Images from UEFA Europa League semi-finals played on Thursday.
Joe Root's England will have to step up their game against the turning ball to escape that fate in the test series beginning at Galle on Tuesday.
RB Leipzig's Timo Werner scored a hat-trick as they demolished hosts Mainz 5-0 on Sunday to reclaim third place in the Bundesliga with an emphatic victory after three straight draws. Schalke 04 slumped to a shock 3-0 home defeat by relegation-threatened Augsburg on Sunday, their fourth defeat in five games dropping them to eighth place in the Bundesliga.
Serena Williams reluctantly pulled out of this year's Australian Open on Friday, the American saying that while she was close to regaining full fitness after giving birth to her first child in September, she was not fully ready to defend her title.
Barcelona dealt a stinging blow to Real Madrid's title hopes when Luis Suarez and Neymar continued their scintillating form to fire the champions to a stunning 4-0 victory in the La Liga 'Clasico' on Saturday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
IMAGES from soccer matches played across Europe on Saturday.
Signed playing shirts from the Boxing Day Test will be auctioned online from Thursday, with all proceeds also going to the Australian Red Cross.
Two years on from their defeat by Real Madrid in the Champions League final, Atletico Madrid are back on the same stage against the same rival - wiser and determined not to be haunted by the memories of Lisbon.
FC Goa clinched their first win of the ongoing Indian Super League season as they beat Kerala Blasters 3-1 at the Fatorda Stadium, in Margao, on Sunday.
Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani scored twice each as Manchester United took a giant step towards the Europa League final with a 6-2 drubbing of AS Roma in their semi-final first leg at Old Trafford on Thursday.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday.
England beat Colombia 4-3 on penalties on Tuesday after Eric Dier scored the decisive spot kick to send them through to a World Cup quarter-final against Sweden.
Meeting the Pope is more important than Italy's friendly against Argentina on Wednesday, coach Cesare Prandelli told reporters as he disagreed with striker Mario Balotelli.
Young striker Nikkin Thimmaiah scored a hat-trick as India produced their best performance of the tournament to stun world champions and title holders Australia 4-2 on Saturday and secure a place in the third and fourth place play-off at the Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in Ipoh, Malaysia.
Mahindra United gave outgoing coach Derrick Pereira the perfect send-off by clinching the Mumbai Football League for the third year in a row with a 3-2 victory over ONGC in the concluding match at the Cooperage in Mumbai on Monday.
Here is a round-up of results from the European League matches played on Friday.
Brazilian striker Gustavo dos Santos struck an injury-time goal as Delhi Dynamos beat defending champions Atletico de Kolkata by a solitary goal in a closely-fought Indian Super League match.
A late goal against the run of play by Sumeet Passi helped Sporting Clube de Goa prevail over Mumbai FC 1-0 in their Federation Cup first leg football tie at the Cooperage ground, in Mumbai, on Sunday.
Power-hitting left hander Colin Munro is likely to open New Zealand's innings with Martin Guptill on the limited-overs tour of India, with Tom Latham dropping down the order, coach Mike Hesson has said.
In a first for ATK Mohun Bagan this season, two first-half goals signalled the downfall for a beleaguered Bengaluru FC
Former champions Chennai City FC defeated Gokulam Kerala FC 2-1 in their opening match of the I-League, Kalyani, on Saturday.
La Liga leaders Barcelona hit two goals in the final three minutes to earn a 3-2 win at Rayo Vallecano
Spaniard Herrera finished off a fine move with a precise header from Pogba's cross just past the half-hour and United's French midfielder scored himself when he nodded powerfully home from a Marcus Rashford delivery before the break.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Promoted side Mumbai FC continued with their giant-killing run, scalping Mahindra United 1-0 in a third round match in the I-League football tournament at the Cooperage in Mumbai on Saturday. Kalia Kulothungan scored in the 23rd minute to give the conquerors of East Bengal and Mohun Bagan their third straight victory in as many matches.
Juventus added a touch of controversy to their Serie A title celebrations on Saturday by suggesting it was the 33rd, not the 31st, time they had won the league.
The Indian hockey team ended their Australia trip on a disappointing note, losing both their matches against a development squad. The Sandeep Singh-led side, which had gone down 3-5 to the Australian Development squad on Tuesday night, lost 2-5 on Wednesday, their second straight defeat at the hands of the squad, coached by Ric Charlesworth.
Robert Lewandowski struck twice as champions Bayern Munich eased past Freiburg 3-1 on Saturday to secure a record 15th win in a row and the Pole became the first foreign player to score 33 goals in a Bundesliga season. Erling Haaland scored twice as Borussia Dortmund beat closest challengers RB Leipzig 2-0 away on Saturday to wrap up second place in the Bundesliga.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
He made it 3-0 with a superb first-time finish into the bottom corner in the 20th minute, scoring his first ever treble in a competitive game, more than 19 years after making his professional debut.
'I am very proud of these Indian players. They have shown that India can compete against the best in the world. They have a fantastic future'
India continued its dominance at the SAFF Women's Championship by lifting its fifth straight title with a 3-1 victory over hosts Nepal in the final.
Images from Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Real Kashmir FC scored the game's only goal through Gnohere krizo's 74th minute strike as the debutants made a dream start to their maiden I-League campaign.
Late goals from Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi gave Spanish Primera Liga leaders Barcelona a 2-0 win over Real Madrid at the Nou Camp on Saturday, condemning Juande Ramos to defeat on his league debut as coach of the champions. Barcelona top the table with 38 points from 15 matches, eight ahead of Valencia who beat Espanyol 2-1 earlier on Saturday. Villarreal, who play at fourth-placed Sevilla on Sunday, are third on 29 points with Real fifth on 26.
Rajneesh Gupta presents statistical summary of Delhi Capitals formerly known as Delhi Daredevils and much more.
Juventus, who have won only one of their last five games and have dropped 18 points from winning positions this season, stay on 80 points followed by Atalanta with 74 and Inter Milan on 73 with three games each to play.
Images from EPL matches played on Saturday.
East Bengal rode on a Ranty Martins strike to pip debutants DSK Shivajians by a solitary goal in the I-League football tournament at the Vidyasagar Krirangan in Barasat in West Bengal on Tuesday.
