Chelsea rounded off the UEFA Champions League group stage with a 3-1 victory over Sporting.
Lionel Messi scored his maiden goal for Paris St Germain in Tuesday's 2-0 Champions League victory against Manchester City.
Heavyweights Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Lazio took big steps towards reaching the Europa League semi-finals after convincing home first-leg victories and RB Leipzig also stayed on course with a 1-0 win over Olympique de Marseille on Thursday.
Spain are steadily turning to the next generation ahead of their Euro 2016 opener against the Czech Republic later on Monday as the defending champions look to redeem themselves after a miserable World Cup two years ago. For Spain's disappointing showing in 2014, coach Vicente del Bosque retained 16 of the squad that won the title in 2010, but only eight winners remain for Euro 2016, with players such as Alvaro Morata, Hector Bellerin and Thiago Alcantara introduced as part of a significant changing of the guard. Sergio Ramos is confident the new boys, five of whom were part of the 2013 European under 21-winning side, can lead Spain into a new golden era.
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Frank Lampard, Chelsea's all-time leading scorer, netted against his old club when he came on as a late substitute for Manchester City to give the champions a 1-1 draw.
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp acknowledged that they would have to defend better in the visit to Stamford Bridge to stop Eden Hazard reprising the sort of solo brilliance that propelled Chelsea to victory at Anfield on Wednesday.
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In case they needed it, the short trip to Crystal Palace will re-focus Chelsea's globe-trotting players on matters at home as the Premier League slips back into gear this weekend after the second international break of the season.
Chelsea need to improve a lot before they could be considered Premier League title contenders, manager Antonio Conte has said after his resurgent side beat Southampton 2-0 on Sunday.
The 24-year-old has scored three league goals already and Shevchenko, who never replicated his superb goalscoring record for AC Milan in three subsequent years at Chelsea, believes there is much more to come from the Spaniard.
Italy's Daniele De Rossi scored a late penalty to earn a 1-1 draw against Spain in their World Cup qualifier on Thursday, sparing home goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon's blushes after he gifted the visitors the lead. Buffon, making his 164th appearance, rushed out of his area as Vitolo broke clear but the 38-year-old completely mistimed his tackle, allowing the Spaniard to go round him and put the ball into an empty net in the 55th minute. Italy, who had been outplayed in the Group G clash, fought back and levelled in the 82nd when Eder was fouled by Sergio Ramos and De Rossi converted the spot kick, their only shot on target in the match.
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Stunning goals from Dutch captain Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben ensured an awful start to Spain's World Cup defence as the Netherlands destroyed one of the tournament favourites 5-1 in Group B on Friday.
Manchester United cemented third spot and moved four points clear of neighbours Manchester City.
Juve forward Cristiano Ronaldo had an unusually quiet game after scoring a hat-trick against Atletico in last year's competition, although he came within inches of grabbing a last-gasp winner when he sent a shot just past the far post.
Luis Enrique's new task is to rebuild a Spain team that ruled international football between 2008 and 2012 by winning successive European Championships and the 2010 World Cup but have been deeply disappointing at their last three international tournaments.
The neighbourly rivalry and the intriguing prospect of a duel between Real Madrid team mates Sergio Ramos of Spain and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo meant the Group B match was always going to be one of the highlights of the opening round.
English Premier League champions Chelsea needed two late goals to salvage a 2-2 draw at Newcastle United on Saturday, with Brazilians Ramires and Willian coming off the bench to earn Jose Mourinho's stuttering side a point.
UEFA's Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules are "a contradiction" and only serve to protect big clubs with a long history of success, according to Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho.
You would have been hard pressed at the start of the season to find anyone to bet on Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers becoming the first Premier League manager to get the sack, but he is now the bookies' joint favourite.
Out-of-sorts Chelsea have a golden opportunity to restore battered self-confidence when they face Maccabi Tel Aviv in their opening Champions League Group G match.
Champions Chelsea have not enjoyed the best of starts at home this season and face their biggest test yet on Saturday with the visit of free-scoring leaders Manchester City.
Chelsea took a major step towards the Premier League title with an impressive 3-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was adamant that he did not regret his team selection despite falling to a fifth Premier League defeat against table-topping Chelsea on Saturday.
Lopetegui blends youth and experience in Spain World Cup squad
Sergio Aguero struck twice as Manchester City came from behind to beat Burnley 2-1 at Turf Moor in the Premier League on Saturday.
'The problem with Petr is that an opponent is better than before'
'We want to thank him (Costa) for what he did with this club. We wish him all the best for the future'
Manchester United won away for the first time this season when they beat Arsenal 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday to climb to fourth in the Premier League table.
'It was a crazy game where we had the bit of luck that we didn't have in Slovenia'
A rousing 2-1 La Liga victory at Real Madrid on Saturday may suggest otherwise, but Atletico Madrid are still rebuilding after losing several key players in the close season, coach Diego Simeone said on Monday.
Sevilla became surprise Liga leaders on Sunday after beating visiting Celta Viga 2-1 while champions Barcelona drew 1-1 at Valencia thanks to another Lionel Messi strike but are still without a victory in their last four league games.
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.
Juventus striker Carlos Tevez would be a perfect fit for Atletico Madrid and the La Liga club are in talks with the Argentine's agents, coach Diego Simeone has said.
Atletico Madrid have been unable to repeat the magnificent achievements of last season in this campaign but can congratulate themselves on a job well done if they secure a lucrative Champions League berth on Saturday.
Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech has made a surprise return to Chelsea's training ground ahead of Sunday's big London derby after Adidas sent a consignment of gloves to his former club by mistake. Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink, whose misfiring champions travel to Cech's Premier League leaders on Sunday, made light of the situation at a news conference on Friday. "I was here when Petr showed up. It was nice to see him," the Dutchman told reporters at the Cobham facility to the south-west of London. "We had a chat here. Almost everyone was gone already, it was late afternoon....we tried to hide them, which he did not accept. Also we tried to make them a little bit slippery but he discovered that also. "They were wrongly sent here and we gave them back. It was nice. That's the story."
Manchester United against Chelsea has often been a seminal fixture in deciding the destiny of the Premier League title in recent years but Monday's clash at Old Trafford has a very different backdrop.
Departing captain John Terry led his Chelsea champions to a rip-roaring 4-3 victory over Watford on Monday, scoring the first goal on an evening of celebration, fireworks and streamers rather than vintage football at Stamford Bridge.
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