New coach Julen Lopetegui has been tasked with rebuilding the side following the Portugal forward's departure and the early signs are good, with Real already looking more of a unit than a collection of individuals.
Bayern Munich stumbled to a 1-1 draw against visiting Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday to leave them with only a slim Bundesliga lead after being held for the third game in a row with the same scoreline.
A first-half penalty earned Lille a shock 1-0 home victory over holders Real Madrid in the Champions League group phase on Wednesday.
Morocco are looking for an upset win over the European champions at the Luzhniki Stadium to realistically keep alive their interest in the tournament but mindful that the genius of the Portugal captain could send them towards an early exit.
Barca, chasing a third consecutive Spanish title, are on 76 points after 35 games while Real Madrid are top with 77 and can restore their four-point advantage when they host Alaves on Friday.
McLaren Formula One driver Fernando Alonso will miss this week's final pre-season test in Barcelona after leaving hospital on Wednesday following a big crash three days ago.
The English Premier League boasts some of the top managers in the game but to see the best players in the world you have to watch Spanish soccer, Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu said.
Neymar scored a spectacular goal as Barcelona came from behind to beat Paris St Germain 3-1 in their UEFA Champions League match.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Luis Suarez said he had missed linking up with his insatiable strike partners Neymar and Lionel Messi after Barcelona's 'MSN' attack scored six goals in their 7-0 record rout of Celtic on Tuesday. Messi scored a record sixth European Cup hat-trick while Neymar became the first player in Champions League history to provide four assists and score in a game, curling in the third from a free-kick.
Luis Suarez grabbed a hat-trick and Lionel Messi bagged two goals as Barcelona began their quest for a third straight La Liga title with a 6-2 rout of Real Betis on Saturday. Arda Turan, whose two goals against Sevilla helped Barca lift the Spanish Super Cup on Wednesday, gave them an early lead at the Nou Camp before Ruben Castro equalised in the 21st minute. Barca went back in front thanks to a trademark 37th-minute goal from Messi before Suarez, La Liga's top scorer last season, made it 3-1 before halftime.
Barcelona fell to a first home defeat in any competition for more than two years
France international Samuel Umtiti has completed a "dream move" to Barcelona knowing he is not guaranteed a first-team place but says he is willing to learn to prove his potential.
Lionel Messi kept his nerve from the penalty spot to give Barcelona a 1-0 win over Real Sociedad in La Liga on Saturday and return his side to the top of the table.
'For the Premier League, it would be great having the best player in the world in the league. I'm not sure the Premier League needs a boost but it would be.'
Messi announced he wanted to leave Barcelona, on Tuesday, after spending his entire career at the Catalan club.
Barcelona defender Gerard Pique said on Wednesday that he considered quitting the Spanish national team over criticism for his views on the Catalan independence referendum, but decided against it because it would play into the hands of his detractors.
Real play Athletic Bilbao while Barcelona visit Real Sociedad in fixtures that have often proved to be among their hardest away trips over the last decade.
Will open radio access network technology (O-RAN) disrupt the way 5G networks roll out in the country? After all, it promises to offer a substantially lower capital cost, enables the choice of an array of vendors, and provides more network flexibility - all very important for telcos who expect to invest over Rs 60,000 crore to roll out a pan-India 5G network and that's without spectrum costs. But more importantly, it counters the stranglehold of global telecom gear makers such as Ericsson, Nokia, and Samsung over telcos to whom they sell propriety technology and bundled hardware and software.
Defensive injury concerns for veteran squad leader Vincent Kompany and Barcelona's Thomas Vermaelen have eased and coach Roberto Martinez has sent standby defender Laurent Ciman home.
The next time the four-time world champion will get behind the wheel will be for first Friday practice at Melbourne's Albert Park on March 23.
Lionel Messi marked his record 506th appearance for Barcelona in La Liga by scoring a penalty but the Catalans could only draw
La Liga's organising body announced on Monday that all clubs would begin testing their players this week as part of the first phase of a four-step protocol to return to playing matches, without spectators, in June.
Barcelona were held 1-1 at home by Napoli in the first leg of their Europa League knockout stage playoff
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has bluntly told the government there is no reason for its members to roll out 5G networks as they will be unviable if 'captive private wireless networks' are allowed to be run by enterprises. The COAI, which has Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea as its key members, has written to Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw saying there is 'no business case for the roll out of 5G networks'. Permitting such captive networks will 'diminish the revenue so much that there will be no viable business case left for the telecom service providers and there will not remain any need for 5G network roll out by telecom service providers (TSPs)'.
'We want to clarify that our desire has always been to apply a drop in salary because we fully understand that this is an exceptional situation and we are the first ones who have ALWAYS helped the club when asked'
Messi opened the scoring after two minutes and eight seconds, the quickest goal of his career, slipping the ball through Thibaut Courtois' legs from a tight angle.
With the Catalans shorn of three of their top forwards, all eyes will be on Griezmann in his first appearance at the Camp Nou since his 120-million-euro ($133 million) move from Atletico Madrid, and not least because Barca need a win to kickstart their season.
McLaren play down Alonso memory loss.
Barcelona are in the middle of an injury crisis as they head to Valencia for Saturday's La Liga game looking to keep up with pacemaking pair Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. Without injured goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen and right back Sergi Roberto for the last two games, Barca will also be missing defenders Jordi Alba and Gerard Pique after both were hurt in Wednesday's 4-0 win over Manchester City in the Champions League. Pique sprained his right ankle while Alba injured his left hamstring and both are out until November.
In photos: When people go to the heights of danger for a 'cool' selfie.
Rediff.com brings you a collection of some of the best sports images from around the world.
Lionel Messi fittingly sealed Barcelona's 26th La Liga title on Saturday by coming off the bench to score the goal in a 1-0 win over Levante in front of a jubilant Nou Camp crowd, who celebrated a remarkable eighth league crown in 11 years.
Messi doesn't need to win a World Cup to prove his greatness, feels iconic former Argentine striker Hernan Crespo.
Red Bull are hoping that engine and chassis upgrades will help them beat Ferrari and Formula One champions Mercedes more often after Max Verstappen's Spanish Grand Prix victory on Sunday.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said on Friday he trusted his team to handle the occasion of this weekend's season finale at lowly Granada, where a win would guarantee their 24th La Liga title.
The latest tennis rankings have been announced by the ATP and WTA
A compelling cast of players, two attacking teams propelled by great pace and a clash between neighbours to boot.
'I arrived at Manchester United a boy, and I left a man'
Triple world champion Lewis Hamilton and team mate Nico Rosberg will be given more freedom to race each other this season, Mercedes motorsport head Toto Wolff said on Friday.
