Real Madrid and Barcelona pulled two points clear in La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo set a club scoring record in Real's 3-0 stroll against Levante and Neymar hit four as Barca beat Rayo Vallecano 5-2 on Saturday.
Brazil scrapped their way to a flattering 3-0 friendly win over France on Sunday in an ugly, disjointed match against opponents who are even worse off than themselves.
Real Madrid were dumped out of the Copa del Rey at the quarter-final stage on Thursday after losing 4-3 at home to Real Sociedad, while record 30-times winners Barcelona were sent crashing out of the Copa del Rey in a 1-0 defeat at Athletic Bilbao.
With the teams having played their second matches in the league stage in Euro 2020, at the conclusion of the Spain-Poland match in Group E on Saturday, here's a look at the best goals from those matches.
A round-up of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Mbappe and Benzema inspire France to 2-0 win against Finland
Real Madrid's Javier Hernandez struck twice as they came from behind to beat Celta Vigo 4-2 away and keep the pressure on Barcelona at the top of La Liga on Sunday.
Real Madrid edged past Sporting Lisbon 2-1, while Juventus came from behind to secure a 3-1 win at Sevilla and Borussia Dortmund crushed Legia Warsaw 8-4 to set a record for the most goals scored in a Champions League match.
Real Madrid ensured top spot in La Liga at the midway point of the season when Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice in a 3-0 win at Getafe on Sunday before Lionel Messi's hat-trick helped Barcelona to a 4-0 victory at Deportivo La Coruna.
A summary of Tuesday's matches in the UEFA Champions League.
Juventus substitute Cristiano Ronaldo was denied a stoppage-time winner by VAR as Udinese came from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw in their thrilling Serie A season opener on Sunday.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery was pleased with his team's first away clean sheet of the season.
Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. score twice as his side punished a sloppy Liverpool to win 3-1, while Manchester City beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg.
Juventus's hopes of reaching the Champions League last eight suffered a blow when the two-times European Cup winners slumped to a 1-0 defeat in their last-16 first leg at Olympique Lyonnais on Wednesday. Manchester City finally produced a Champions League performance worthy of their status as one of European football's elite clubs by beating Real Madrid 2-1 away in Wednesday's last-16 first leg after pulling off a stunning late fightback.
Barcelona closed in on the La Liga title by thrashing local rivals Espanyol 5-0 on Sunday as Atletico Madrid dropped out of the race after losing 2-1 at Levante and Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-2.
Images from Europa and Champions League matches played on Wednesday.
Neymar's hat-trick lit up a powerful Brazil performance as the 32 nations taking part in this year's World Cup tested out their squads on a busy night of friendlies on Wednesday which also brought victories for Spain, Germany and France.
In other European football action Real Madrid were left frustrated after a goalless draw against Athletic Bilbao in their La Liga match on Sunday.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Wednesday night.
Lionel Messi reclaimed the FIFA Ballon d'Or award for the world player of the year on Monday from his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo who had walked off with the award for the previous two years.
A summary of Saturday's action in Ligue 1, La Liga and Serie A.
Luis Suarez struck twice and Lionel Messi scored on his 500th appearance for Barcelona who set a new Spanish record of goals in a calendar year with a 4-0 win over Real Betis that lifted them top of La Liga on Wednesday.
Real Madrid dropped points for the third time in seven games since Zinedine Zidane's return as they were held to a 0-0 draw away to Getafe in La Liga on Thursday, which harmed their neighbours' hopes of a top-four finish.
Real Madrid's teenage Brazilian duo Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes sent them top of La Liga as both scored in a 2-0 win over Osasuna on Wednesday.
The Belgian forward came off the bench to make his Real debut in Saturday's 3-2 win over Levante, having had his start to life at the club hit by a thigh injury the day before the La Liga season began.
Midfielder Dani Ceballos added: "It looks like us changing our coach worked. We have recovered some sensations we had lost and we have got the three points. Now our objective is to win all the games left and finish the season as well as possible."
Unai Emery's Villarreal were much improved in the second half and had spurned numerous chances before Moreno's leveller.
Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale answered his critics in emphatic style.
Meanwhile, Real Mallorca made a dream return to La Liga with a 2-1 victory over Eibar at the Estadi Son Moix on Saturday, less than two months after sealing back-to-back promotions to rejoin Spain's soccer elite.
Centre forward Eder, who scored the winning goal in the Euro 2016 final against France, was among 10 players from that squad omitted from Santos's list. Other unlucky players included midfielders Andre Gomes and Renato Sanches, forward Nani and defender Eliseu.
Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele scored twice and produced a mesmerising display to fire his side to a 5-1 win over Villarreal on Wednesday which stretched the champions' unbeaten run this season to 36 games with two remaining.
The three teams with 100 percent records in this season's Champions League can secure their places in the knockout stage this week with two games to spare.
Images from soccer matches played across different leagues in Europe on Sunday
Images from Tuesday night's UEFA Champions League group stage matches.
Wolfsburg shock Real Madrid 2-0 to crown big European night.
The three-horse race for the La Liga title tightened on Sunday when leaders Real Madrid drew 2-2 at city rivals Atletico and Barcelona won 4-1 at home to Almeria.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Real Madrid failed to win their Champions League group for the first time in four years when a late goal by substitute Marco Reus allowed Borussia Dortmund to equalise and clinch a 2-2 draw.
Barcelona must appreciate matching the club's record of nine wins and a draw in their first 10 games of a Liga campaign, especially after Real Madrid's defeat at Girona, coach Ernesto Valverde told a news conference on Monday.
Javier Hernandez's late strike kept Real Madrid on course for a record-extending 11th European Cup crown with a 1-0 win over 10-man Atletico Madrid in a tense quarter-final at the Bernebau on Wednesday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances