Cristiano Ronaldo struck the quickest hat-trick of his career on his way to netting five goals in Real Madrid's 9-1 drubbing of second-from-bottom Granada on Sunday which took Real to within a point of La Liga leaders Barcelona.
Images from La Liga matches played on Sunday
Real Madrid have decided to give departing goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas an official send-off later on Monday following criticism over the low-key nature of his tearful farewell news conference on Sunday.
Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas left Real Madrid on Saturday after 16 seasons as an iconic figure at the Bernabeu.
Barcelona said captain Iniesta would miss the match after he was not able to train with his team mates on Tuesday ahead of the encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu, where the Catalans will look to overturn a 3-1 deficit.
Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas called for patience from the club's demanding fans after the La Liga giants failed to sparkle in Saturday's laboured 1-0 win over Osasuna.
Real Madrid and Barcelona, the world's two richest clubs, have already played each other twice in five days in La Liga and the King's Cup, and now face off again over two legs for a place in the Champions League final.
Zinedine Zidane lamented Real Madrid's home woes as the Spanish and European champions slipped to a surprise 1-0 defeat to Real Betis on Wednesday.
The Spanish government's top sports official has sent out a message of calm and said there is no reason for Saturday's La Liga 'El Clasico' between Real Madrid and Barcelona to be postponed following Friday's attacks in Paris.
Casillas had suffered a heart attack during a training session last year and has not played any competitive football since April, 2019.
Spaniard Benitez left Napoli at the end of the season and takes over from Italian Carlo Ancelotti at the Bernabeu.
Real and Barca have won the title in 15 of the last 16 seasons, with Atletico breaking the duopoly in 2014.
Zidane calls on Madrid fans to create best atmosphere ever against Bayern
Ramon Calderon resigned as president of Spanish champions Real Madrid on Friday after an emergency board meeting at the Bernabeu, Spanish media have reported.
Pepe opened the scoring for Real with a looping header that flew past Jan Oblak in the 52nd minute and it looked like the hosts would earn three points to move five clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga.
Gareth Bale was once again subjected to whistling from a section of the Bernabeu crowd.
"C'est fini". With those few words in French a tearful Iker Casillas brought to an end his farewell statement on Sunday to the Real Madrid fans he has served as first-team goalkeeper and captain for 16 seasons.
The season kick backs into action with a local derby between Sevilla and Real Betis on June 11 and there will be fixtures for the following seven days, with Barca hosting Leganes on June 16
Real Madrid opened a two-point lead over Villarreal at the top of La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo set a club scoring record in a 3-0 stroll at home to Levante on Saturday.
Rafael Nadal has issued a rallying cry and called on Spanish athletes to help raise 11 million euros ($12.07 million) to help fight the coronavirus pandemic. Spain is one of the most badly affected countries in the world with over 56,000 cases and the parliament voted to extend the coronavirus lockdown to at least April 12 after the death toll rose to over 4,000 by Thursday.
Courtois's first game for Real could be against Atletico in the UEFA Super Cup on Aug 15 although the fact he has trained little since reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup with Belgium means coach Julen Lopetegui may opt to play Keylor Navas instead.
Karim Benzema netted a second-half hat-trick as Real Madrid got back to winning ways with a 3-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday.
Tensions have flared in the region of Barcelona due to the controversial court decision jailing several leaders of the Catalan independence movement for their role in organising a referendum on the subject in 2017.
Late Griezmann strike ends Atletico's away day hoodoo
Barcelona blew the La Liga title race wide open when Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in a 4-3 comeback win for the champions at 10-man Real Madrid in an action-packed 'Clasico' on Sunday.
Cristiano Ronaldo was booed by Real Madrid fans despite grabbing one goal and laying on another in their 2-0 Champions League last-16 second leg win over AS Roma on Tuesday.
Until this season Manchester City's progression in the Champions League could be measured in baby steps but on Tuesday they can make a huge leap forward when they host Real Madrid in their first European semi-final for 45 years.
The suspension of soccer leagues across Europe due to the COVID-19 pandemic will see overall player value drop by 6.6 billion euros ($7.5 billion), or about 18%, in the transfer market, KPMG's global head of sports Andrea Sartori said. The majority of leagues have resumed or are in the process of restarting their seasons behind closed doors before the transfer window reopens, with clubs still reeling from the financial impact of the months-long shutdown.
Cristiano Ronaldo's fifth Champions League hat-trick inspired Real Madrid to a 3-0 comeback victory over VfL Wolfsburg on Tuesday that clinched a place in the semi-finals for a sixth successive season.
The Portuguese forward put his team on the verge of their third final in four years and took his tally to 103 goals in the competition as he helped Madrid vanquish their neighbours at the Santiago Bernabeu.
'I have a long contract still to go, I am enjoying myself and we are winning trophies. I want to continue doing this at Real Madrid'
'I'm not asking them to name streets after me, the only thing I ask is that they don't boo me here'
La Liga leaders Barcelona won a tight and tense 'Clasico' 1-0 at Real Madrid on Saturday, beating their great rivals at their Bernabeu home for the second time in four days and moving a staggering 12 points clear of them in the standings.
Images from the matches played across football leagues in Europe on Sunday.
The Welsh winger is thriving in the absence of Ronaldo and Madrid have three wins from four La Liga matches.
Real Madrid included Denis Cheryshev in their starting lineup for their first match of the 2015-16 competition even though he should have been serving a one-match suspension and the Russia forward opened the scoring in a 3-1 victory.
The numbers behind Sunday's 'El Clasico' between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the Bernabeu stadium.
Ronaldo shoved referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea when he was dismissed for diving in Madrid's 3-1 win over Barcelona on Sunday. He will now miss Wednesday's second leg as well as the first four La Liga games of the season.
The Portuguese forward, who also scored a treble in the quarter-final against Bayern Munich at the Santiago Bernabeu, and five goals across that tie, is revelling in the central striker's role he has adopted this season.
Federico Valverde has already made over 100 appearances at senior level - while winning silverware and recognition both with his current side Madrid and country Uruguay, and showing the physical, technical and mental attributes to become one of world football's outstanding midfielders.
