Real Madrid left back Marcelo admitted he was fortunate not to concede a penalty during their 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich at the Bernabeu, a let-off that helped the holders reach the Champions League final 4-3 on aggregate on Tuesday.
A round-up of Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League
Real's Cristiano Ronaldo will be going in search of his third consecutive World Player of the Year award
Radamel Falcao's hopes of playing at the World Cup finals hung by a thread on Thursday after his Ligue 1 club Monaco announced the Colombia striker required surgery on a left knee injury.
Here, Reuters Sport highlights five reasons why last season's double winners have collapsed.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Uruguay made light of the absence of striker Luis Suarez to recover from a goal down and beat 2015 Copa America hosts Chile 2-1 in a friendly in Santiago.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Sunday.
Juventus shattered Real Madrid's dream of a record-extending 11th European crown when Alvaro Morata scored against his former club to secure a 1-1 Champions League draw with the holders on Wednesday and send Juve into the final 3-2 on aggregate.
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 goalkeeper Jan Oblak produced a heroic performance to repel holders Real Madrid and help secure a 0-0 draw in their Champions League quarter-final, first leg at the Calderon on Tuesday.
Rodriguez whipped Everton in front from the edge of the box, and Michael Keane and Calvert-Lewin ensured it was two wins from two in the Premier League so far this season.
Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo was the scourge of AS Roma again as he inspired the hosts to a 2-0 win and a place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday, scoring and setting up a goal Rodriguez to seal a 4-0 aggregate victory.
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.
A toothless and haggard Real Madrid slumped to a humiliating 10th Liga defeat of the season on Sunday as they lost 1-0 at struggling neighbours Rayo Vallecano.
Holders Real Madrid came from a goal down to snatch a precious 2-1 victory at wasteful Bayern Munich on Wednesday and carry a considerable advantage into their Champions League semi-final second leg in Spain.
The Jose Pekerman-coached team closed ranks on Friday, undertaking a private training session at their ski resort base outside of Kazan and declining to comment on the Colombian police probe and their preparations for Poland, who were upset 1-0 by Senegal in their opener.
Striker Mariano's header was glanced onto the crossbar by Sociedad's Andoni Gorosabel while the loose ball fell to Marco Asensio, whose shot was deflected wide for a corner from which Raphael Varane header hit the top of the bar.
Leaders Real Madrid pulled three points clear of second-placed Celta Vigo when they held off the valiant 10-man Galicians to secure a nervy 3-1 victory in Saturday's top-of-the-table clash in La Liga.
Ajax, four-times European Cup winners who are in the knockout stages for the first time in 13 years, have enhanced their reputation as a talent factory due to the rise of homegrown Dutch players Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt.
Juventus rehire Allegri.
Real Madrid top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo has signalled strong support for coach Carlo Ancelotti and sent a clear message to club president Florentino Perez that he does not want the Italian to be sacked.
Analysis of the eight groups for the 2018 FIFA World Cup to be held in Russia.
In leading Real Madrid to their 11th European Cup less than five months after inheriting an unhappy team from Rafael Benitez, Zinedine Zidane has cemented his heroic status at the Bernabeu and appears to have assured his immediate future.
'We've always been behind Zidane because he is a humble person who likes to listen, and that always makes things easier'
The injury list in the La Liga keeps growing as the season progresses and this time Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale are the unfortunate victims...
Argentina captain Lionel Messi pulled his side level in the 57th minute after a handball by Paraguay's Ivan Peris which no-one on the pitch appealed for but was spotted by a VAR review.
Argentina and Brazil both lost their opening World Cup qualifiers on Thursday as the South American campaign for Russia 2018 started in unexpected fashion.
It all ended in tears as Argentina and Colombia went out in the round of 16, the latter on penalties, while Uruguay and Brazil both lost their quarter-finals on Friday, to France and Belgium respectively.
Holders Real Madrid breezed into the last 16 of the Champions League with two games to spare when a Karim Benzema strike secured a 1-0 win in their Group B match at home to a toothless Liverpool on Tuesday.
Germany will retain their World Cup title in Moscow to equal Brazil's record of five wins in the tournament, according to a Reuters poll of financial specialists more used to predicting market moves.
IMAGES from the EPL matches played on Sunday.
Manchester United dropped out of the Premier League's top four
Juventus's win over Real Madrid has strengthened their conviction that they are good enough to rejoin European football's elite after years of watching the Champions League final stages from the sidelines.
Key head-to-head battles in Saturday's "Clasico" between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the Bernabeu stadium (1600 GMT)
Everton yet to receive clarification after City game postponed: Ancelotti
While Gareth Bale is fully expected to regain his place in the Real Madrid side when he returns from injury, team mate Isco is making the most of his chance to prove his worth on the pitch.
Holders Real Madrid chased away some of their early-season blues when Gareth Bale scored the pick of the goals in a 5-1 rout of FC Basel in their Champions League Group B opener on Tuesday.
Borussia Dortmund stayed top of the Bundesliga by beating Augsburg 4-3, while titleholders Bayern Munich were thumped 3-0 at home by Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Roger Martinez scored an outstanding goal as Colombia beat Argentina 2-0 in an exciting finale to a Copa America Group B opener on Saturday that burst into life after a sluggish start.
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