European round-up: Barcelona retained their Primera Liga title after second-placed Valencia lost 2-1 at Real Mallorca tonight.

Even if Barca lose their match at Celta Vigo, which finishes later tonight, they have an unassailable eight-point lead with Valencia having just two games to play.

It is the Catalan club's 18th league title and they are the first team to successfully defend it since they won back-to-back titles in 1998 and 1999 under Dutch coach Louis van Gaal.

Frank Rijkaard's team have the chance to cap a brilliant season with a European triumph as they play Arsenal in the Champions League final in Paris on May 17th.

"This is the most important prize for the club," Barca president Joan Laporta told Canal Plus television. "It is a reward for hard work and consistency throughout the season.

"Now we can approach the Champions League final with less tension. This team is making history."

Barcelona's players were told they had won the title as they left the pitch at halftime against Celta and the substitutes celebrated by throwing water over each other.

At the same time in Barcelona, fans of the club began to stream out on to the streets to celebrate the triumph.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich closed to within two points of a 20th German league title when they came from behind to beat VfB Stuttgart 3-1.

Danijel Ljuboja gave Stuttgart an early lead at the Allianz Arena but goals from Roque Santa Cruz, Claudio Pizarro and Bastian Schweinsteiger sealed a win that restores Bayern's five-point lead over Hamburg SV with two games left to play.

Bayern will clinch the Bundesliga title, and seal an unprecedented second successive league and Cup double, if they win away to Kaiserslautern on Saturday, or if Hamburg fail to beat Hertha Berlin in the capital.

If necessary, Bayern will have another crack at the title in their final league match of the season at home to Borussia Dortmund on May 13th.

Hamburg had kept the pressure on the champions by winning 1-0 away to Cologne on Tuesday. MSV Duisburg and Cologne were both relegated.

In Italy, AS Roma fought back to draw 1-1 with holders Inter Milan in the first leg of the cup final.

Inter, who beat Roma 3-0 on aggregate in last season's final, looked on course for another comfortable win as they went ahead in the eighth minute through striker Julio Cruz.

But a strong second-half performance by the hosts was rewarded 10 minutes after halftime when Brazilian winger Mancini swept in the equaliser at the end of a break down the right.

With away goals counting double, Inter take a slim advantage into the return leg at Milan's San Siro stadium on May 11th.