Arsenal had scored 10 goals in two matches against BATE Borisov in the same competition in 2017 but never looked like being as prolific in the freezing temperatures of Belarus.
Former Europa League winners Manchester United booked a quarter-final spot in the tournament after their second-string side laboured to a 2-1 home win over LASK Linz on Wednesday to seal a 7-1 aggregate rout of the Austrian side.
Italian football is experiencing a significant crisis following the failure of its clubs in European competitions and the national team's continued absence from the World Cup.
Liverpool have sacked manager Arne Slot after a disappointing second season where they failed to defend their Premier League title and missed out on Champions League qualification.
London sides Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal made winning starts as did fellow Premier League club Leicester City.
Tottenham Hotspur's Erik Lamela scored a stunning 'rabona' goal to light up Thursday's Europa League ties, wrapping his left boot round the back of his right leg 20 metres out and blasting the ball into the top corner.
Ajax to face United in final despite defeat at Lyon
Arsenal led a list of nine clubs who grabbed a second win in as many games in the Europa League group phase as France striker Olivier Giroud scored his 100th goal for the club in a 4-2 win at BATE Borisov on Thursday.
Manchester United's Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored a goal in each half as their team comfortably outclassed Ajax Amsterdam to win an emotional Europa League final 2-0 and qualify for the group stages of the Champions League.
Xabi Alonso will take over as Chelsea's new manager, the Premier League club said on Sunday, with the Spaniard signing a four-year deal beginning on July 1.
Andrea Pirlo kept Juventus on course for a home Europa League final after his superb free kick settled their battle with Italian rivals Fiorentina to send the Serie A leaders into the quarter-finals on Thursday.
Thirteen teams have now qualified for the last 32 including Bayer Leverkusen, FC Zurich and Lazio who had already secured places in the next stage of the competition.
Managerless Tottenham Hotspur face a long trip to Ukraine for a meeting with former boss Juande Ramos after being drawn against Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in the last 32 of the Europa League.
Sunderland defeated Newcastle United 2-1 with a late goal from Brian Brobbey, while Nottingham Forest secured a 3-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in Premier League action.
Liverpool handed their fiercest rivals a painful lesson on Thursday with a dominant 2-0 win over Manchester United in the first leg of a Europa League last-16 clash.
Manchester's Etihad Stadium turned into a tribute to Pep Guardiola -- the man who transformed both the club and English football over his glittering decade as boss.
German Cup holders VfB Stuttgart are back in the final after a late extra-time goal from Tiago Tomas earned the hosts a 2-1 win over Freiburg on Thursday to set up a decider with Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
Liverpool draw Sparta Prague in Europa League last 16
A summary of Thursday's Europa League quarter-finals second-leg.
Goals from Jan Vertonghen and Jermain Defoe left Tottenham Hotspur on the cusp of the Europa League knockout stages as four other clubs maintained perfect starts on Thursday.
West Ham draw 0-0 with Crystal Palace to stay just above the relegation zone, while Wolves are officially relegated from the Premier League after a poor season.
Barcelona's women's team showcased their dominance by defeating Real Madrid 6-0, securing a place in the Champions League semifinals. They will face Bayern Munich for a spot in the final.
Nottingham Forest significantly improved their chances of avoiding relegation from the Premier League with a dominant 5-0 victory over Sunderland. The win moves them eight points clear of the relegation zone, increasing pressure on their rivals.
Manchester United loosened Arsenal's grip on the Premier League title race with a 3-2 win in north London on Sunday.
Europa League favourites Manchester United secured a 1-1 draw on a threadbare pitch at Rostov, while Olympique Lyonnais beat AS Roma 4-2 helped by a fine individual goal from Nabil Fekir in their last 16, first leg ties on Thursday.
Borussia Dortmund snatched a late goal at Atalanta to progress with a 1-1 draw, while AC Milan and Atletico Madrid, both with three-goal leads from the away legs, completed the formality of qualifying with 1-0 wins at home on Thursday.
Four-time European Champions Ajax Amsterdam were felled at the first hurdle of the continent's second tier Europa League on Thursday, exiting in the group stage two days after rivals PSV Eindhoven celebrated long-awaited success.
Holders Sevilla maintained their Europa League challenge with a 1-0 win over Rijeka in a winner-takes-all clash on Thursday.
New Liverpool boss Juergen Klopp made it three wins from his last three matches with a 1-0 success at Rubin Kazan in Russia that left them second in Group B, two points behind Swiss club Sion on Thursday.
'Players like Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard -- they've been brought up in this city. Paul Pogba was brought up in the city from the age of 14. They will find if difficult'
Mouth-watering matches lined up as PSG to face Bayern and Barcelona in Champions League opening stage.
Manchester City defeated Brentford 3-0, closing the gap on Premier League leaders Arsenal. Liverpool drew with Chelsea, while other key Premier League results impacted European qualification hopes.
A player in Sevilla's first team squad has tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of their Europa League last-16 tie against AS Roma, the La Liga club announced on Wednesday. The Spanish club said they conducted tests on Sunday on players, coaches and staff. The player, who was not named, is asymptomatic and is self-isolating at home.
Arsenal teenager Bukayo Saka scored his first goal for the club as they beat 10-man Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0, while Manchester United's 17-year-old Mason Greenwood secured a 1-0 win over FC Astana as the Europa League group stage began on Thursday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Red Star, who won the European Cup in 1991 and reached the latter stages the following season, finished second in Group H behind Arsenal who crushed BATE Borisov 6-0.
European football was given good and bad reminders of its past on Thursday with an impressive 2-0 win for once-mighty Ajax Amsterdam over Schalke 04 in one Europa League game but ugly scenes in the crowd at Lyon delaying another.
AS Roma secured their place in the Europa League last 16 with a 3-2 home win over 10-man Porto on Thursday thanks to a Paulo Dybala double, advancing 4-3 on aggregate.
Manchester United took a big step towards the Europa League quarter-finals by thrashing Austrian side LASK Linz 5-0 on Thursday in their last 16 first-leg tie at an empty Linzer Stadium due to the coronavirus pandemic.
