'The accumulation of the games, I never had that'
European football was given good and bad reminders of its past on Thursday with an impressive 2-0 win for once-mighty Ajax Amsterdam over Schalke 04 in one Europa League game but ugly scenes in the crowd at Lyon delaying another.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic's 28th goal of the season in all competitions put United ahead and Sunderland's cause became all but impossible after Seb Larsson was sent off close to halftime.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Paris St Germain extended their Ligue 1 lead to 13 points with a 4-3 home victory against Girondins de Bordeaux on Sunday but the French champions were again exposed at the back and had Neymar sent off. A Marquinhos double, Edinson Cavani's 200th PSG goal and a goal by Kylian Mbappe put the capital side on 65 points from 26 games but they lost captain Thiago Silva to a muscle injury and Neymar picked up a straight red card for a late challenge in stoppage time.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic says he is excited by the prospect of playing alongside Wayne Rooney at Manchester United and described his new team mate as the "perfect partner for a striker".
'Next season will be better for him, but he is learning how to play with us and we are learning how to get the best out of him'
Second-placed Borussia Dortmund beat hosts Mainz 05 2-0 on Friday in coach Thomas Tuchel's return to his former club, ending their three-game winless run in the Bundesliga to close in on leaders Bayern Munich.
German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger is unlikely to play for Manchester United this season, manager Jose Mourinho said on Friday.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is playing a pivotal role in creating a friendly atmosphere in the Manchester United dressing room, manager Jose Mourinho has said, adding that the striker should not restrict his role in the squad to goalscorer.
Juan Mata praised Jose Mourinho's remarkable knack for coming out on top on the biggest occasions after Manchester United beat Ajax Amsterdam 2-0 on Wednesday to signal the Portuguese coach's 12th triumph in a final from 14 attempts.
Alexis Sanchez is facing a crucial period to justify his big-money wages at Old Trafford.
IMAGES from Serie A matches played in Italy on Wednesday.
Inter Milan got a crucial 1-0 win at Juventus on Sunday
Manchester United continued their push for a top-four finish with a comfortable 3-0 victory at champions Leicester City on Sunday, extending their unbeaten Premier League run to 15 games.
Borussia Dortmund scored three times in the last 10 minutes to rally from a goal down and beat 10-man Hoffenheim 3-1 on Sunday, allowing them to maintain their lone pursuit of runaway Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich.
Arsenal fielded a strong team with Ozil installed as captain and the Premier League side soon took control against weakened opposition, given the time and space they will not be afforded when the domestic campaign kicks off in August.
Manchester City withdrew from the battle to secure the services of Arsenal's Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez, leaving Jose Mourinho's Manchester United as the most likely destination for the 29-year-old.
Fourth division club Carl Zeiss Jena stunned Hamburg SV 3-2 in the German Cup on Sunday, taking the scalp of the Bundesliga's former European champions to cause the biggest sensation of the competition's first round.
Bayern Munich slumped out of the German Cup semi-finals 2-0 on penalties to Borussia Dortmund.
Manchester United turned frustration into jubilation as they planted one foot in the League Cup final after a late Marouane Fellaini header gave them a 2-0 win over Hull City in the first leg of their last four clash.
Manchester United continued their perfect start to the Premier League season by crushing Swansea City 4-0 with three late goals in four minutes.
Bayern Munich thrashed Bayer Leverkusen 5-1, while Barcelona came from behind to beat Valencia 3-1 in LaLiga at Camp Nou on Sunday.
Manchester United's teenage striker Marcus Rashford struck a stunning second-half free-kick to secure a 1-0 win at Celta Vigo in their Europa League semi-final, first leg on Thursday.
"We are pleased with the win, the many chances and the 70,000-plus spectators."
A round-up of Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Chelsea beat Arsenal 3-2 in a pulsating London English Premier League derby on Saturday with defender Marcos Alonso scoring an 81st-minute winner after the Gunners had fought back from an early 2-0 deficit.
Manchester United's Zlatan Ibrahimovic came off the bench to score the winner as they recovered from an early deficit to beat Championship strugglers Blackburn Rovers 2-1 away in the FA Cup fifth round on Sunday.
Lionel Messi scored his 650th goal for Barcelona while Antoine Griezmann struck the winner in a 2-1 home success over Athletic Bilbao
Depleted Borussia Dortmund shrugged off the absence of more than half a dozen starting players to ease into the German Cup quarter-finals with a comfortable 2-0 win at third-tier Saarbruecken on Tuesday.
Defensive errors were again a common occurrence in the Arsenal backline, but Fiorentina failed to take advantage.
Images from UEFA Europa League semi-finals played on Thursday.
Manchester United held on for a goalless draw in a feisty derby with Manchester City after midfielder Marouane Fellaini was sent off for a headbutt in the Premier League clash at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday.
On the face of it, Jose Mourinho shouldered the blame for the wounding defeat in his first Manchester derby at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani scored twice each as Manchester United took a giant step towards the Europa League final with a 6-2 drubbing of AS Roma in their semi-final first leg at Old Trafford on Thursday.
Borussia Dortmund's miserable domestic season continued when they lost 1-0 at home to fellow strugglers Hanover 96 on Saturday, their fourth Bundesliga defeat in a row.
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte got the upper hand on Jose Mourinho for the second time this season as his double-chasing side beat 10-man Manchester United 1-0 at Stamford Bridge to reach the FA Cup semi-finals on Monday.
Europa League favourites Manchester United secured a 1-1 draw on a threadbare pitch at Rostov, while Olympique Lyonnais beat AS Roma 4-2 helped by a fine individual goal from Nabil Fekir in their last 16, first leg ties on Thursday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
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.
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