Weekend Round Up: Arsenal, Man City Set for Photo Finish and the 5 Big Takeaways

• Arsenal and Manchester City are neck and neck in the race for the Premier League crown
• In La Liga, Barcelona's title chase is still within sight despite back-to-back insipid draws
• Here are the five big talking points from the weekend games of Europe's top five leagues

With the curtains getting closer to being drawn and the season fast winding down, Europe's top five leagues are a gift that continues to be given to most football lovers - and this weekend was not an exception.

In England, the Premier League title race promises a photo finish with Manchester City hot on the heels of Arsenal, after the latter dropped more points in their bid to win a first league crown since 2004.

Across other leagues in Europe, Real Madrid continued with their fine form while Bayern Munich are still enduring a topsy-turvy campaign.

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Sports Brief takes a look at the big takeaways from yet another exhilarating round of fixtures in Europe

Premier League race gets hotter

From eight points to a mere four points, Arsenal's lead at the summit of the Premier League has been reduced drastically by Pep Guardiola's free-scoring Manchester City.

City's title defence, spearheaded by Erling Haaland, is within eyesight after the Gunners stumbled to consecutive 2-2 draws.

With seven games left to go, the race for the Premier League title is getting hotter by each matchweek.

Man City will be smiling all the way to the end, considering their relatively softer fixture list, per the BBC. All the same, it is still Arsenal's title to lose.

Bayern stumbles but maintain lead

Elsewhere, in Germany, Bayern Munich are still yet to get over the pummeling they suffered at the hands of Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie, DW reports.

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The Bavarians drew first blood against Hoffenheim but the visitors levelled the score in the second half to split points while title rivals, Borussia Dortmund had a similar result (a 3-3 draw) - albeit in a more dramatic fashion - ending in a six-goal thriller.

With the upcoming week set to be a defining moment in the season, Thomas Tuchel will hope to inspire his team to an epic comeback in Europe while also chasing the domestic laurel.

Mbappe-Messi combo comes through

The Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe combination has just been simply breathtaking when they are on the same page.

With Neymar injured for the rest of the season, the pair have taken Paris Saint-Germain's title defence into their stride after yet another disappointing European campaign, delivering the goods effortlessly.

According to GOAL, Messi and Mbappe were both on the scoresheet as the Parisians waltzed past a 10-man RC Lens, effectively ending their title ambitions.

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Both Messi and Mbappe etched their names in the sands of time as the latter became PSG's record goal scorer in Ligue 1, weeks after becoming the club's all-time top scorer, while the Argentine playmaker joined Cristiano Ronaldo as the highest-scoring player in Europe's top five leagues, equalling that of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Napoli streak towards title glory

Napoli have easily blown teams away en route to their first Serie A crown in three decades. Their performances have dwarfed what Maurizio Sarri is achieving with Lazio.

The former Chelsea manager has quietly moulded an all-conquering machine playing second fiddle only to the Partenopei. With 61 points, the Biancocelesti are five points clear closest rival, AS Roma and eight points from defending champions, AC Milan in the fourth spot.

Having won their last four league games with eight games to spare, it will take a mighty miracle for Lazio to miss out on Champions League qualification next season.

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Barcelona continues to drift

The Catalan giants have been the proponents of champagne football, an aesthetically pleasing brand of football which won the admiration of many between 2009 and 2015.

However, it appears the current team, managed by Xavi Hernandez, have betrayed the principles ingrained into the club's football culture by the legendary Johann Cruyff.

Xavi has shaped his team in a defensively resolute state, making it difficult to go past. However, this approach is a sharp contrast to the old tiki-taka Barca.

Despite sitting pretty at the top of La Liga, La Blaugrana have been less than impressive: ceding possession and parking the bus coupled with a relatively blunt attack.

Barcelona recorded consecutive goalless draws in the Spanish league for the first time since 2005 and will have to look hard into the mirror to rediscover their brand of football that made them the toast of football fans.

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Moyes predicted Arsenal bottling title

In news related to the Premier League, Sports Brief also reported on now pundit, David Moyes predicted Arsenal would bottle the title.

His comments resurfaced after the Gunners let a two-goal lead against West Ham United slip to record a draw and give Man City hope.