Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, who won the 2022 Ballon d'Or award, is also in the shortlist.
The Italian said he would avoid big changes to his team this time, after he tested midfielder Luka Modric up front in place of then-injured striker Karim Benzema in the last El Clasico in March, only to get hammered 4-0 by the Catalans.
Real Madrid produced a stunning comeback from two goals down to earn a devastating 5-2 victory at Liverpool
Real Madrid's Thibaut Courtois, Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga and Vinicius Jr have tested positive for COVID-19.
Chelsea's inability to score a second goal proved costly as Karim Benzema's effort levelled things up
Di Maria to retire from international soccer after World Cup
IMAGES from the football matches played across Europe on Sunday.
Crashing out at the group stage again would be a huge blow to Barcelona's finances, whose perilous state led the club's board to sell a stake in their TV rights and agree to the sale of their audio-visual division.
The din of a concerned crowd transformed into a tumultuous racket when Abdelhamid Sabiri's free kick caught out Thibaut Courtois at his near post and captain Romain Saiss added a slight touch to see Morocco into the lead.
Rayo Vallecano came from behind to beat Real Madrid 3-2 on Monday with the champions failing to reclaim top spot in the standings after two consecutive games without a win.
Thirteen-times European champions Real, who had come through each of their last three Champions League semi-final ties, had been second best for much last week's first leg which ended 1-1.
Italy striker Lorenzo Insigne doubled the lead, making his way from the left flank and dispatching a superb curling strike from 25 yards out into the top corner leaving Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois watching helplessly.
Chelsea playmaker Eden Hazard is in the best form of his life but Belgium need all their top players to be better than ever if they are to have any chance of winning the World Cup, goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said.
Manager Carlo Ancelotti said striker Kylian Mbappe's decision to snub Real Madrid and stay at Paris St Germain was not a distraction ahead of Saturday's Champions League final
Champions League winners Real Madrid outclassed Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 on Wednesday to clinch the UEFA Super Cup for a record-equalling fifth time and kick off their season with a trophy.
Real Madrid did well to hold Atletico in regulation time and then win the match 4-1 in penalty shootouts.
A tap-in by Karim Benzema and a powerful strike by substitute Marco Asensio earned European champions Real Madrid a 2-0 win over 10-man Chelsea.
In a big blow to Real Madrid's title hopes, Real Betis held them to a goalless draw in their La Liga encounter on Sunday.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice as a rejuvenated Barcelona gave a football masterclass to inflict a humiliating 4-0 defeat on rivals Real Madrid on Sunday.
Thibaut Courtois reckons Chelsea are capable of achieving what the Belgium keeper came agonisingly close to doing at Atletico Madrid last season - winning a European and domestic double.
Manchester City reached the Champions League quarter-finals after beating Real Madrid 2-1 (4-2 on aggregate) at the Etihad Stadium on Friday, with scorers Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus taking advantage of errors by defender Raphael Varane.
Roberto Mancini was overjoyed with his Italy team after they withstood a late onslaught from top-ranked Belgium to win 2-1 and set up a Euro 2020 semi-final clash with Spain.
Key head-to-heads in Saturday's Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
Struggling Premier League champions Chelsea have the quality to climb back up the table under interim manager Guus Hiddink, goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has said.
Atletico Madrid were given a big boost ahead of Saturday's Champions League final against Real Madrid in Milan with the news that coach Diego Simeone will be staying on next season. President Enrique Cerezo said on Thursday that the former Atletico player would remain at the club until at least June 2017, when his contract expires. "Simeone will stay next season," Cerezo told Spanish radio station Cadena Ser.
New France captain Kylian Mbappe lived up to expectations with two goals in a 4-0 statement home win against the Netherlands.
Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos once again proved to be the man for the big occasion as he converted a fiercely debated penalty to help his side to a 3-1 win over rivals Barcelona at an empty Camp Nou in La Liga on Saturday.
It was the second of the tournament for Hazard, who now has eight goals for Belgium in 38 international appearances.
Gareth Bale ended a three-month goal drought in La Liga to give Real Madrid a nervy 1-0 win away to basement club Huesca on Sunday, taking his side back into the top four at the expense of Alaves.
Real Madrid saw off a stirring Chelsea fightback to book their place in the Champions League semi-finals following a 3-2 defeat after extra time in a scintillating second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday to go through 5-4 on aggregate.
Real Madrid were crowned Spanish Super Cup champions after goals from Luka Modric and Karim Benzema earned them a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Images from the English Premier League London derby played between Arsenal and Chelsea at the Emirates on Wednesday
Images from the Champions League football matches played on Wednesday night.
Madrid's trip to San Sebastian was full of intrigue after Barca failed to beat Sevilla and the Catalan side's defender Gerard Pique said the title was now Madrid's for the taking.
Levante striker Roger Marti brushed off squandering a penalty to score the winning goal as his side pulled off a shock 2-1 La Liga victory at Real Madrid
A round-up of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Real are on 81 points with four games to go. They are 17 points ahead of nearest rivals Sevilla.
At 80 million euros, 23-year-old Kepa Arrizabalaga will become the most expensive goalkeeper in football history, ahead of Liverpool's Alisson Becker.
Paris St Germain had a chance to extend their Ligue 1 lead to five points after RC Lens drew 1-1 at Troyes and Olympique de Marseille and Monaco shared the spoils on Saturday.
Bitter defeat for Belgium in the World Cup semi-final is tempered by the fact that influential squad members will likely still be around in two years' time for the European Championship where they will have another realistic chance at a major title.
