Images from Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
The clinical Argentine Messi now has 11 goals in his last five games in all competitions and with record signing Ousmane Dembele injured and Luis Suarez rested, he put on a sensational show at Camp Nou to extend Barcelona's La Liga lead.
Lionel Messi marked his record 506th appearance for Barcelona in La Liga by scoring a penalty but the Catalans could only draw
Manchester City face Chelsea in the Champions League final on Saturday. Here are five key tactical battles to watch out for:
With some clubs having played 27 games and others 28, the LFP drew the standings according to a performance index - the number of points per game weighed by head-to-head record.
Spanish media have reported that Real president Florentino Perez would be keen to recruit former coach Mourinho, currently without a club, should Zidane be relieved of his duties.
Rediff.com encapsulates all the sporting action from the past week in this eye-catching photo feature.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic's international career did not end in a blaze of glory at the European Championship but the striker said he was proud to have represented Sweden at the tournament.
Brazil soccer great Pele was hospitalised in Paris late on Tuesday with a strong fever but his condition is not life-threatening, RMC Sport reported. The 78-year-old was admitted as a precaution after attending an event in the French capital with France's World Cup-winning youngster Kylian Mbappe.
Atletico Madrid took a giant step towards the La Liga title
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.
A round-up of Saturday's action in La Liga and the Bundesliga.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Neymar played 'cat-and-mouse' with Barcelona during the close-season before his move to Paris St Germain, Barcelona vice-president Jordi Mestre has said.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has left the door open for Juan Mata to quit the team, but insisted that he does not want the Spaniard to leave.
Olympique de Marseille stretched their Ligue 1 lead to four points after man of the match Florian Thauvin and Rod Fanni clinched a 2-0 home win over Nantes on Friday.
Jose Mourinho's next managerial role has been revealed with the Portuguese leading 'England' against Claudio Ranieri's 'Rest of the World' side as the former Chelsea bosses clash at Old Trafford on June 5 in a charity match for UNICEF.
Manchester City will be without David Silva, Raheem Sterling and captain Vincent Kompany for this weekend's visit to Chelsea, manager Manuel Pellegrini told reporters on Friday.
Manchester City are ready to face the best players in Europe, striker Sergio Aguero said after a 3-2 aggregate Champions League quarter-final victory over Paris St Germain booked their place in the next round. Aguero missed a first-half penalty on Tuesday but Kevin De Bruyne's 76th-minute strike saved the Argentine's blushes as it ensured City beat PSG to qualify for the semi-finals of Europe's elite club competition for the first time. City will be joined by 10-times European champions Real Madrid and with Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich and Benfica all vying for places in the semi-finals, Aguero knows there is no easy route to win the Champions League. "At this point you cannot choose. To win the Champions League you have to play against the best and we were up against one of those, a favourite," Aguero told British media.
English Premier League leaders Chelsea have announced a profit of 18.4 million pounds ($28.89 million) for the year ending June 30 2014, the largest since Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich took over the club 11 years ago.
Zinedine Zidane's Real side demonstrated their new-found grit to re-take the lead
Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has labelled Lionel Messi has the 'best' player he has seen after the Argentine forward spurred a 2-0 victory over Ajax Amsterdam that secured the Spanish side a place in the Champions League knockout stages.
Messi announced he wanted to leave Barcelona, on Tuesday, after spending his entire career at the Catalan club.
The old guard, once again, came good for Italy, this time steering the Azzurri to Euro 2020 glory, but wily defensive stalwarts Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini cannot go on forever.
Karim Benzema scored twice in the final few minutes to give Real Madrid a 3-1 win at Espanyol, while Barcelona breezed past Real Valladolid with a comfortable 4-0 LaLiga victory.
Manchester United's interim manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been hailed by the Norwegian press and his former United captain and teammate Gary Neville expects him to get the job on a permanent basis this month: "I'll be surprised if Solskjaer is not awarded the job during the international break (in March)."
Harry Kane toppled Alan Shearer's 22-year-old record for the most Premier League goals in a calendar year by scoring a double for Tottenham Hotspur against Southampton, on Tuesday, also overtaking Lionel Messi as the top scorer in Europe.
AS Roma's dramatic Champions League elimination by Porto, thanks to a late penalty awarded with a VAR review, was a 'terrible way to go out', their captain Daniele De Rossi said on Wednesday.
Edinson Cavani silenced his critics when he scored four goals in Paris St Germain's 6-0 victory at Caen in Ligue 1 on Friday.
Super sub Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting struck the stoppage-time winner.
Sweden captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not about to leave Paris St Germain and return to AC Milan despite his good relationship with the Italian club's CEO Adriano Galliani, he said on Friday.
Brazil forward Lucas scored his first goal for Paris St Germain to help the Ligue 1 champions snatch top spot with a 2-0 win at Girondins Bordeaux.
Barcelona striker Lionel Messi has returned home to Argentina but remains doubtful for World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Venezuela with his club confirming the 29-year-old is struggling with a sore left hamstring.
Luis Suarez said Barcelona have not given up on the Champions League despite a "difficult and painful" 4-0 drubbing by Paris St Germain in their last 16 tie this week.
Liverpool are determined to end the trend of selling their best players during the close season in order to build a squad capable of consistently challenging for major honours, manager Juergen Klopp said.
Barcelona need to avoid getting sucked into the Spanish obsession with El Clasico when they face Ajax Amsterdam in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Edinson Cavani's potential absence for Uruguay would be a severe blow to their hopes of beating France in the World Cup quarter-finals, according to his former team mate and French midfielder Blaise Matuidi.
Bayern Munich and coach Pep Guardiola will part ways after three seasons at the end of the current campaign and Italian Champions League-winning coach Carlo Ancelotti will replace the Spaniard, club Chief Executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on Sunday.
Barcelona completed one of the most extraordinary comebacks in European football history to knock Paris St Germain out of the Champions League on Wednesday with a 6-1 victory that rewrote the record books.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances