Several players across the continent are poised to make a name for themselves on the international stage.
Erling Haaland arrived at Manchester City nearly a year ago to questions about how a "battering ram" of a centre-forward would fit into mastermind manager Pep Guardiola's nuanced and tactically demanding style.
Barcelona blew the La Liga title race wide open when Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in a 4-3 comeback win for the champions at 10-man Real Madrid in an action-packed 'Clasico' on Sunday.
Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, who won the 2022 Ballon d'Or award, is also in the shortlist.
Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane says he is unsure of his future at the club despite leading them to the Champions League final.
City forward Erling Haaland, who had missed a first-half penalty, made amends in the 57th minute
Barcelona top the LaLiga standings with 15 points, four ahead of Real Madrid and Villarreal. Girona are seventh on seven points.
Real Madrid moved four points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring either side of a Gareth Bale strike in a 3-0 win at Getafe on Sunday.
Real Madrid's lacklustre show and the absence of David Beckham may have cost the team some of its fans in China.
Cristiano Ronaldo gave Zinedine Zidane a ringing endorsement as Real Madrid coach after their 1-0 defeat by Atletico Madrid in the city derby at the Bernabeu on Saturday.
Barcelona can no longer afford to shell out huge sums in transfer fees for top players like Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, coach Xavi Hernandez said.
Chelsea beat Manchester City 1-0 on Saturday to book a place in next month's FA Cup final, thanks to a second-half goal by Hakim Ziyech which ended City manager Pep Guardiola's dream of steering his side to an unprecedented quadruple of titles.
Manchester City clinched the Champions League title to seal their treble in a sensational season.
Barcelona thrashed Real Betis 5-1 on Wednesday to book their spot in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals.
Javier Hernandez has been a bit-part player at Real Madrid since joining on loan from Manchester United but injuries handed the Mexico striker a rare chance on Wednesday which he took with aplomb.
Real Madrid extended their dominance over city rivals Atletico and maintained their one-point lead at the top of La Liga when Ricardo Carvalho and Mesut Ozil scored in a comfortable 2-0 home win on Sunday.
Robinho arrested in Brazil to serve rape sentence
Cristiano Ronaldo grabbed a record 23rd La Liga hat-trick to guide leaders Real Madrid to a 3-0 victory over Celta Vigo. It also helped the European champions extend their club record winning streak to 18 matches in all competitions.
A round-up of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Real Madrid survived an early red card for Sergio Ramos to see off city rivals Rayo Vallecano 2-0 at the Bernabeu on Sunday, matching the wins of La Liga leaders Barcelona and Atletico Madrid over the weekend.
Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri says he believes that Manchester City are now at the same level as Barcelona and Real Madrid and can go on to win the UEFA Champions League this season.
Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha both scored twice to help Barcelona thrash hosts Villarreal 5-1.
Riyad Mahrez scored a hat-trick as Manchester City snapped their losing streak in FA Cup semi-finals with a 3-0 stroll over second-tier Sheffield United at Wembley on Saturday.
Real Madrid's reliance on their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo was more evident than ever on Tuesday as the Spanish and European champions meekly lost 1-0 at Espanyol in La Liga.
The result also means second-placed Real Sociedad can reclaim top spot if they beat Eibar on Sunday.
Mumbai City FC lost 2-0 to Iranian Club Nassaji Mazandaran in their first AFC Champions League group stage game at home.
Ajax, four-times European Cup winners who are in the knockout stages for the first time in 13 years, have enhanced their reputation as a talent factory due to the rise of homegrown Dutch players Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt.
A bizarre last-minute goal from Mesut Ozil wrapped up a 3-1 comeback win for Real Madrid at home to city rivals Atletico Madrid on Thursday, giving them a healthy advantage in their King's Cup quarter-final.
A first-half double from Karim Benzema helped Real Madrid cruise to a 3-0 victory away to Cadiz that moved them top of La Liga.
Real Madrid star striker Cristiano Ronaldo scored thrice to help his side thrash Espanyol 6-0 in a ruthless attacking display in La Liga clash at Santiago Bernabeu.
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.
Real Madrid beat Barcelona 4-2 to cut their arch-rivals' lead at the top of the Spanish League to six points with seven matches to play.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Departing Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini hopes a verbal agreement with Manchester City will turn into a firm offer, he said in an interview with Spanish radio station Onda Cero on Wednesday.
Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo has dismissed talk of an astronomical 150 million pound switch to Manchester City, saying that he is very happy living in Madrid.
When Swedish champions Malmo take on mighty Real Madrid on Wednesday they do so knowing they would probably have to sell their entire squad just to be able to afford a single player from the bench of the Spanish giants.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti's decision to deploy defender Sergio Ramos in central midfield was the key to Wednesday's 1-0 Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid, according to captain Iker Casillas.
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