Lionel Messi has set the bar so high for himself that when he does not score for a few games it prompts an outburst of speculation and head-scratching about what might be ailing the Argentine World Player of the Year.
Barcelona expect AC Milan to go all out for victory at the Nou Camp on Wednesday
Juventus continued their charge towards a fourth successive Serie A title as they predictably swept aside AC Milan 3-1 on Saturday to complete a league double over their old rivals.
AC Milan beat visitors Lazio 2-0 to claim consecutive Serie A wins for the first time since February thanks to Carlos Bacca's fifth goal of the season and an M'Baye Niang penalty on Tuesday.
Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr scored a hat-trick to help the LaLiga champions snap a two-game winless run in all competitions.
AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi plans to bid for Real Madrid's former world player of the year Cristiano Ronaldo if his side win the Serie A title, the Italian prime minister has said.
Champions League competitors Schalke 04 have signed AC Milan midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng on a four-year deal after the Ghana international passed his medical at the German club on Friday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Real Sociedad scored two brilliant goals to win 2-0 against a stunned Olympique Lyonnais side who finished with 10 men while AC Milan held PSV Eindhoven to a 1-1 draw in Champions League playoff first legs.
Giampaolo Pazzini's double helped AC Milan take third place in Serie A with a 3-0 home victory over 10-man Lazio at the San Siro on Saturday.
Robert Lewandowski smashed home a rebound to earn Barcelona a 2-1 win against Athletic Bilbao in an absorbing LaLiga clash on Saturday.
Werder Bremen produced a rousing fightback at the San Siro to eliminate favourites AC Milan from the UEFA Cup on Thursday and heap further pressure on coach Carlo Ancelotti. The Italian shrugged off fresh speculation this week that he could be sacked in May but will face further calls for his head after Claudio Pizarro scored twice as Werder hit back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 and reach the last 16 on away goals after the tie ended 3-3 on aggregate.
Juventus have appointed Thiago Motta as their new head coach to replace Massimiliano Allegri, the Serie A club said on Wednesday.
Images from Thursday's action in the Europa League Europa League - Round of 16 Second Leg - matches.
The Brazil striker pulled a hamstring towards the end of the previous campaign and has yet to feature in pre-season.
A debut double from 36-year-old Luca Toni gave Hellas Verona a surprise 2-1 triumph over AC Milan on Saturday while new signing Carlos Tevez was on target as champions Juventus won 1-0 at Sampdoria.
Tottenham Hotspur pulled off a 1-0 win at AC Milan and Raul made a goalscoring return to Spain to earn Schalke a 1-1 draw at Valencia as the Champions League returned with two last-16 first-leg matches on Tuesday.
James Rodriguez curled home a superb free kick to cap Real Madrid's 3-0 win over Inter Milan in a friendly in Guangzhou on Monday.
David Beckham will definitely return to AC Milan on loan in January, chief executive Adriano Galliani said on Monday.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the first player to score 50 Serie A goals for both Milan clubs: Inter Milan (57 goals) and AC Milan (51 goals).
Images from the Champions League matches played across Europe on Wednesday.
AC Milan stand in the way of a first all-English Champions League final when they seek to overturn a 3-2 deficit against Manchester United.
AC Milan need to produce a performance worthy of their glorious past when they host Bayern Munich.
Images from football matches played in La Liga and Serie A in Spain and Italy on Wednesday.
Barcelona have a doubt over midfielder Xavi as they prepare to go on the offensive in their Champions League quarter-final second leg against AC Milan on Tuesday.
Barcelona and Lionel Messi can write new chapters in the record books on Tuesday if they are able to break out of the straightjacket imposed on them by AC Milan and reach the Champions League semi-finals.
Free-scoring AC Milan, 4-0 winners over Arsenal in the Champions League last week, kept the goals flowing with a 3-1 win at bottom club Cesena on Sunday that ensured they finished the weekend top of Serie A.
Bayern Munich secured a place in the Champions League last 16 with an impressive 4-1 win at Juventus as former European champions Real Madrid and AC Milan also advanced to the knockout stage on Tuesday. Juventus were eliminated after Bayern came from behind to end the home side's 16-match unbeaten home run in Europe's premier club competition.
Juventus laboured to a 1-0 win at struggling Siena to end a barren four-match run in Serie A on Sunday while a late Alessandro Nesta double earned resurgent AC Milan a stunning 2-1 comeback triumph at Chievo Verona.
Arsenal enjoyed a 3-0 win in Azerbaijan against Qarabag in the Europa League on Thursday and AC Milan beat Greece's Olympiakos Piraeus 3-1 but Sevilla suffered a shock defeat by Russians Krasnodar.
La Liga leaders Real Madrid were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw at lowly city rivals Rayo Vallecano on Sunday as Joselu's early strike was cancelled out by Raul de Tomas' penalty, a result that could spice up the title race with surprise package Girona.
Barcelona beat AC Milan on a 1-0 aggregate, after the second leg semi-final ended goalless.
Alexandre Pato continued his rich vein of form with two goals in AC Milan's 3-1 win over Chievo which powered the hosts to the top of Serie A on Saturday.
Real have not lost any of their last six games against Liverpool in the Champions League
Robinho arrested in Brazil to serve rape sentence
His overall record of five wins, two draws and seven defeats included shock losses to Hapoel Beer Sheva and Sparta Prague in the Europa League and at home to Cagliari in Serie A.
AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to return to the Sweden squad after a one-year absence.
AC Milan's winning streak ended as they were held 0-0 at home by Atalanta in Serie A on Saturday while Bologna beat struggling Hellas Verona 2-0 away to move out of the relegation zone.
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