Canadians in Europe: David scores again in LOSC win
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Jonathan David helped Lille pick up a needed victory, Theo Bair stayed red-hot and Alphonso Davies returned to action from injury. Here's a look at Canadians in Europe over the weekend.
Jonathan David, Lille - Jonathan David and Lille bounced back from defeat at Toulouse to pick up only their second win over their last five matches on Saturday at Reims. As has become the usual, it was David who provided the game-winning goal. The Ottawa-raised David was shocked to have been held off the scoresheet in the 20th. Hakon Arnar Haraldsson set up Edon Zhegrova for a hard angled shot that was dealt with by Yehvann Diouf, but he could only parry it right to the feet of David. David's quick stab was miraculously stopped by Diouf and then cleared off the line by Reda Khadra. Haraldsson thought he opened the scoring in the 33rd, but his celebrations were short-lived with the quick realization he was well offside. But David would be undeterred and managed to get his goal in the 56th thanks to a terrible piece of defending by the hosts. As Reims controlled play, a simple back pass was sent to Yunis Abdelhamid with plenty of time and space. But the ball managed to elude the Morocco defender and David pounced. In alone on Diouf, who rushed forward to cut the angle in vain, David hammered home to make it 1-0. After a slow start to the season, David now has 12 Ligue 1 goals on the year. The victory was an important one as it kept Les Dogues fourth in the table as they chase a return to the Champions League. LOSC is one point clear of Nice and two ahead of Lens for the final spot.
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Theo Bair, Motherwell - Ottawa's Theo Bair stayed red hot on Saturday as Motherwell visited Scottish Premiership leaders Rangers at Ibrox where they sprang an upset. Bair got the scoring started early for the visitors. From a Motherwell free kick from distance, the bouncing ball crossed up Ridvan Yilmaz and John Souttar and fell right to Jack Vale, who quickly squared up for Bair near the penalty spot. Bair quickly unleashed a right-footed shot inside the far post to make it 1-0 in just the ninth minute. The goal was Bair's 11th on the season as the former Vancouver Whitecaps man's breakout season continues. The hosts wanted a penalty in the 60th and they got it following a VAR review. Fabio Silva, on loan from Wolves, was adjudged to have been fouled by the sliding challenge of Stephen O'Donnell. James Tavernier stepped up to the spot and lifted his effort into the roof of the goal to make it 1-1. Fifteen minutes later, the visitors would restore their advantage and claim all three points. As Rangers tried to break out after a Motherwell attack, Mohammed Diomande was dispossessed by Vale. Vale found O'Donnell, who sent a looping cross to the far post where a completely unmarked Dan Casey headed home in the 75th to earn a 2-1 win. The loss by Rangers could have had massive implications at the top of the table, but their lead ended up being unchanged as Celtic fell 2-0 to Hearts and failed to capitalize.
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Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich - As rumours about his future continue to swirl, Alphonso Davies made his return to the Bayern Munich lineup as a second-half substitute against Freiburg on Friday. Davies, 23, incurred a knee injury against Borussia Monchengladbach in early February and came back to action after nearly a month on the sidelines. Much of that month saw Davies, who has one year remaining on his current deal, attached with a summer move to Real Madrid. Recent reports have gone as far as to suggest that Davies has a verbal agreement with Los Blancos and that Real is prepared to wait to sign Davies on a free transfer in the summer of 2025 should they be unable to work out a fee with Bayern this summer. Bayern president Jan-Christian Dreesen made it clear over the weekend that the team would like to get Davies locked up for the long term. "In Alphonso, we have a player who has developed excellently on the left wing, not only because of his speed, but also because of his character and his directness in recent years," Dreesen said. "We are talking to his agent. We will see how complicated it is. [Newly appointed director of sport] Max Eberl will now intervene in the contract. [Sporting director] Christoph [Freund] has already spoken about it. But a part of the rebuilding the squad and the additions is about looking at the big picture, and that depends on how both Max and Christoph see the future." Davies returned in the 64th minute, coming on for Raphael Guerreiro. He made a tackle, a pair of interceptions and completed nine of 12 pass attempts in his 27 minutes of action. The match was another disappointing one for Bayern. With the 2-2 draw coupled with first-place Bayer Leverkusen's 2-0 victory over Koln, Bayern now sits 10 points back in second with 10 matches remaining on the season.