Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid resume a nail-biting La Liga title race on Saturday after all notched up victories on Wednesday. Leaders Barcelona, who ended a four-game winless streak by hammering Deportivo La Coruna 8-0 away from home, host struggling Sporting Gijon on Saturday. Atletico battled to a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao to stay level on 79 points with Barcelona, who top the table with a superior head-to-head record and host Malaga. Real stayed one point behind their title rivals after beating Villarreal 3-0 and are expected to be without top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo for their visit to struggling neighbours Rayo Vallecano. The Portuguese forward was unable to finish the game against Villarreal after suffering cramp in stoppage time but eased concerns he had suffered a serious injury.
Barcelona moved ever closer towards a successful defence of their La Liga title after nearest challengers Atletico Madrid suffered a shock late collapse at struggling Sporting Gijon to lose 2-1 on Saturday.
Barcelona must to wait to confirm a place in the Champions League last 16 after dropping points for the first time in Group D in an absorbing 0-0 draw at Olympiakos Piraeus on Tuesday.
Girona thrash Osasuna for first win of the season
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Atletico Madrid's La Liga title challenge took a nosedive when they slumped to a shock 3-0 defeat at Osasuna on Sunday, leaving Real Madrid three points clear at the top.
Cristiano Ronaldo struck midway through the first half as leaders Real Madrid won 1-0 at Malaga in La Liga on Saturday, while Atletico Madrid stayed hot on their heels after Diego Costa netted in a 1-0 victory over Espanyol.
Joao Miranda and new signing Mario Mandzukic led Atletico Madrid to a 2-1 home win in La Liga on Saturday as visitors Eibar were unable to cope with the aerial threat of the champions.
With Real Madrid facing an injury crisis ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid attention will be on talisman Cristiano Ronaldo to lead them through but James Rodriguez may hold the key.
Defending champions Chennaiyin FC and Atletico de Kolkata played out a highly-entertaining 2-2 draw in their campaign opening match in the Indian Super League football tournament in Kolkata on Sunday.
Antoine Griezmann scored twice off the bench as Atletico Madrid sealed a place in the King's Cup quarter-finals with a 3-0 win at home to Rayo Vallecano on Thursday while Valencia also advanced with victory by the same scoreline at Granada.
A quickfire Arda Turan double, including an acrobatic bicycle kick, fired Atletico Madrid to a 3-1 home win over Espanyol in La Liga on Sunday and lifted the Europa League semi-finalists up to seventh.
Atletico Madrid striker Mario Mandzukic's early goal secured a 1-0 win over Real Madrid and a 2-1 aggregate success to clinch the Spanish Super Cup and gain some revenge for last season's Champions League final defeat.
Christmas came early to the 'City of Joy' as the inaugural Indian Super League champions Atletico de Kolkata returned home to a hero's welcome.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti is looking for a big improvement from his side when they play their first home game of the LaLiga season, against Valladolid on Sunday, with Kylian Mbappe making his Santiago Bernabeu debut
Paris St Germain will play Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona were pitted against an unpredictable Napoli, while Chelsea were drawn against Bayern Munich. City, who will be at home in the second leg, have yet to beat the Spanish side with two draws and two defeats in their previous four meetings.
Barcelona and Atletico Madrid dropped their first points of the season on Saturday, missing the chance to equal the record for the best-ever La Liga start.
Atletico Madrid kept pace with leaders Barcelona and restored their five-point lead over third-placed city rivals Real when Diego Costa and David Villa each scored a penalty in a 2-1 win at Granada in La Liga on Thursday.
Photos from the UEFA Champions League last 16 first leg-matches played on Wednesday
Barcelona suffered a shock 1-0 LaLiga defeat at Real Sociedad on Sunday that ended their seven-match winning streak in all competitions.
Atletico Madrid have agreed to sign Colombia striker Radamel Falcao from Porto for a fee of 40 million euros ($57.26 million).
Simeone's side leapfrogged Real Sociedad into fourth on 42 points, while Sevilla stayed third in the standings on 46 after beating Las Palmas 1-0, also on Sunday, thanks to a late strike from substitute Joaquin Correa
Three consecutive defeats by direct rivals in the Primera Liga has left Atletico Madrid coach Javier Aguirre under pressure to get a good result against Liverpool at home in the Champions League.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Atletico Madrid got their La Liga campaign up and running in less than convincing fashion when Antoine Griezmann's deflected free kick secured an edgy 1-0 win at home to promoted Las Palmas on Saturday.
For months, the 2024 Ballon d'Or seemed to have a clear front-runner, with everyone anticipating the coronation of Vinícius Júnior as the new king of football.
Joaquin, 37, became the oldest scorer in a Seville top-flight derby when he rose to head home at the near post in the 79th minute, shortly after the visitors had had midfielder Roque Mesa sent off for two bookings.
Atletico Madrid surrendered top spot in La Liga to Barcelona when they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to 10-man Sevilla in a fiercely contested La Liga clash on Sunday.
A repeat of the 2014 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid is still possible after Friday's semi-final draw.
Real Madrid's stuttering run continued as they were held 1-1 at home by La Liga minnows Eibar on Sunday, drawing a fourth consecutive game in all competitions for the first time in more than a decade.
Real Madrid's early-season woes deepened when they lost 2-1 at home to La Liga champions Atletico Madrid, while substitute Neymar struck twice in Barcelona's 2-0 win against visiting Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.
The Catalan side was routed by Atletico Madrid 3-0 in the Spanish first division league.
Atletico Madrid right back Juanfran has thanked fans for the support he received following his penalty shootout miss in Saturday's Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid. The defender's effort rebounded off the post before Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winning spot kick to hand Real their 11th European Cup in Milan. Spain international Juanfran was in tears and did not speak to the media after the match but on Monday he wrote a letter on the club's official website. "I will never forget your displays of affection when I came to ask for your forgiveness," he said. "Seeing my tears reflected in the faces of the thousands of Atleticos that packed that end of the stadium helped me cope with the tremendous sadness I felt in those hard times."
Atletico Madrid will face holders Real Madrid in the last 16 of the King's Cup after a double from Mario Mandzukic sealed a 5-2 aggregate victory over lower league Hospitalet on Thursday.
Barcelona had to come from a goal down to rescue a 1-1 draw at mid-table Levante on Sunday, leaving Atletico Madrid with a chance to go top of La Liga.
The following is the draw for the Champions League last 16 which was held in Nyon on Monday:
Atletico Madrid set up a King's Cup final with city rivals Real after Diego Costa and Radamel Falcao scored in a 2-2 second leg draw at Sevilla on Wednesday, to progress 4-3 on aggregate.
Lionel Messi scored in his 12th consecutive La Liga game to help leaders Barcelona earn a 1-1 draw at Valencia, allowing second-placed Atletico Madrid to close to within nine points after a 1-0 win over Real Betis on Sunday.
Ahn, who famously scored the golden goal that knocked Italy out of the World Cup, was to join English premier league club Blackburn Rovers last August until the deal broke down due to visa problems.\n\n
Luka Modric pulled one back for Zinedine Zidane's shellshocked side with a brilliant strike from distance early in the second half before substitute Vinicius Jr reduced the deficit to one goal.
