Barcelona captain Lionel Messi says Neymar remains determined to return to the club
Manchester City's all-conquering season reached new peaks as Sergio Aguero became the club's all-time top scorer with a decisive goal in a thrilling 4-2 victory at Napoli that put them into the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.
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Arsenal will have another chance to beat Bayern Munich in a Champions League knockout tie after the sides were paired in the round of 16 following Monday's draw. The teams met in the knockout stages in 2005, 2013 and 2014 with the German champions winning on all three occasions. Bayern, who finished as runners-up in their group, will host the first leg.
Raheem Sterling struck twice as the Premier League champions Manchester City beat Crystal Palace 3-1 at Selhurst Park on Sunday to stay within two points of leaders Liverpool.
The 55-year-old Ernesto Valverde, who led Barcelona to successive La Liga titles in 2018 and 2019, came under fire this season for the team's dip in performance levels even though they top the league standings at the halfway point of the campaign.
Spaniard Benitez left Napoli at the end of the season and takes over from Italian Carlo Ancelotti at the Bernabeu.
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Barcelona beat third-placed Getafe 2-1 at home on Saturday to stay on the heels of La Liga title rivals Real Madrid but the champions were made to sweat for all three points by the impressive visitors. Antoine Griezmann sent the Catalans ahead in the 34th minute with a cool finish with the outside of his left foot after being played in by an outstanding pass from Lionel Messi, while Sergi Roberto doubled Barca's lead five minutes later.
Barcelona have emerged as favourites to be crowned champions after one defeat in their last 22 Liga games.
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Seven-time European champions AC Milan hit back from two goals down against Celtic to claim a 4-2 victory that sent them into the Europa League knockout phase on Thursday as they were among 14 teams to progress in Europe's second-tier competition.
German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer on Sunday backed a possible restart for the Bundesliga season this month without spectators as the government prepares for a key meeting next week.
Coach Roberto Mancini has insisted that he never doubted his captain Mauro Icardi after the striker scored two goals in Inter Milan's 4-0 victory at Udinese in Serie A.
Italy manager Antonio Conte named his provisional squad for the European Championship on Monday, and his selection was notable as much for the player he left off as for those he chose.
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Juventus substitute Cristiano Ronaldo was denied a stoppage-time winner by VAR as Udinese came from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw in their thrilling Serie A season opener on Sunday.
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A summary of Tuesday's group matches in the UEFA Champions League.
A hat-trick from Vinicio Angulo helped get Diego Maradona's managerial career in Mexico off to the perfect start on Monday as his new club Dorados beat Tapachula 4-1 in Culiacan.
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A weekend of surprise results across Europe's big leagues saw Bayern Munich's unbeaten run come to an end, Napoli knocked off top spot in Serie A and Manchester City toppled in the Premier League where Leicester City are the new leaders.
Cristiano Ronaldo saved Juventus' unbeaten Serie A record this season when he came off the bench to score the equaliser in a dramatic 2-2 draw at Atalanta on Wednesday.
European champions Liverpool are second in their Champions League group - a point behind Napoli - and Klopp's side host Genk at Anfield.
IMAGES from football matches played across Europe on Sunday.
According to a report in as.com, speaking at a Madrid fans' meeting on Saturday, De Bla said: "Carlo Ancelotti is a phenomenon. We're eternally grateful to him. For me, up to three days ago he was the best coach in the world, as was Jose Mourinho a couple of years ago and as of next week it will be Rafa Bentez."
The title race in Europe's top leagues remained tense at the weekend with Inter Milan losing at Napoli and Liverpool keeping the pressure on Manchester United. VfL Wolfsburg and Bayern Munich both lost in Germany and Barcelona were held at Valencia but Olympique Marseille went five points clear.
Players at Serie A champions Juventus were among those who returned to training following the coronavirus stoppage on Tuesday. The Italian government on Sunday confirmed that professional athletes in both individual and team sports could start training.
Images from matches played across top football leagues in Europe.
Leaders Juventus were denied a 16th successive Serie A win when they were held 0-0 at Bologna in a game marred when an object, possibly a firecracker, was hurled at their team bus as they arrived.
Liverpool's Robertson frustrated by Neymar 'playacting'
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Former Argentina captain Diego Maradona has been handed an ambassadorial role by the game's global governing body FIFA.
The death of Maradona has highlighted the almost cult-like adoration that grew up around the player nicknamed "el dios" (or God), who mesmerised on the pitch and inspired fans off it despite long, public battles with addiction.
It recognised that there was a "growing demand for more immediate information about the referee's final decisions after a VAR-review."
Argentina's two iconic players may be contrasting characters but they shared many traits
The IOC said earlier this month that athletes were banned from making any political statements or protests at Olympic events or medal ceremonies "to avoid turning the Games into a political tool".
Fiorentina hit four goals before halftime, including a cheeky backheel by Gonzalo Rodriguez and a Panenka-style penalty from Khouma Babacar, to beat Frosinone 4-1 and join Inter Milan at the top of Serie A on Sunday.
Francesco Totti made an instant impact on his return from a buttock injury when he scored one goal and helped set up another in AS Roma's 3-2 Serie A win over Udinese on Monday.
Images from football action around European leagues played on Sunday
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