For all Vicente del Bosque's confidence that he has the right balance of experience and youth to return Spain to their familiar place on the winner's rostrum, questions remain about his best starting line-up ahead of Euro 2016.
Cristiano Ronaldo's bullet header helped Real Madrid to a 2-0 victory .
The Champions League quarter-final between Liverpool and Manchester City is one of the most anticipated games of the season pitting the Premier League's runaway leaders against the top scorers in Europe's elite competition.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique is still not satisfied despite winning five trophies in 2015 and is aiming to do even better next year.
Heavyweight trio Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea kept up their 100 per cent starts to the Premier League season this weekend.
Real Madrid produced a gutsy performance to earn a 1-0 win at Sevilla, on Sunday, which took them level on points at the top of La Liga
Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge was substituted with a thigh injury as the English Premier League club beat Bayern Munich 3-0 in a pre-season match in Germany on Tuesday.
Neymar struck twice as Barca beat Atletico Madrid to reach the King's Cup semis
Following a bright start to the season it was another disappointing display by Villarreal, who have one win from seven games in La Liga, before the return at El Madrigal in two weeks.
Here is the round-up of all the football action across Europe on the weekend
'Will I be playing at Barca next season? It's an unknown'
Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar were all on target as holders Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 3-1 on Wednesday to overturn a deficit from the first leg and advance to the quarter-finals of the King's Cup.
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi set a La Liga record of 253 goals when he grabbed a hat-trick in Saturday's 5-1 win at home to Sevilla, the latest milestone for the four-times World Player of the Year.
Spain's biggest selling sports daily Marca summed it up in Monday's headline after Barcelona wrapped up a fifth La Liga title in seven years and their 23rd overall on Sunday: 'Messi's League'.
Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand will look to avenge last year's championship defeat and clinch his sixth world title when he takes on Magnus Carlsen in the first game of the World Chess championship in Sochi, on Saturday.
Manchester City failed in an audacious transfer deadline day move for Leicester City midfielder Riyadh Mahrez, British media reported on Wednesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 400th goal for Real Madrid as Zinedine Zidane's side closed in on a first La Liga title since 2012, easing to a 4-1 win over Sevilla on Sunday while Neymar hit a hat-trick for Barcelona, who thrashed Las Palmas 4-1.
Zinedine Zidane got off to a flying start as Real Madrid coach when Gareth Bale hit a hat-trick in a 5-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday after a Lionel Messi treble had fired Barcelona to the top of La Liga.
Lionel Messi struck a spectacular free kick, scored another goal and set up two more in a 4-1 victory for Barcelona over nine-man city rivals Espanyol in the first leg of their King's Cup last-16 clash on Wednesday.
Treble-chasing Barcelona are exactly where they want to be as they prepare for two matches this week that could make or break coach Luis Enrique's first season in charge.
Cristian Tello hit a hat-trick as Barcelona came from behind to win 4-1 in their King's Cup quarter-final first leg at Levante on Wednesday and Lionel Messi celebrated his 400th appearance for the Catalan side.
Thomas Partey scored his first goal for Atletico Madrid as they reached the last 16 of the King's Cup with a 1-0 home victory over third-tier Reus on Thursday that secured a 3-1 aggregate success.
Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo scored the opening goal as 10-man Real Madrid beat Osasuna 2-0 on Wednesday to qualify for the King's Cup quarter-finals 4-0 on aggregate.
Lionel Messi will be working "full time" to shake off the hamstring injury sustained on Sunday that will sideline him for six to eight weeks, Barcelona's Argentine World Player of the Year said on Tuesday.
Underlying tensions mean Luis Enrique will not be remembered with the same reverence as Pep Guardiola, even though he has delivered a similar trophy haul.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti fended off questions about his future after the Champions League holders were dumped out in the semi-finals by Juventus 3-2 on aggregate on Wednesday.
A late goal by Toni Kroos sealed victory as Real Madrid defeated an impressive Celta Vigo side 2-1 to win their first home La Liga game of the campaign on Saturday.
Manchester City tightened their stranglehold at the top of the Premier League on Wednesday by trouncing bottom club West Bromwich Albion 3-0 as nearest rivals Manchester United suffered a chastening 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.
Now, Real Madrid have never won the Spanish treble and are fighting tooth and nail in La Liga to prevent arch-rivals Barcelona scooping Champions League and domestic league and Cup titles for a second time.
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone may have played down the significance of Sunday's 2-1 La Liga defeat at Real Sociedad but it has raised further questions about the champions' ability to defend their title.
Barca made a slow start to the campaign under their new coach but after beating Paris Saint Germain in the quarter-finals they are on course to repeat the treble success.
10 photos that show we live in an odd, odd world!
Whatever Karim Benzema does in a Real Madrid shirt his achievements are generally overshadowed by the exploits of Cristiano Ronaldo yet the France forward has a splendid Champions League record of his own.
Photographic summary of the football matches played across Spain, Italy and France
Not content with setting a record of 17 goals for one edition of the Champions League last season, Cristiano Ronaldo is already well on the way towards breaking Lionel Messi's La Liga best haul of 50 goals in one campaign.
Real Madrid continued their impressive start to the new year with Karim Benzema giving them a 1-0 victory in the King's Cup quarter-final first-leg tie away to Espanyol on Tuesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Villarreal landed a stunning blow on a potential rival for a European qualification berth when Giovani dos Santos and Ikechukwu Uche each struck twice in a 5-1 drubbing of Real Sociedad in La Liga on Monday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
