'The pandemic has caused football to change a lot, and for the worse. You can see it in the matches, and I hope this all ends soon and we can get fans back into the stadiums and return to normality.'
Barcelona forwards Ousmane Dembele and Lionel Messi fired the Catalans to a confidence-boosting 2-0 win at in-form Sevilla on Saturday to keep the pressure on La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid.
Lionel Messi has become the first player to win Europe's Golden Shoe award for three straight years after his nearest challenger Kylian Mbappe failed to score the four goals he needed in Paris St Germain's final league match of the season on Friday.
Tomy was battling for life on the dismasted sailboat Thoriya with a severe back injury, the officials said.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Zinedine Zidane has said his side are in a delicate situation as they prepare to host arch-rivals Barcelona in a La Liga title showdown on Sunday
Luis Aragones, the coach of Spain's 2008 European Championship-winning side, has died at the age of 75, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) announced on Saturday.
Real Madrid set up a King's Cup semi-final against holders Atletico Madrid or Athletic Bilbao when they beat Espanyol 1-0 in their quarter-final, second leg on Tuesday for a 2-0 aggregate success.
Lionel Messi created a goal and scored another as Barcelona came from behind to beat struggling Rayo Vallecano 3-1 at home on Saturday and stay seven points clear at the top of La Liga.
Real Madrid's Gareth Bale came off the bench and coolly converted a controversial penalty to secure a 2-1 win at Levante in La Liga on Sunday as the European champions rode their luck to stay within nine points of leaders Barcelona.
Hellas Verona produced a huge upset by coming from behind to beat Serie A leaders Juventus 2-1 on Saturday, inflicting a third defeat of the season on the Italian champions. Cristiano Ronaldo set a new Juventus record by scoring in a 10th consecutive league game to put the visitors in front at the Stadio Marc'Antonio Bentegodi after 65 minutes.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez secured victory over nine-man Atletico Madrid in La Liga's top of the table clash, while Juventus won a 12th straight Serie A game to stay hot on the heels of leaders Napoli.
Second division Mirandes caused an upset by knocking Deportivo La Coruna out of the King's Cup on Tuesday and Sevilla joined them in the quarter-finals after making light work of city rivals Real Betis.
Barcelona seized control of their King's Cup quarter-final tie against Atletico Madrid when Lionel Messi followed up his saved penalty to score and secure a 1-0 first-leg victory at the Nou Camp on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi dragged Barcelona back from two goals down by scoring twice to snatch a 2-2 draw at home to Valencia in a thrilling encounter.
Struggling Rayo win at Valladolid after late penalty save
Costa turned Juanfran's low cross into the net in the 69th minute for Atletico's third goal in the first leg of the last 16 tie against third division Lleida but immediately limped to the sidelines. He did return to the pitch, however, and completed the game despite bleeding from his knee.
As Barcelona prepare to welcome back Pep Guardiola to the Nou Camp for Wednesday's Champions League game against Manchester City, check out how the club has evolved since the visionary coach departed in 2012.
Barcelona eased into the King's Cup last 16 when goals from Pedro, Cristian Tello and Neymar secured a 3-0 second-leg victory at home to third-tier Cartagena on Tuesday for a 7-1 aggregate success.
Fernando Torres stole the show with a dramatic double as Atletico Madrid secured a battling 2-2 draw at Real Madrid on Thursday that dumped the holders out of the King's Cup 4-2 on aggregate.
A subdued Fernando Torres helped Atletico Madrid to a 2-0 win over local rivals Real in the first leg of their King's Cup last-16 tie on Wednesday in his first start since his return to his boyhood club.
Former Real youth player Joselu pulled a goal back for Alaves in the 59th minute, powering in a header from a free kick, but Benzema rounded off the victory for second-placed Real with an exquisite solo run and goal in the 70th minute.
Messi, who has struggled for form in recent weeks due to a niggling injury, looked on a mission to grab the winner and after twice coming close he completed his treble to put Barca ahead in the 85th minute, reacting quickly to a poor Sevilla clearance to dink the ball over goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Barcelona's 16-year-old forward Ansu Fati continued his explosive start to life in the first team by scoring and providing an assist as the La Liga champions thrashed Valencia 5-2 on Saturday.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Juventus strolled to a 3-0 home win over bottom side Crotone in the Italian Serie A on Monday, with the victory taking the champions up to third in the standings.
Portugal international Goncalo Guedes fired Valencia into the lead in the 35th minute with a thumping shot from inside the area which was too powerful for Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas.
Despite their first-leg advantage, Pochettino warned against complacency and said he wanted his team to play for another win, although they have had one day less to prepare than the Germans.
A summary of Sunday's action in Serie A and Bundesliga.
Manchester City's Premier League home match against Arsenal has been postponed because players from the London club have had contact with the owner of Greek side Olympiakos Piraeus, who has contracted the coronavirus. Meanwhile La Liga matches will be played without fans for at least the next two rounds of fixtures to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus, the Spanish league said.
Images from the football matches played across Europe on Sunday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona continued their rampant run of domestic form to beat Osasuna 2-0 away from home on Saturday and move to within two points of La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, with Lionel Messi setting up goals scored by Jordi Alba and teenager Ilaix Moriba.
Raphael Varane converted two corners as a second-string Real Madrid began the defence of their King's Cup crown with a 4-1 victory against third-tier part-timers Cornella on Wednesday.
Morata, who had scored his first goal for the club in last week's 2-0 win over Villarreal, rose to head home from close range on the half-hour mark following a corner which had been flicked on by Atleti captain Diego Godin.
Emotions ran high as Nantes paid tribute to their former player Emiliano Sala on Wednesday in their first game since the Argentine went missing in a light aircraft over the English Channel.
After the spectacular implosion of the Jose Mourinho regime at Chelsea, there is now just one world-beating coach left in the global game with a glittering curriculum vitae unsullied by the stain of any striking failure. Step forward then Pep Guardiola...
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances