Mario Balotelli headed the decisive goal as Italy emerged 2-1 winners over England in another high quality World Cup match in the Amazon jungle on Saturday, to gain a key early advantage in a Group D containing three former tournament winners.
When Massimiliano Allegri arrived in Turin last July, Juventus ownership had set two goals for him - win a fourth straight "Scudetto" and reach the Champions League quarter-finals.
Lionel Messi was back in scoring business for Barcelona on Sunday, leading them to a resounding 4-0 win at home against Villarreal in a near-perfect La Liga opener for the Catalans under new coach Ronald Koeman.
Juventus made light work of bitter rivals Inter Milan on Sunday, winning 3-1 to increase their Serie A lead to nine points after AS Roma were washed out and Napoli blundered to a 3-0 defeat at Atalanta.
A summary of Saturday's action in Serie A and La Liga.
Carlos Tevez scored a stunning goal as Serie A leaders Juventus beat Torino 1-0 on Sunday to continue an extraordinary dominance of their neighbours.
The injury will also rule him out of the reigning European champions' two Champions League quarter-final legs against last year's runners-up Paris St Germain, scheduled for April 7 and April 13.
Manchester City suffered from deja vu as Luis Suarez's double gave Barcelona a 2-1 first leg lead in a Champions League last 16 tie at the Etihad although Lionel Messi's late penalty miss left the door ajar on Tuesday.
Defender Giorgio Chiellini scored three times, including an own goal, as Italy beat Azerbaijan 2-1 in their Euro 2016 Group H qualifier in Palermo on Friday.
Real Madrid's French duo Karim Benzema and Ferland Mendy struck in the second half as the Spanish champions overcame an injury crisis to beat Getafe 2-0 at home on Tuesday and close the gap to La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid to five points.
A summary of the Euro 2016 qualifying group matches, played on Friday.
Among other transfer news globally, defender Rahul Bheke joins Mumbai City FC while Locatelli completes Juventus move.
When Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri was greeted with a hail of eggs and spat at on his first day at work he could not have imagined he would lead them to the brink of an unprecedented treble of titles in his first season.
England's right-back Kieran Trippier is one of the World Cup's top performers.
Sevilla will attempt to draw Bayern Munich out of their comfort zone and take the game to the Germans,
Juventus striker Carlos Tevez struck to give the Serie A champions a 1-0 win over AC Milan on Saturday, handing coach Massimiliano Allegri a winning return to San Siro where he was shown the door eight months ago.
A summary of Sunday's action in Serie A and La Liga.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Juventus strolled to a 3-0 home win over bottom side Crotone in the Italian Serie A on Monday, with the victory taking the champions up to third in the standings.
A summary of Sunday's action in Serie A and Bundesliga.
IMAGES from Champions League matches played on Wednesday.
The Champions League group stages took on a less predictable look after Thursday's draw, helped by UEFA's decision to tweak the seeding system.
Juventus defeated second-placed Lazio 2-0 at home on Saturday to take another huge step towards their fourth straight Serie A title and boost their confidence for Wednesday's crunch Champions League clash in Monaco.
Juventus rehire Allegri.
Ousmane Dembele struck early and Lionel Messi converted a late penalty as Barcelona won 2-0 at Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday after Alvaro Morata had three goals disallowed for offside for the Serie A side.
Defiant 10-man Porto upset Juventus to reach the Champions League quarter-finals on away goals after a 4-4 aggregate draw despite losing 3-2 to the Italians following extra time in a thrilling clash that went to the wire on Tuesday.
American swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, was suspended for six months by USA Swimming on Monday following his recent arrest on a drunken driving charge.
Premier League leaders Manchester City won their derby with United 3-1, while Liverpool kept pace with a home win over Fulham.
IMAGES from soccer matches played across Europe on Saturday.
Barcelona lost for the second straight La Liga game in a 1-0 home reverse against Celta Vigo but there was no such trouble for Manchester City, who beat 10-man Manchester United 1-0 thanks to Sergio Aguero.
Five players to watch during the 2016 Major League Soccer season, which opens on Sunday.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday night.
Barcelona continued their rampant run of domestic form to beat Osasuna 2-0 away from home on Saturday and move to within two points of La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, with Lionel Messi setting up goals scored by Jordi Alba and teenager Ilaix Moriba.
Barcelona finally made a statement of intent in what has been a chaotic season as they came from behind to beat La Liga leaders Real Sociedad 2-1 at home on Wednesday.
Ahead of the UEFA Champions League proper, which kicks-off next month, Bikash Mohapatra/Rediff.com tells football fans what to expect in this year's competition.
How did how a reluctant, chain-smoking, beer-swigging footballer captain the greatest football nation in the world?
Malta make Italy sweat, while Bale takes Wales closer to competition
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Juventus progressed to the Champions League last 16 after a Cristiano Ronaldo goal and a late header from substitute Alvaro Morata gave them a comeback 2-1 home win over Hungarians Ferencvaros on Tuesday.
Belgium make Wales wait after Hazard's strike, while Czechs beat Latvia to qualify
