With no European prizes left to chase this season, England's top clubs are focussed on winning the Premier League title, although that goal looks beyond all but Chelsea.
Chelsea's players must look at themselves and start performing, former Blues stalwart Frank Lampard said as speculation continues to swirl over the future of manager Jose Mourinho.
Brighton and Hove Albion scored late to earn a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace. Sheffield United and Fulham also drew 1-1 as both teams picked up their first points.
Chelsea pair Diego Costa and Eden Hazard were named on Thursday on the shortlist for the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Player of the Year award.
Messi has been linked with a move away from the Camp Nou at the end of the season after he caused a stir by criticising the club's sporting director Eric Abidal
Chelsea winger Eden Hazard still hopes he can one day fulfil his dream of playing for Real Madrid.
Scotland's Clarke names uncapped trio in Euro squad.
Chelsea could be without Cesc Fabregas and Filipe Luis for clash against Manchester City
Images from EPL matches played on Wednesday.
Liverpool target Chelsea after midweek tinkering, while third-placed Manchester City, whose hopes of qualifying for the Champions League knockout stage were dealt a severe blow in a humiliating 2-1 home defeat by CSKA Moscow on Wednesday, travel south to face struggling Queens Park Rangers.
Premier League leaders Manchester City won their derby with United 3-1, while Liverpool kept pace with a home win over Fulham.
Manchester United's chances of winning the Premier League could be hindered by their Europa League campaign, manager Jose Mourinho has said.
The English Premier League title race was thrown wide open with leaders Manchester United losing a second successive match and Liverpool thumping Aston Villa 5-0 to close the gap at the top to one point. Barcelona maintained their six-point lead in Spain, while a double from Zlatan Ibrahimovic ensured Inter Milan stayed seven points clear in Serie A.
Chelsea beat Manchester City 1-0 with a Michael Essien goal to move back up to second place in the Premier League on Sunday.
Chelsea romped to a 5-0 victory at Middlesbrough and Manchester United beat West Bromwich Albion 4-0 while Liverpool and Arsenal produced stirring fightbacks to claim home wins over Wigan Athletic and Everton. Liverpool snatched a 3-2 triumph over Wigan, while Arsenal netted three second-half goals to record a 3-1 victory against Everton.
Fernando Torres capitalised on a defensive blunder to score a last-minute winner and secure Chelsea a 2-1 Premier League victory over Manchester City at Stamford Bridge.
Mikel Arteta scored Premier League leaders Arsenal's first goal in a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday but was later sent off in the early kickoff in south London.
Chelsea and Manchester City offered compelling evidence that they will lead the pursuit of leaders Arsenal and champions Manchester United lost further ground on a Sunday that brought the third managerial casualty of the Premier League season.
Leaders Manchester City kept up their unbeaten run with a 3-1 win over Bournemouth on Saturday. Manchester United salvaged a 2-2 draw at Southampton, who sacked manager Mark Hughes on Monday.
Lionel Messi dragged Barcelona back from two goals down by scoring twice to snatch a 2-2 draw at home to Valencia in a thrilling encounter.
'Keep Calm And Carry On' could be Claudio Ranieri's motto for the second half of the season after Leicester City earned a 1-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday to put the heat back on Premier League leaders Arsenal.
The top four failed to muster a goal on Saturday as Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United drew 0-0 while Arsenal went down 3-0 at Manchester City. Premier League leaders Chelsea could find no way through Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge. Liverpool had the same problem at home to Fulham and third-placed Manchester United were held 0-0 in a lively game at Aston Villa.
The draw interrupted a run of four straight league wins for Zinedine Zidane's side and left them second on 67 points after 31 games, three behind leaders Atletico who thrashed Eibar 5-0 earlier in the day.
Johnson will be only the second British leader since Indian independence to attend the annual Republic Day parade in New Delhi as Guest of Honour, after former prime minister John Major in 1993.
Nuggets of news coming from the English Premier League
The Liverpool striker has been suffering from various leg injuries.
Arsenal will begin their quest to become the first team in modern times to win the FA Cup three years running with a home tie against fellow Premier League side Sunderland in January.
Borussia Dortmund eased past nine-man Hamburg SV 3-0 to keep their slim Bundesliga title hopes alive on Sunday as they moved seven points behind leaders Bayern Munich with four games remaining.
Former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has been appointed manager of Championship side Derby County, with the second-tier side announcing the 39-year-old had agreed to a three-year deal on Thursday.
City's Aguero doubtful starter for Watford trip
Manchester City marched into the quarter-finals of the Champions League
Summary of all that transpired on and off the football field
Manchester City have won many admirers in their 'wonder season' but need more trophies to be considered the best Premier League team ever, ex-Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs has said.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Robin van Persie and Luis Suarez's tussle at the top of the Premier League goalscoring charts continues at Old Trafford on Sunday as leaders Manchester United take on Liverpool in one of the season's most keenly-anticipated fixtures.
Manchester City thrashed Southampton 6-1 to remain top of the Premier League.
A list of some of sport's greatest comebacks after Tiger Woods ended an 11-year major championship drought with victory at The Masters on Sunday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The UK prime minister stressed that a complete lockdown was the only answer to prevent the overrunning of the country's state-funded National Health Service, which would be a "medical and moral disaster" beyond the raw loss of life.
Interim manager Rafael Benitez has little time to dust off his Premier League suit and tie and start plotting how to drag Chelsea out of their malaise with leaders Manchester City visiting Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
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