Given the improvements at Chelsea and Arsenal, it will still be a significant achievement for United to secure a top four finish and in the Champions League, a decent run in the knockout stages would also be a sign of progress.
Chelsea are banking on a lavish shopping spree to give them more bite up front and much-needed solidity in defence after coach Frank Lampard spent last season relying heavily on a crop of inexperienced home-grown players.
It compounded a woeful few months for the club as coach Julen Lopetegui came and went before former player Santiago Solari replaced him in November. They sat sixth in La Liga and appeared a team in decline, sorely missing forward Cristiano Ronaldo, who left for Juventus last summer.
Ronaldo went off in the first half of the Euro 2020 qualifier with an apparent hamstring injury. The match ended 1-1.
Luis Suarez had been told by new Barca coach Ronald Koeman that he was not in his plans for next season.
AZ Alkmaar clinched their second Dutch championship after Ajax Amsterdam failed to beat PSV Eindhoven on Sunday.
Hamburg led a trio of former European champions into the UEFA Cup knockout phase on Thursday and previous winners Valencia also secured a last 32 place. Aston Villa and Ajax Amsterdam progressed from Group F along with Hamburg, whose 2-0 victory at Slavia Prague meant Villa qualified despite a 2-1 home defeat by Slovakia's Zilina.
Olympique Marseille let 10-man Ajax Amsterdam off the hook in a UEFA Cup first leg meeting of former European champions on Thursday, while holders Zenit St Petersburg suffered a 2-0 defeat at Udinese. The only other emphatic victory in the first legs came from ambitious Manchester City, 2-0 winners at home to Danish club AaB Aalborg.
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Inter Milan face Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspur and PSV Eindhoven in Group B which features three former European champions.
A statement from the club on Thursday said they had made record turnover of 990 million euros last season and projected an increase to 1.047 billion euros for the 2019/20 campaign.
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.
Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur built hefty leads with emphatic away wins in their Europa League last 32 first-leg matches but AC Milan were held to a 2-2 draw at Red Star Belgrade as the competition resumed on Thursday.
PSV Eindhoven clinched their fourth Dutch league title in a row on Sunday with a 1-0 win at Vitesse Arnhem to finish above rivals Ajax Amsterdam.
The first few months of this season have been disappointing, as Spurs have won only three of their opening 12 Premier League games and are in 14th spot. They were also thrashed 7-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League and knocked out of the League Cup by fourth-tier Colchester United.
Barcelona forward Neymar is reportedly looking forward to welcome Luis Suarez into his and Argentina captain Lionel Messi's star-studded strike partnership when the Uruguayan returns for his four-month ban this weekend.
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp has a midfield conundrum and his Tottenham counterpart Mauricio Pochettino must decide whether Harry Kane is ready for action as both bosses face selection dilemmas for Saturday's Champions League final.
Netherlands Coach Marco Van Basten named a 23-men squad on Sunday for next month's World Cup finals in Germany.
Images from soccer matches played across Europe on Saturday.
PSV Eindhoven beat Heerenveen 4-1 to win the Dutch championship on Saturday for the first time in seven seasons.
Juventus announced the signing of Matthijs de Ligt, landing one of the most sought-after young players in world soccer from Ajax Amsterdam for 75 million euros ($84.39 million).
French champions Paris St Germain have appointed former Netherlands international Patrick Kluivert as the club's director of football, the Ligue 1 side said. The former Ajax Amsterdam and Barcelona striker had a coaching stint as the manager of Curacao and was an assistant coach for Netherlands under manager Louis van Gaal.
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Lorenzo Insigne curled a quite wonderful shot beyond the reach of Belgium goal-keeper Thibaut Courtois after jinking in from the left flank.
'We are not hiding. We the players are primarily responsible and I, as captain, more than anyone'
Former Barcelona and Chelsea veteran Samuel Eto'o may be heading to Anfield.
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Louis van Gaal has said he would consider joining Tottenham Hotspur once his contract with the Dutch national team finishes after this year's World Cup in Brazil.
Jonathan Soriano scored an incredible goal from near the halfway line to complete a stunning 3-0 win for Salzburg away to once-mighty Ajax Amsterdam in the Europa League round of 32 on Thursday.
Rediff.com brings you the top highlights of the soccer weekend.
Netherlands head coach Louis Van Gaal was quickly installed as the bookmakers' favourite to succeed David Moyes as Manchester United manager after the English Premier League club announced the end of the Scot's ill-fated spell in charge on Tuesday.
Liverpool frustrated as they were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw at Brighton on Saturday
The following is a factbox on former Dutch international who was popularly known as 'Flying Dutchman'.
Johan Cruyff, the legendary Dutch soccer striker and coach, died aged 68, according to a message posted on his website.
The Ajax coach and former ace Dutch striker has been approached to take over the national team.
Last season's runners-up Liverpool, big-spending French league champions Paris St Germain and Carlo Ancelotti's Napoli were thrown together in the pick of the groups while holders Real Madrid must face last season's semi-finalists AS Roma.
Several records and milestones were set after Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 in the Champions League final on Saturday. With the victory Real became the first team to win three straight titles in the Champions League era.
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