Real Madrid showed their character by beating Barcelona 2-0 in Sunday's top-of-the-table 'Clasico', leapfrogging their rivals at the La Liga summit after a week in which their pride had taken a beating at home and in Europe. Brazilian teenager Vinicius Jr scored the opener in the 71st minute with a strike that deflected off Gerard Pique, flummoxing goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen who had made some jaw-dropping saves, and substitute Mariano added the second in added time.
Sergio Aguero's hat-trick led Manchester City to a 3-1 win over Arsenal on Sunday and back into second place in the English Premier League, two points behind leaders Liverpool.
Liverpool started the ball rolling with a convincing 4-1 win at home to promoted Norwich and City responded a day later with an even more emphatic 5-0 victory at West Ham United.
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.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday.
Manchester United assistant manager Ryan Giggs has reportedly been offered a new role on the coaching staff led by Jose Mourinho, who is being considered as the favourite to replace Louis van Gaal at the helm of the Old Trafford club.
A Roberto Firmino hat-trick proved the highlight of Liverpool's 5-1 demolition of Arsenal as the Premier League leaders opened a nine-point gap over Tottenham Hotspur, who lost 3-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Manchester City cannot afford another defeat on Tuesday at home to Barcelona, who thumped them 4-0 two weeks ago, having taken just one point from their last two Champions League Group C matches.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez says the Spanish club has overtaken Manchester United as the biggest earner in world soccer.
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson faces a delicate balancing act of picking a strong enough side to reach the Champions League final while resting the players he needs for this week's domestic showdown.
Zinedine Zidane has said his side are in a delicate situation as they prepare to host arch-rivals Barcelona in a La Liga title showdown on Sunday
Second-placed Tottenham Hotspur kept up the distant chase of Premier League leaders Chelsea with a hard-earned 2-1 victory over Southampton to cut the gap to 10 points on Sunday.
Only one point separates the two sides with Chelsea on 31 and City on 30 but Antonio Conte's impact at Stamford Bridge appears greater than his City counterpart Pep Guardiola's at the Etihad.
Liverpool finished 2016 second in the Premier League with a 1-0 victory over third-placed Manchester City on Saturday.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Manchester City went 11 points clear with a record 14th consecutive Premier League win in an entertaining derby against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Through this campaign, Muslims are trying to stop people from conflating the terrorist group with Islam.
John O'Shea was Manchester United's unlikely hero as they beat Arsenal 1-0 in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final.
Paris St Germain suffered their first defeat of the season when they were beaten 2-0 at Stade Rennais on Sunday to drop their first Ligue 1 points of the season.
The EPL opens this weekend with expectations greater than ever but the same faces tipped to prosper.
To finish with dignity is how Robin van Persie wants to end his playing days on Sunday when he hangs up his boots after an 18-year career.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has called for greater protection from referees to prevent Cristiano Ronaldo from sustaining serious injury.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field
West Ham bade farewell to the Boleyn Ground after 112 years with a pulsating 3-2 victory over Manchester United to leave the visitors' top-four hopes in tatters on Tuesday.
Much of this has been made possible by the owners's insistence on building a team, rather than banking on a collection of talented individuals not necessarily suited to play alongside one another.
Manchester United should focus on winning the Europa League this season, which would bring the club a trophy they have never won and secure qualification for next season's Champions League, former manager Alex Ferguson has said.
A huge shock is on the cards in British football as a rank outsider is threatening to gatecrash the millionaire favourites. But it is Scottish hopefuls Aberdeen and not English league leaders Leicester who have bridged the biggest financial gulf.
Images from the English Premier League matches played on Wednesday
Arsenal's hopes of catching Manchester City for second place in the Premier League suffered a setback.
Virgil van Dijk made a dream start to his Anfield career, scoring the winning goal on his debut for Liverpool, as they beat city rivals Everton 2-1 in a pulsating FA Cup third round tie on Friday.
Southampton's rich vein of form in the Premier League continued as they beat Burnley 3-1 with two goals from Charlie Austin on Sunday while another promoted side, Middlesbrough, fared just as poorly, losing 1-0 at home to Watford.
'Ghost-like stands repel rather than attract audiences,' observes Ashis Ray.
Willian's late strike snatched a 1-0 home win for Chelsea over a stubborn Everton side to maintain lead.
This and more from the happenings in the world of football
ManchesterCity's season began to unravel when Kevin de Bruyne missed 10 matches with a knee injury but as he showed when he scored against Paris St Germain on Tuesday, anything is possible with him back in the team.
His side's passage to the final was in large due to the work put in both in the field and at the crease, with few players reading conditions quite like the Kiwi skipper.
Manchester United survived a tense finale to beat West Bromwich Albion 2-1 at the Hawthorns on Sunday and close to within 11 points of Premier League leaders Manchester City.
Leicester's Mahrez rules out PSG move
'My team gave their best. They played a very good second half and missed qualifying by just a few minutes. These kind of matches build the character of the team.'
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