World Cup holders Italy and beaten finalists France will renew hostilities in the toughest group of Euro 2008. Netherlands and Romania, neither to be taken lightly, complete a Group C that will finish with at least one former European champion on the tournament scrapheap.
AC Milan and Brazil playmaker Kaka was awarded the 2007 Ballon d'Or on Sunday.
Real Madrid battled back from a goal down to beat bottom-of-the-table Osasuna 3-1 on Sunday and reclaim second spot in the Primera Liga from Sevilla, 12 points behind leaders Barcelona.
Unfashionable Premier League side Fulham knocked favourites Juventus out of the Europa League after an astonishing 4-1 win over the Italians who finished the last 16 second leg game with nine men on Thursday.
The prize is awarded to the most valuable player in the 32-team tournament. The decision will be announced on Monday.
There is something of a 'new dawn' feeling about Euro 2008 and it has a lot to do with the absence of some of the great names of European soccer.
David Villa hit a spectacular volley to earn Spain a 1-0 win over world champions Italy in a friendly on Wednesday. The Valencia striker, who replaced Fernando Torres at halftime, fired the ball into the top corner past a helpless Gianluigi Buffon 13 minutes from time after Fabio Cannavaro had headed the ball clear of his area.
Samuel Eto'o coolly converted a penalty on his league debut but champions Inter Milan were held to a 1-1 home draw by Bari in their Serie A opener on Sunday.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Lionel Messi are the three finalists for the 2007 World Player of the Year award.
Injured David Beckham and Ronaldo have been left out of the Real Madrid squad for the match against Lyon.
Real Madrid fought back after a sending off and going a goal down to snatch a dramatic 2-1 victory at Osasuna and win their 31st Spanish league title on Sunday. With three matches left to play, Real have an unassailable 10-point lead over Villarreal at the top of the table.
The English side drew goalless with Juventus in the second leg, but made it to the Champions League semi-finals with a 2-1 aggregate.
Arsenal's Spain forward Jose Antonio Reyes has said if Real Madrid made an offer for him it would be difficult to say 'no'.
Give us your take on the first World Cup semi-final.
The world's biggest superstars landed in Paris and enjoyed a game of soccer.
Magnificent Martinez helps Inter defeat Sparta Prague 1-0
'To all of these heroic people: football thanks you, football remembers you and football supports you'
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
Guangzhou Evergrande began the defence of their Chinese Super League (CSL) title with a 2-0 victory against Shanghai Shenhua as the delayed 2020 campaign, revamped due to the COVID-19 pandemic, finally kicked off over the weekend.
Brazil forward Robinho ended his third spell at Santos on Tuesday with local media reporting he was set to join up with former Selecao coach Luiz Felipe Scolari at Chinese champions Guangzhou Evergrande.
The Chinese Super League will kick off on July 25 after a delay of almost five months from its scheduled start, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) said on Wednesday. The league was originally set to start on February 22 but was postponed indefinitely because of the spread of COVID-19, which first emerged in China late last year.
Zenit St Petersburg's Brazilian striker Hulk has pulled out of Saturday's World Cup qualifying draw, only days after complaining of "gross and ugly" racism in Russian football.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has criticised FIFA's Ballon d'Or award given to the world's best player for glorifying the individual at the expense of the team.
Breaking records has become Cristiano Ronaldo's favourite pastime. Very few footballers can do everything and Ronaldo is of that rare breed
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
A summary of the results of the major European football league matches on the weekend.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances