Barcelona coach Luis Enrique is ready for surprises when he comes up against Pep Guardiola's Bayern Munich on Wednesday in what he believes will be an open and attractive game.
It will be a poignant evening, with both games -- City vs Arsenal and Aston Villa vs Sheffield United -- played inside empty stadiums and marked before kickoff by a minute's silence for the more than 40,000 people to die of the virus in the UK.
Free from the extra burden of European football, Liverpool have a strong chance to win the Premier League this season under a "ruthless" Juergen Klopp, according to Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski. Liverpool, who finished eighth in the league standings last season, are fourth in the table this campaign, having beaten Arsenal, Chelsea and champions Leicester City in their opening seven games.
Relentless will to improve drives City to greatness
English newspapers had linked Sanchez with a move to Pep Guardiola's side in exchange for England forward Raheem Sterling.
Manager Pep Guardiola tempered his delight at ManchesterCity's ability to fight back three times in a thrilling 3-3 draw against Celtic in the Champions League on Wednesday by urging his players to understand the importance of a good start.
Champions Liverpool are five points clear at the top of the Premier League after a 7-0 away hammering of Crystal Palace while Arsenal's troubles continued with a 2-1 defeat at second-placed Everton on Saturday.
For the first time in seven years the prime minister finds himself at his most vulnerable, observes Virendra Kapoor.
A preview of the line-up action in the English Premier League
Liverpool raised the bar so high and enjoyed such a huge winning margin in claiming the English Premier League title last season it would be churlish to doubt their credentials for a repeat showing.
But such was Pep Guardiola's team's domination of the Premier League last season that reinforcements hardly seemed necessary and the solitary addition of Riyad Mahrez makes an already potent attack even more fearsome.
Chelsea forward Pedro fears Pep Guardiola, his former coach at Barcelona, could be in for a rude awakening at Manchester City next season.
Manchester United's unbeaten start to the Premier League has helped the club build momentum before the derby clash against ManchesterCity, striker Wayne Rooney has said.
The loss was the joint-heaviest defeat by a side already crowned Premier League champions. Arsenal were beaten 4-0 at Liverpool in 1997-98 in the game after they clinched the title.
Talking points from this weekend's Premier League action as top two Manchester City and Liverpool both won with City remaining a point clear with two games remaining.
Bayern Munich will not be deterred by what the club say are false reports of discontent in coach Pep Guardiola's team as they focus on becoming the first side to win a fourth straight Bundesliga title. "We can make German football history," sports director Matthias Sammer told reporters. "And I am not talking about the Champions League but the 'magical four'. This is what drives us." Bayern, who travel to Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, are eight points clear at the top of the Bundesliga but they have had to deal with a number of issues on and off the pitch recently. A string of injuries to central defenders including Spaniard Javi Martinez, who will be out for four weeks, and Germany international Jerome Boateng, sidelined for three months, forced the Bavarians to bring in former Germany international Serdar Tasci on loan from Spartak Mosc
Jota's header earned the three points but it was a struggle in the rain for Juergen Klopp's side who looked uneasy at the back without the injured Virgil van Dijk.
The 55-year-old Ernesto Valverde, who led Barcelona to successive La Liga titles in 2018 and 2019, came under fire this season for the team's dip in performance levels even though they top the league standings at the halfway point of the campaign.
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has paid an emotional tribute to Pep Guardiola, after he announced leaving the Catalans at the end of the season.
Finances aside, though, there is an even bigger question mark hanging over Lionel Messi. Is he a fading force?
Once the tanks roll back, a zero-based assessment of future equations with China is necessary. Given the conflict situations that China is imposing on India time and again, the red, amber and green lines of interactions with China need to be laid down and communicated in no uncertain terms, asserts Srikanth Kondapalli, the leading China expert.
Pep Guardiola's ManchesterCity will play Romanian side Steaua Bucharest in the Champions League playoff round after the draw was made in Nyon on Friday.
'The only thing better than singing, is more singing! Then there's dancing, horse riding and martial arts.'
Manchester City secured a record 15th straight victory in all competitions with a 3-1 win at Championship side Swansea City in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday.
Liverpool frustrated as they were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw at Brighton on Saturday
Rewind five years and Liverpool hosted Chelsea with three games remaining, knowing victory would have left them six points clear and a first league title since 1990 almost secure.
'It's not easy to handle a team at a big, big club... always demanding to win competitions and every manager needs time. I have the feeling United started to play the way he wants'
Aguero's absence means a likely start for Brazilian Gabriel Jesus in attack.
Manchester City now need, at most, 11 points from their remaining seven matches to secure their third Premier League title in four seasons.
Check out some of the stocks that will react on the basis of their numbers in the near term.
After bagging the League Cup, being locked in a titanic battle with Liverpool for the Premier League title and in the Champions League quarter-finals, Pep Guardiola's side remain on course for an unprecedented clean sweep.
Pochettino picks Barcelona as favourites to win Champions League
Champions Manchester City will expect to get back to winning ways at home to Newcastle United in a match which pits Pep Guardiola against his fellow Spaniard Rafa Benitez.
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
Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus failed to find the net in over 700 minutes on the pitch in a run of 10 games between October and November for club and country, as City struggled to keep pace in the Premier League title race and dropped to third. Jesus is City's second-choice striker behind Sergio Aguero and he had admitted to being frustrated earlier this season when Pep Guardiola benched him in favour of the Argentine.
Bayern Munich and coach Pep Guardiola will part ways after three seasons at the end of the current campaign and Italian Champions League-winning coach Carlo Ancelotti will replace the Spaniard, club Chief Executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on Sunday.
German midfielder Ilkay Guendogan has joined Manchester City from Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund on a four-year deal, the Premier League club announced on Thursday.
Guardiola expects this season's Premier League title race to be more open than last season's
The new managers of Manchester United and Manchester City will face an early confrontation when the teams meet in a friendly in Beijing on July 25. Jose Mourinho, officially confirmed as United boss on Friday, and old adversary Pep Guardiola, who is replacing Manuel Pellegrini at City, will renew hostilities in the pre-season International Champions Cup. There was little love lost between the pair when Mourinho was in charge at Real Madrid and Guardiola led Barcelona. The rivalry is likely to be just as fierce when United attempt to make up ground on their neighbours, who have finished above them in the Premier League for the past three seasons.
Belgian defender Vincent Kompany said he would be leaving Manchester City after helping the Premier League club to a become the first team to win the English treble of league championship and both domestic cups.
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