Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. score twice as his side punished a sloppy Liverpool to win 3-1, while Manchester City beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg.
Serie A champions Juventus continued their rebuilding when they signed forward Simone Zaza from Sassuolo for 18 million euros ($19.72 million), the Turin club said on their website (www.juventus.com) on Tuesday.
In-form playmaker Isco struck twice and Cristiano Ronaldo netted his first goal of the campaign to give Luka Modric-inspired Real Madrid a 3-1 home win over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday.
Ronaldinho and Pato have been recalled to Brazil's squad for Saturday's friendly away to Bolivia in aid of the family of a young fan killed by a flare at a Libertadores Cup match last month.
Manchester United were forced to dig deep to reach the Europa League semi-finals as Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes converted a 95th-minute penalty to secure a 1-0 win over a stubborn FC Copenhagen side after extra time on Monday.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has hailed Premier League leaders Liverpool as the best team in Europe, but said his side could take inspiration from last season's 5-0 win at the Etihad Stadium ahead of Thursday's showdown between the two.
Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho scored on his first start for Liverpool who leapfrogged SwanseaCity into seventh place in the Premier League by crushing the below-strength Welsh side 5-0 at Anfield on Sunday.
Croatia midfielder Luka Modric suggested that his team's 2-0 victory over Nigeria on Saturday had turned up the heat on Group D favourites Argentina
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Chelsea clinched their first Premier League title for five years with a 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace at a jubilant Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Asian champions Japan became the first side to qualify for the World Cup finals in Brazil when playmaker Keisuke Honda scored an injury-time penalty to claim a 1-1 draw with Australia in Saitama on Tuesday.
The main conundrum for Spain coach Vicente del Bosque ahead of Friday's World Cup Group I qualifier at home to minnows Finland is who to deploy in place of Xavi should the injured Barcelona playmaker be ruled out as expected.
Former France soccer great Raymond Kopa, who won three European Cups with Real Madrid in the 1950s, died at the age of 85 on Friday.
Galatasaray will be fired up by the arrival of Didier Drogba, last year's Champions League hero, and Dutch playmaker Wesley Sneijder when they host struggling Schalke 04 on Wednesday.
Spain captain Iker Casillas and teammate Xavi Hernandez have been jointly awarded the nation's most prestigious sports prize, the Premio Principe de Asturias de los Deportes, the jury announced on Wednesday.
Barcelona midfielder Xavi has withdrawn from the Spain squad to play Uruguay this week because of a hamstring problem, the Spanish football federation (RFEF) said on Monday.
Tottenham Hotspur have dropped their interest in signing Porto's Joao Moutinho because the Portugal midfielder is too expensive, the Premier League club's new manager Andre Villas-Boas said.
It could have been a supporter from Turkey, but thank God it was a Croatian supporter," Luka Modric said.
Inter Milan coach Andrea Stramaccioni is still holding out hope that Wesley Sneijder will play for the club again but a move to the English Premier League looks the most obvious choice for the talented Dutch playmaker.
The France international has scored five goals and provided 10 assists in 23 Premier League appearances this season but has been criticised on multiple occasions as United fell behind ManchesterCity in the title race.
Juventus playmaker Andrea Pirlo could be forgiven for having the 2005 Champions League final on his mind when the Italian side take a 3-0 advantage into their last-16 second-leg clash against Celtic on Wednesday.
The resumption of the German Bundesliga next weekend amid the COVID-19 crisis will give hope to other European leagues that they can also successfully return, according to Schalke 04 coach David Wagner.
Fourth-placed Lazio missed the chance to keep pace with leaders Juventus when they were held to a 0-0 draw at struggling Bologna in Serie A on Monday and are now eight points off top spot.
Nothing less than victory will do for Manchester City in Saturday's feisty Premier League derby against Manchester United, playmaker David Silva has said. Silva, who scored both goals in Spain's friendly win over Belgium last week and two more against Liechtenstein in their World Cup qualifier on Monday, has featured in all of City's league games this season under manager Pep Guardiola.
SwanseaCity reached their first major English final after holding Chelsea in the second leg of their League Cup semi-final to win 2-0 on aggregate on Wednesday but the match will be remembered more for the bizarre sending off of playmaker Eden Hazard.
Brazil international striker Neymar has admitted his excitement at the prospect of playing alongside Real Madrid playmaker Kaka for the first time.
Brighton & Hove Albion scored three times in the second half to fight back from two goals down and beat Manchester City
Spanish playmaker Santi Cazorla scored a hat-trick as Arsenal stylishly dismantled bottom club Reading 5-2 to move up to fifth in the Premier League on Monday.
Maturing France must stifle Lukaku and Hazard, says Varane
David Beckham has been helping LA Galaxy in their bid to sign Brazilian playmaker Kaka from Real Madrid as his replacement, the Major League Soccer club's owner said.
A Spanish Super Cup comeback against arch rivals Barcelona and the arrival of Croatia playmaker Luka Modric may provide the perfect springboard for Real Madrid to kickstart their season.
Real Madrid have agreed to sign Croatia playmaker Luka Modric from Tottenham Hotspur on a five-year contract as the stuttering Spanish champions look to tap into his guile and creativity to get their season back on track.
Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Real Madrid playmaker Nuri Sahin on a season-long loan, the English Premier League club said on Saturday.
"From Monday, I'm ready to go again. I'm ready for a new challenge," said Totti on his Twitter feed.
Jose Mourinho, sacked by Manchester United last season after his reign there turned sour, has been charm personified since swapping punditry for the Tottenham job.
Ahmed Musa returned to the line-up with devastating effect as he scored both goals for Nigeria to help them resuscitate their World Cup hopes in a 2-0 win over Iceland at the Volgograd Arena on Friday.
Former Chelsea playmaker Alan Hudson has waited almost 40 years for a new Peter Osgood and now he believes Fernando Torres can finally fill the boots of the 'King of Stamford Bridge'.
Real Madrid coach Mourinho surprised many by including Kaka in the starting lineup for Wednesday's 4-1 Champions League win at Ajax and he responded with a performance full of verve and creativity that suggests he may be working his way back into contention.
Renowned Scottish club Rangers FC on Wednesday announced the signing of woman's national team forward Bala Devi -- a first in Indian football. This will make Bala the first Indian woman to become a professional footballer anywhere in the world and she also becomes Rangers' first Asian international footballer.
Kaka, who has yet to play for Real Madrid in an official game this season, gave a reminder of his abilities with a hat-trick in his team's 8-0 rout of Colombia's Millonarios in the annual Santiago Bernabeu Trophy on Wednesday.
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