Gavi, Barcelona pull off late win vs. Elche, Dortmund freefall, Arsenal’s Martinelli the MVP: Weekend review

It was another weekend full of talking points around Europe as the Premier League grappled with postponements due to coronavirus cases rising, and the Bundesliga kicked off again behind closed doors. Beyond that, Barcelona wrapped up a dramatic win, Arsenal surged into the top four for Christmas thanks to Gabriel Martinelli and Borussia Dortmund continued to cause themselves problems as they disappeared from the title race in Germany.

Here are Rob Dawson, Derek Rae, Alex Kirkland and James Tyler with what you need to know from around Europe.

Go to: Talking points | Top goals | Troubled teams | Weekend MVP

Four talking points

Xavi, Barcelona claim much-needed win

Where would Barca be without their kids? This weekend, it was Ferran Jutgla, Gavi and Nico Gonzalez on the scoresheet in a last-gasp 3-2 win over Elche; last week, Nico and Abde got them a 2-2 draw at Osasuna. The scorers of Barcelona’s last five goals in LaLiga are 19, 17, 22 and 20 years old. Xavi called them “the future … a spectacular generation.” The coach was careful not to frame his praise of the youngsters as implicit criticism of the team’s veterans, but it’s hard not to read it that way. Gavi, Nico and Abde are delivering under pressure, so why aren’t Ter Stegen, Alba or Busquets?

Once again this Saturday, it was Gavi, 17, who had everybody talking. Teammate Ronald Araujo called him “a machine” while Xavi said, “I played for Barca at that age, and I was scared.” Gavi plays like he’s never been scared of anything in his life. His first-half goal against Elche was gasp-inducing, spinning away from one defender and wrong-footing another before slotting beyond the goalkeeper from the edge of the box. His assist for the winner was just as good: a one-two with Ousmane Dembele and then a no-look pullback for Nico, 19, to control and finish under pressure.