There was no Premier League fixtures as the FA Cup took center-stage in England this weekend, with Manchester United's thrilling shootout win over Arsenal stealing the headlines.
The Bundesliga returned with a bang, while Atletico Madrid quietly sealed Spain's "Winter Champions" crown in Barcelona's and Real Madrid's absence.
On the goals front, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Julián Álvarez both scored sumptuous strikes, and Omar Marmoush sparkled with a number of Manchester City scouts watching on.
Sam Marsden, Luis Miguel Echegaray and Constantin Eckner take a look at what you might have missed this weekend.
FA Cup
Top takeaway: Man United slowly learning the Amorim way
The iconic third round of the FA Cup is mostly known for Cinderella stories that pit lower-league hopefuls against more illustrious opposition. And we did see some of them over the weekend, notably with some League One clubs winning against opponents from the Championship. But if we're sticking to Disney movies, this weekend's main headline was less Cinderella and more Brave, because that was exactly what 10-man Manchester United was against Arsenal on Sunday, winning on penalties with guts and resiliency at the Emirates.
Arsenal missed many chances and once again rued the fact they don't have enough quality up front. To make matters worse, striker Gabriel Jesus had to come off on a stretcher after clashing with Bruno Fernandes in the first half. But again, you have to hand it to Manchester United, who are slowly starting to provide the demands of Ruben Amorim's philosophy, which requires undisputed commitment. And that's exactly what happened after the Red Devils were forced to play with 10 men after Diogo Dalot received his second yellow card in the 61st minute. It was a heroic, collective performance, especially from their goalkeeper Altay Bayindir, who was magnificent, making save after save, including a penalty stop in the shootout.
The victory places Man United in the next round at home against Leicester City but, most importantly, it concludes a seven-day period that also included a draw against Liverpool. The continued sentiment remains: there needs to be consistency, but credit is deserved for a hard-fought win.
Arsenal defender William Saliba gives his immediate reaction after going out of the FA Cup on penalties vs. Manchester United.
Best match: Brentford 0-1 Plymouth Argyle
This is less about aesthetics, more about outcome, what the result means to the winner and, to be honest, everything that the FA Cup is all about. Plymouth Argyle -- bottom of the Championship and winless in 11 games prior to this weekend -- delivered an inspiring 1-0 victory against Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium. The goal was scored by Morgan Whittaker, ironically once reportedly linked with a move to the Bees.
Plymouth had fired Wayne Rooney on New Year's Eve and announced Miron Muslic as their new boss, but he didn't take charge of Saturday's game. So every Plymouth player probably saw it as a great opportunity to impress and press the reset button.
It was a gutsy performance, especially because Thomas Frank's side seldom lose at their home ground. But again, this was all about the narrative and how in football, you can never underestimate anything. For Brentford? Even though Frank rotated his team with six changes and didn't start Bryan Mbeumo or Yoane Wissa, it was not good enough. It's clear this competition is not their priority, but still, you have to play better than this as a Premier League side.
What's Plymouth's reward in the next round? A home game against Liverpool.
Best goal: Trent Alexander-Arnold vs. Accrington Stanley
Given all the rhetoric regarding Alexander-Arnold's future, coupled with his poor performance against Manchester United, the past week has not been easy for the 26-year-old right-back. So, he needed a good game in this competition, even if it was against League Two's Accrington Stanley. And he delivered. His goal was quintessential TAA. A beautiful effort from outside the box, where Stanley's goalkeeper Billy Crellin -- on loan from Everton -- could only act as a spectator. He didn't even move.
"Accrington Stanley? Who are they?" Exactly, thought TAA.
MVP of the weekend: Tamworth
Man United keeper Bayindir is clearly the individual that deserves much praise here, but I am giving the award to the non-league side, who fought valiantly against Tottenham Hotspur. They lost 3-0, but the result flattered Spurs because for 100 minutes, the club from Andy Peaks' National League -- playing against the likes of James Maddison, Brennan Johnson and Son Heung-Min -- took the Premier League team to extra time.
The extra time was the main reason Spurs won. Tamworth simply got tired, and Ange Postecoglou was able to introduce Dejan Kulusevski and the aforementioned Son in the latter stages. Against a bunch of semi-pros, calling on that kind of depth was simply too much. This is the first season of the FA Cup where there are no replays so it's a shame Tamworth suffered as a result of it as it was 0-0 after 90 minutes. But, regardless, they won my MVP vote. -- Echegaray
LaLiga
Top takeaway: Atlético Madrid crowned Spain's 'Winter Champions'
Atlético Madrid took full advantage of Real Madrid and Barcelona playing the Spanish Supercopa this weekend to climb to the top of LaLiga at the halfway stage. Alvarez's second-half goal was enough for them to beat Osasuna 1-0 on Sunday as they extended their winning streak in all competitions to 14 matches.
That impressive run has included eight straight victories in LaLiga as they have hunted down Madrid and Barça. After 19 league games, Diego Simeone's side have lost just once and are one point clear of Madrid and six ahead of Barça -- who they trailed by 10 points at the start of November.
That has earned them the tag of "Winter Champions" -- given to the league leaders in Spain after the first round of fixtures have been completed -- and firmly cemented their title credentials. They have twice pipped Madrid and Barça to the title previously under Simeone, in 2014 and 2021, and look increasingly capable of doing so again this season.
Best match: Sevilla 1-1 Valencia
Luis Rioja's second-half strike looked set to give bottom placed Valencia a much-needed three points at Sevilla. However, after surrendering a lead to Real Madrid last week, they did the same against Sevilla late on. Adrià Pedrosa's 93rd-minute strike wasn't dealt with by Giorgi Mamardashvili and Sevilla stole a point that showed new Valencia coach Carlos Corberán the scale of the task facing him.
Best goal: Julián Alvarez vs. Osasuna
A beautifully worked corner routine sealed Atlético's three points. Antoine Griezmann's short corner was worked back to him and his far post cross was headed back to the unmarked Alvarez to fire home his 13th goal of the campaign.
Julián Álvarez gets Atletico Madrid on the scoresheet vs. Osasuna.
MVP of the weekend: Joan García (Espanyol)
It was two points dropped for Espanyol as they stayed in the bottom three after being held to a 1-1 draw at home to relegation rivals Leganés. However, it would have been much worse if not for goalkeeper García. He made five saves in total as Leganés racked up an xG of 1.99 in Barcelona on Saturday. They could not find a way past García, though, who was wanted by Arsenal last summer and will have a huge role to play if Espanyol are to stay up. -- Marsden
Bundesliga
Top takeaway: Flu outbreak and traffic jams lead to odd restart
After the customary winter break, the Bundesliga was set to resume with a blockbuster clash as Borussia Dortmund hosted reigning champions Bayer Leverkusen on Friday. However, the match unfolded under extraordinary circumstances. In the days leading up to the game, Dortmund were rocked by a flu outbreak that decimated their defensive ranks, leaving them without the majority of their backline.
This isn't the first time football has been hit by viral issues in recent weeks. Tottenham, for instance, recently contended with a sickness bug.
BVB manager Nuri Şahin was forced to field a makeshift back four, with full-back Julian Ryerson and Yannik Lührs, a regular for Dortmund's reserve team in the third division, in the middle. While emergency lineups are sometimes able to write Cinderella stories, Dortmund were outgunned by Leverkusen's firing power, losing 3-2 at home.
But that wasn't the only odd thing concerning the game. The kick off was delayed due to heavy traffic on the roads leading to Signal Iduna Park. You might suspect only fans were held up and in danger of arriving late. But even midfield standout Florian Wirtz and Exequiel Palacios were stuck on a bridge in Cologne long enough to miss the team meeting. Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso subsequently benched both players. The Spaniard said afterwards that he didn't want to select anyone in the starting XI who wasn't aware of tactical details.
This goes to show that millionaire footballers are only humans, too. They can catch the flu or get stuck in traffic just like countless commuters every day.
Best match: SC Freiburg 3-2 Holstein Kiel
Freiburg continue to be a genuine force at home, with 19 of their 27 points coming at their Europa-Park-Stadion. However, Saturday's win over relegation-threatened Holstein Kiel was suddenly in danger during the final minutes. Kiel striker Phil Harres scored twice in the final five minutes, but the visitors ran out of time to snatch a draw.
Best goal: Frans Krätzig vs. Union Berlin
In Steffen Baumgart's debut as Union Berlin manager, it was another debutant who captured the headlines. Krätzig joined Heidenheim on loan from Bayern Munich in early January and needed only 17 minutes to score a fantastic goal to provide a 1-0 lead against struggling Union. In the lead-up to the goal, Heidenheim broke through on the right side and Léo Scienza found Krätzig in the middle, who fired the ball directly into the left corner of the net.
MVP of the weekend: Omar Marmoush (Eintracht Frankfurt)
There may have been other players who put on better performances than Frankfurt's highly-rated 25-year-old striker. Considering the latest rumours about a potential move to Manchester City, it was impressive how Marmoush performed against St. Pauli, including scoring the only goal of the game. -- Eckner
Omar Marmoush finds the back of the net for Eintracht Frankfurt
What else you missed this weekend
AC Milan continue their slump in Serie A
The week started beautifully for AC Milan, who came back from two goals down to win the SuperCoppa Italiana against their bitter rivals Internazionale on Monday. But on Saturday, the league issues continued as the Rossoneri drew 1-1 at home against Cagliari. It was the third draw in the last four league matches as Milan now find themselves in eighth place with 28 points, 16 behind league leaders Napoli.
It was the league and home debut for their new manager Sérgio Conceição and he did not hold back in the post-match interview.
"I expected a lot more on every level," said the Portuguese manager to Sky Italia. "I have been a coach for 13 years and weighing up the quality of this squad against what I saw, that was the weakest first half since I started coaching."
Milan and Christian Pulisic -- who has been personally shining this season -- took 24 shots against Cagliari but only had Álvaro Morata's goal to show for it. The visitors, who are fighting relegation, equalized four minutes after the Spanish striker's goal in the 51st minute.
Milan have to do better in the league because otherwise, they can forget about Europe. -- Echegaray
Ajax Amsterdam closing in on PSV Eindhoven
We could have a title race on our hands in the Netherlands after all.
Luuk de Jong scored a brace as PSV twice came from behind against AZ Alkmaar to muster a 2-2 draw at home. It's the second time in three games the Eredivisie champions have dropped points.
Their slump in form comes just as Ajax seem to be finding some momentum. Francesco Farioli's side beat RKC Waalwijk 2-1 to make it three wins in a row, cutting what was a nine-point gap down to just four. -- Marsden
Sporting lose Taça da Liga final to Benfica
Another tough break for Sporting CP. Following Amorim's departure to Man United in November, the defending Portuguese champions slumped under interim manager João Pereira -- who was removed from his post after little more than a month and replaced by Rui Borges.
Borges left Guimarães around Christmas to coach Sporting. In his first game in charge in late December, Borges and Sporting won the derby against Benfica. Sporting, however, could not reproduce the result in another meeting with Benfica on Saturday in the final of the Taça da Liga, a cup competition for teams in the top two tiers of Portuguese football.
Benfica opened the scoring in the 29th minute, with Ángel Di María assisting Andreas Schjelderup to dance past defender Eduardo Quaresma and score. Sporting equalized shortly before half-time thanks to a Viktor Gyökeres spot kick. The game was eventually decided in a penalty shootout, where the first 13 were successfully converted, before Francisco Trincão's attempt was saved by Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin.
It's the 86th trophy in Benfica's history, tied with FC Porto. The debate over which club has won the most silverware has been a controversial topic for many years, because of Benfica's Supertaça de Portugal win in 1980 when the competition was not an officially recognized competition. -- Eckner