Good performances were few and far between, with Alex Brosque the highlight with a standout performance in the UAE, while Scott McDonald started his first game back from injury and James Holland took another step towards silverware.  

In England’s FA Cup, McDonald returned to the Middlesbrough starting line-up, playing 90 minutes as Boro were bundled out of the tournament following a 2-0 loss to Chelsea. McDonald was starved of opportunities, but did have 1 decent effort on goal from the edge of the box with a low drive which was just off target. Rhys Williams played a full game in midfield and created a guilt edge chance for Ishmael Miller late in the contest, but Miller side-footed Williams’ lofted ball over the crossbar.

Dean Bouzanis played a full game in goal as Oldham Athletic were eliminated, losing 3-1 to Premier League side Everton. Bouzanis made a superb save from Leighton Baines’s 25-metre rocket before the English left-back beat Bouzanis from the penalty spot just before half-time, despite the Aussie getting a decent hand on the ball. James Wesolowski returned from a hamstring injury, playing the final 14 minutes in the clash. Alex Cisak was an unused substitute.

In the Championship, Seb Usai was absent from the Blackburn match-day squad as Rovers lost 3-0 to Leicester City.

In League One, Bradden Inman started but was replaced on 50 minutes as Crewe Alexandra lost 3-0 to lowly Hartlepool United.

In League Two, Jamie Young kept a clean-sheet as Aldershot Town drew 0-0 with Chesterfield. Young was barely tested throughout the contest as Aldershot made it four games unbeaten, a streak which has taken them out of the relegation zone.

Shane Cansdell-Sherriff played a full game as Rochdale lost 3-0 to lowly Accrington Stanley, while Ryan Williams was an unused substitute as Gillingham lost 1-0 to Oxford United.

Elsewhere, Aaron Downes was absent with a hamstring injury as Torquay United lost 2-1 to Wycombe Wanderers. The loss rounds out a horrendous month for Torquay, as they lost all 7 games during February, leaving them just 1 point clear of the relegation zone. Curtis Good & James Meredith were both absent from the match-day squad as Bradford City drew 1-1 with Dagenham & Redbridge.

In the Scottish Premier League, Tom Rogic started for Celtic in their 2-1 loss to Motherwell. Rogic, who was replaced after 53 minutes, was employed in a deeper midfield role and had some nice touches early in the contest but faded as Motherwell put the defending champions under pressure as the game went on.

Dylan McGowan was a half time substitute as Hearts dropped to second-bottom with a 2-0 loss to St Mirren. Elsewhere, Alex Baird was an unused substitute as Dundee FC drew 2-2 with St Johnstone.

In the German DFB-Pokal Quarter-Final, Mitch Langerak was an unused substitute as Borussia Dortmund were knocked out, losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich.

Nikita Rukavytsya was absent from the match-day squad as FSV Mainz threw away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 in extra-time to Freiburg.

In the Serie B, Carl Valeri was absent with injury as Sassuolo opened up a 10-point gap at the top of the table with a 4-2 win over Ascoli.

In Austria, James Holland put in another commanding midfield performance as Austria Wien stretched their lead at the top of the table to 15 points following a 3-1 win over SV Ried.

In the Asian Champions League, Alex Brosque found the back of the net for Al Ain in their 3-1 win over Al Hilal. Brosque scored early in the second half, getting onto Khaled Abdulrahman’s near post cross to volley into the far corner with a clever finish. Brosque then earned a penalty moments later after being tripped by Salem Al Dawsari with the defender being sent-off, however Midel Radoi missed the resultant spot-kick.

Mark Bresciano played a full game in midfield as Al Gharafa lost 2-0- to Al Ahli. While Eddy Bosnar played 90 minutes in defence as Suwon Bluewings drew 0-0 with the Central Coast Mariners.

Alex Wilkinson was an unused substitute as Jeonbuk Motors drew 2-2 with Muang Thong United, while Milan Susak was absent with injury as Sepahan beat Al Nasr 3-0.