Much better this week in Europe despite Sevilla falling 1-2 to CSKA Moscow on Tuesday in the Champions League. The following day Barcelona made sure of a place in the last eight with a convincing 4-0 win over Stuttgart, Messi scoring two more spectacular goals and home grown boys Pedro and Bojan getting the others. And on Thursday both La Liga teams made it through to the quarter finals of the Europa League on the away goals rule, David Villa scoring a hat-trick and Mata the other in Valencia's incredible 4-4 draw at Werder Bremen, and Agüero getting both goals in Atlético Madrid's 2-2 draw at Sporting Lisbon. Unfortunately the two teams will face each other in the next round, although that means at least that Spain will have one club in the semi-finals.

No doubt though about the man (extra-terrestrial?) of the week, Messi adding to his two against Stuttgart by scoring his second league hat-trick in a week against Zaragoza. The new Messi-ah rounded off his performance winning a last minute penalty which he gifted to Ibrahimovic for the off-form striker to get his act back together. Only Higuaín is anywhere near him in the race for La Liga "Pichichi", and he netted his twentieth league goal of the season in a 3-1 win over Sporting which kept Real Madrid marginally ahead of their rivals at the top of the table. Elsewhere Llorente converted a penalty for Athletic against Getafe (something of rarity for the Basque side these days), and Forlán scored what was to prove a consolation for Atlético in a 4-1 defeat at Mallorca, with Aduríz on target for the Islanders. Mata scored his second in a week as Valencia ended Almería's unbeaten run, and Nino got his ninth of the season at Xerez, albeit that his earlier penalty miss may have cost his side a draw at fellow strugglers Xerez. (22.03.10)