Monday cannon fodder: expanded hat trick raise

Premier League/England

Liverpool go back to the top after James Milner converts late penalty at Fulham | Football | The Guardian
Liverpool’s returned to the top of the Premier League title after a 2-1 win at Fulham.

FA Cup semi-finals: Man City v Brighton; Watford v Wolves - BBC Sport
Favourites Manchester City will play Brighton and Watford will face Wolves in the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley Stadium.

Tottenham to play Crystal Palace in first game at new stadium - BBC Sport
Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed they will play the first game in their new stadium against Crystal Palace on Wednesday 3 April.

Swansea City 2-3 Manchester City: Sergio Aguero seals comeback in FA Cup thriller - BBC Sport
Sergio Aguero’s late winner helps Manchester City dramatically come from two goals down to beat Swansea and reach the FA Cup semi-finals.

Wes Morgan snatches last-minute win for 10-man Leicester at Burnley | Football | The Guardian
Wes Morgan headed Leicester to a dramatic 2-1 win at Burnley, who had equalised through Dwight McNeil.

‘No one likes us’ is a millstone for Millwall and those who do care | Daniel Taylor | Football | The Guardian
Incidents around the Everton game earlier in the FA Cup run show nothing has changed since the violence at the 2013 semi-final.

Watford’s Adrian Mariappa: ‘I can’t see myself going back to eating meat’ | Football | The Guardian
Veganism, athletics and basketball have helped the defender defy the odds and reach an FA Cup quarter-final against Crystal Palace.

Four English clubs in the Champions League last eight. What took so long? | Football | The Guardian
Celebrate but ask also why Premier League sides have underperformed for a decade, and remember it means little without the trophy.

Europe

Gareth Bale goal helps Real Madrid past Celta Vigo in Zidane’s first game back | Football | The Guardian
Goals from Isco and Gareth Bale earned Real Madrid a 2-0 home victory over Celta Vigo in Zinedine Zidane’s first game since returning as manager.

European roundup: Genoa condemn Juventus to first Serie A defeat of season | Football | The Guardian
Juventus fell to their first defeat of the season thanks to goals from Genoa’s Stefano Sturaro and Goran Pandev.

Juventus - minus Ronaldo - suffer first Serie A defeat of the season - BBC Sport
Juventus fall to their first Serie A defeat of the season as they suffer a shock loss at Genoa.

Real Betis 1-4 Barcelona: La Liga - as it happened | Football | The Guardian
Four awesome goals - three from Lionel Messi and one from Luis Suarez - gave Barcelona an easy victory despite being outpassed by Betis.

How the challenge of building a club’s identity in Madrid’s satellite towns could alter Spanish football forever
What is perceived to be a golden age for football in Madrid may only be the beginning of a significant shift that could permanently alter Spanish football.

Dundee 0-1 Celtic: Odsonne Edouard goal moves leaders 10 points clear - BBC Sport
Odsonne Edouard’s 96th-minute goal moves Celtic 10 points clear at the top of the Premiership as Dundee’s relegation fears worsen.

Getafe and the incredible UEFA Cup odyssey of 2007/08
Getafe’s last European adventure was a journey of epic and unexpected highs.

MLS/Americas

Watch: Wayne Rooney scores first MLS hat trick | Pro Soccer USA
On a night DCU honored Real Salt Lake’s goalkeeper pregame, they battered him pretty hard during the game.

DC United dominates 9-man Real Salt Lake 5-0, Rooney gets 1st MLS hat trick | Pro Soccer USA
Captain Wayne Rooney led D.C. United to a 5-0 win over Real Salt Lake Saturday with a hat trick and an assist.

Rest of the World

Club World Cup: FIFA wants 24-team event in summer 2021 | SI.com
FIFA Council members will be asked on Friday to approve a pilot tournament for an expanded 24-team Club World Cup in June-July 2021.

Other

Blue Jays to raise minor league pay by 50 percent – HardballTalk
Minor league baseball almost criminally underpays its players. Toronto is starting to change that.