Liverpool coach Juergen Klopp had praised Spanish clubs on the eve of the match, saying they had better scouting, coaches and player development than their English, German and Italian equivalents.
Liverpool's Luis Diaz scored a hat-trick as they maintained their perfect Champions League campaign with a barnstorming second-half display in a 4-0 victory over Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen at Anfield on Tuesday.
The 20-year-old has scored 11 goals in 11 games in all competitions this season, including four goals in the Champions League.
Spanish footballer Jose Antonio Reyes has died in a traffic accident, aged 35, his former club Sevilla said.
La Liga champions Barcelona stayed on the heels of leaders Real Madrid by coasting to a 3-0 home win over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday as Lionel Messi became the club's top scorer from free kicks.
'I expect a brave Napoli that plays from the back and presses high, that doesn't speculate, has a lot of individual talent, it's a big game and it's a great team, current champions of Italy.'
Brazil, who are fifth in the CONMEBOL table with 18 points from 12 games, host Colombia on March 21 and visit Argentina five days later in a match that could see Neymar come up against former Barcelona and Paris St Germain teammate Lionel Messi.
Spain's soccer federation (RFEF) announced a three-year deal to play the revamped tournament in Saudi Arabia
Atletico Madrid were handed a chance to avenge last season's Champions League final defeat by city rivals and record 10-times winners Real after the two sides were drawn together in the last eight on Friday. Paris St Germain and Barcelona were paired together having met in the group stage, with the French side winning in Paris and the Catalans coming out on top in Spain.
Real Madrid opened a two-point lead over Villarreal at the top of La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo set a club scoring record in a 3-0 stroll at home to Levante on Saturday.
La Liga leaders Real Madrid were thumped 4-0 away by city rivals Atletico Madrid to open up the Spanish title race, while Chelsea strengthened their hold on top spot in the English Premier League after a 2-1 win at Aston Villa.
Cristiano Ronaldo could play his first match under new Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag after the Portuguese forward said 'the King' will be available for Sunday's friendly game against Rayo Vallecano.
Former Indian cricket captain and co-owner of Atletico de Kolkata Sourav Ganguly on Monday said the presence of eminent foreign players in the Indian Super League (ISL) will help the Indian players raise their playing standards and improve Indian football in the years to come.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Zinedine Zidane's Real side demonstrated their new-found grit to re-take the lead
Holders Manchester City will take on RB Leipzig, Red Star Belgrade and Young Boys in Group G.
Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira has accused the La Liga club of freezing him out by dropping him from the team after talks on a contract extension broke down even though he was fit to play.
The Turin-based club have suffered in recent weeks with three of their players having tested positive for the virus -- forward Paulo Dybala, defender Daniele Rugani and midfielder Blaise Matuidi.
Exactly four months after succeeding Rafael Benitez and inheriting a Real Madrid side on the brink of institutional crisis, Zinedine Zidane completed the team's revival by guiding them past Manchester City to the Champions League final.
Cristiano Ronaldo answered his critics with a hat-trick as Real Madid came from behind to win 4-1 at Alaves and provisionally go three points clear at the top of La Liga.
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone praised his team's spirit after knocking holders Barcelona out of the Champions League.
Promoted Alaves dealt champions Barcelona a shock 2-1 defeat at the Nou Camp on Saturday while Cristiano Ronaldo returned from injury to help Real Madrid thrash Osasuna 5-2 and go two points clear at the top of La Liga. With Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta on the bench, Barcelona went behind to the visitors in the 39th minute before Frenchman Jeremy Mathieu equalised in the 46th. Ibai Gomez then scored the winner in the 64th.
Milan missed the chance to jump to second and remained fourth with 48 points
Real Madrid lifted the FIFA Club World Cup for a record fourth time on Saturday after thrashing local side Al Ain 4-1 in the final in Abu Dhabi with the help of impressive distance strikes in either half from midfielders Luka Modric and Marcos Llorente.
When Real Madrid's team of Zinedine Zidane-inspired "galacticos" won the Spanish club's ninth European crown in 2002 it was supposed to mark the beginning of another golden era of European domination.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Real Madrid extended their unbeaten run to 25 matches and rejoined Barcelona and Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga when Jese, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric scored in a 3-0 win at Getafe on Sunday.
IMAGES from football matches played in the Spain, Germany and Portugal on Wednesday.
Chelsea striker Diego Costa says he was wrong to throw his bib towards manager Jose Mourinho when he was left on the bench during the goalless English Premier League draw with Tottenham Hotspur last month.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti is counting on his wealth of experience to help fix the holders' midfield woes as they prepare to host FC Basel in Tuesday's Champions League Group B opener at the Bernabeu.
Real Madrid beat Leganes 2-1 in La Liga on Saturday after coach Zinedine Zidane heavily rotated his side in preparation for Tuesday's Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich, including leaving out top-scorer Cristiano Ronaldo.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Real Madrid and city rivals Atletico have dismissed reports in Spanish media of a possible FIFA ban from the next two transfer windows over breaches of rules on the signing of foreign Under-18 players.
Undefeated since late December, Barca are the only team in Europe's top-five league who have yet to lose in 2025.
Barcelona joined Real Madrid, Atletico and Real Sociedad in the semi-finals, with the draw set to take place on Wednesday.
Luuk de Jong's first-half header gave Barcelona a 1-0 win at Mallorca
A summary of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League Knock-out Phase play-offs.
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola was brought to the club to extend their European dominance, but will leave at the end of the season having lost three successive Champions League semi-finals.
In an all-Spanish clash, former winners Barcelona were drawn against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League draw, while Real Madrid will take on Borussia Dortmund. Paris Saint-Germain were handed a tough draw against Chelsea.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has blamed Manchester United's "lack of negotiating experience" for the failure of goalkeeper David De Gea's move to the Spanish capital on Monday.
