Nottingham Forest and Rotherham.
John Hartson scored both goals to help Celtic reclaim first place after a 2-0 victory over Aberdeen on Sunday.
Defending champion Celtic leads rival Rangers by two points with two games to go. Rangers had jumped to the top by beating Hearts 2-1 on Saturday.
Celtic failed to hit the target in the first half before 59,498 fans at Parkhead. But Wales international Hartson netted two minutes after the interval when he diverted Alan Thompson's free kick. He added a second in the 71st to take his total for the season to 30 in all competitions.
In the struggle to avoid relegation, Derek Young scored three to lead Dunfermline away from last place by beating Dundee 5-0.
Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o scored first-half goals to earn FC Barcelona a 2-0 victory over Valencia and virtually assure the team of its first title since 1999.
Ronaldinho unleashed a fierce shot in the 28th minute and Eto'o slotted home his 23rd goal of the season two minutes later to give Barcelona the chance to lift the trophy next Saturday by winning at lowly Levante.
"It's a very big step. It's true that we're very close, we need one more victory. This opens the door a little more for us to celebrate the league title when the moment comes," Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard was quoted as saying by news agency Efe.
Barcelona can even draw all three of its remaining matches and win the title, and the team will only need three points if Real Madrid wins its remaining games. If the teams finish level on points, Barcelona will win the title on head-to-head results.
Barcelona leads Madrid by six points. Madrid won its seventh straight game on Saturday by crushing Racing Santander 5-0, but is now almost certain of ending the season empty-handed for the second straight season.
Sunday's loss left defending league and UEFA Cup champion Valencia in seventh place and in danger of missing out on European competition next season.
Also Sunday, Numancia became the first team to be relegated this season after a 3-0 defeat at Espanyol.
Barcelona leads the league with 81 points, while Madrid has 75. Sevilla and Villarreal have 58 points each, followed by Espanyol with 56 and Real Betis with 55. Valencia stays with 53.
Borussia Moenchengladbach clinched a 0-0 draw at Hamburger SV to virtually make sure of avoiding relegation, while Borussia Dortmund edged Werder Bremen 1-0 to spoil the outgoing champion's hopes of reaching the Champions League.
Bremen wasted a dozen opportunities and dominated the home team, but the second most proficient offense in the league could not find the net.
On the other side, Dortmund used one of its few chances in the 32nd minute, when midfielder Tomas Rosicky, left unmarked, scored with an angled shot to sink Bremen.
Bremen stayed fifth with 53 points and two games remaining. Second place -- and a direct berth in the Champions League -- is now out of its reach.
American goalkeeper Kasey Keller had an outstanding game and helped Moenchengladbach come away with a draw that will likely keep his team in the top division.
Moenchengladbach is now six points above the relegation zone and has a much better goal difference than Bochum and Rostock, which appear beyond rescue.
David Trezeguet headed in a decisive first-half goal, and Juventus beat AC Milan 1-0 at San Siro to move three points clear in Serie A with three rounds to play.
Trezeguet, the France striker long sidelined with an ankle injury, netted the winner in the 28th minute.
The away win in the so-called "Partitissima" (Biggest Match) of the Serie A season lifted Juventus to 79 points, boosting its chances to clinch its 28th "Scudetto" (title).
Milan, which reached the Champions League final with Liverpool following two exhausting semifinal legs with PSV Eindhoven, played miserably during the first half and failed to produce any scoring chances.
In the second half, substitutes Filippo Inzaghi, Serginho and Rui Costa energized Milan, which attacked throughout and nearly scored an equalizer.
"I have nothing to reproach my team," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said.
Milan faces Liverpool in the Champions League final before the final round on May 29.
In other 35th-round matches, Inter Milan stayed in third place and moved up to 65 points with a 3-0 win at Brescia on two goals by Obafemi Martins and one by Christian Vieri, and Udinese and Sampdoria, tied for fourth with 59 points, each won. Udinese topped Lazio 1-0, and Sampdoria beat Lecce 3-0.
Ajax clinched second place in the Dutch league Sunday after AZ Alkmaar lost, giving the Amsterdam team a spot in Champions League qualifying next season.
Eljero Elia scored a last-minute goal to give host ADO The Hague a 2-1 win over AZ, which also gave up a late goal to Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Cup semifinals on Thursday. That goal cost the team a spot in the final.
AZ played without several injured players, but striker Kenneth Perez netted the opening goal in the 57th minute.
Geert den Oude leveled with four minutes to play, and Elia struck a minute later. The win pulled ADO out of the relegation zone.
Also Sunday, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink scored twice to lead Dutch champion PSV Eindhoven over relegation candidate De Graafschap Doetinchem 4-1.
PSV also was eliminated from European competition last week, despite beating AC Milan 3-1 on Wednesday in the Champions League semifinals.
Lyon won a record-equaling fourth straight French first division title on Sunday after Sidney Govou and Claudio Cacapa scored in a 2-1 win over Ajaccio.
Govou and Cacapa scored with headers in each half. Yohan Demont replied for Ajaccio.
Lyon has 72 points with only three rounds remaining and an 11-point lead over second-place Lille. The team joins Marseille (1989-1992) and Saint-Etienne (1967-1970) with four straight French league titles.
It was the third straight title for Lyon coach Paul Le Guen. Jacques Santini, who left Lyon to coach France's national team, coached the team to its first ever title in 2002.
Lyon has the best attack and defense in the league, scoring 50 and allowing only 21.
Lyon's players jumped into each others arms at the final whistle and danced in front of the fans during a lap of honor around Stade Gerland.
Defending champion FC Porto was held to a 1-1 draw by Moreirense.
Porto failed to take advantage of Benfica's 1-0 loss to Penafiel. Benfica leads with 61 points, three more than Porto and Sporting.
Sporting, which has a game in hand and faces Benfica in the next round, can equal its Lisbon rival by beating Guimaraes on Monday.
Moreirense striker Nei put his team in the lead in the 10th minute, but Helder Postiga equalized for the defending European champions in the 75th.
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