Seydou Keita grabbed a second-half equaliser for Barcelona as the leaders were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Getafe in the Spanish Primera Liga on Sunday. Barca have 29 points from 12 games, three points ahead of second-placed Real Madrid and four in front of Villarreal, who both played on Saturday.
The 32-year-old Messi scored 24 goals this season in all competitions before the coronavirus pandemic brought the football season to a standstill.
Manchester United's new winger Angel Di Maria will not change the course of their troubled season straight away following his British record transfer from Real Madrid, manager Louis van Gaal said on Tuesday.
Retired Ivorian player and Chelsea legend Didier Drogba: "They did it!!!! Well done Morocco for this feat. Long live Africa."
On a day when Cristiano Ronaldo made history by becoming the first footballer to score goals in five World Cups and also become the second oldest man to score a goal at the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet, FIFA honoured the oldest soccer player to score a goal at a World Cup.
Past and present Barcelona team mates Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano, Neymar and Luis Suarez were all there, as was Gerard Pique and his pop star wife Shakira.
Jose Mourinho is starting to feel drained at having to watch his Chelsea team hang on for scrambling victories despite dominating opponents, the manager said after Thursday's 1-0 Premier League win over Swansea City.
.jpg)
Chelsea will give a better account of themselves in the Champions League in Paris on Wednesday than they did in an unexpected weekend defeat at CrystalPalace, manager Jose Mourinho said on Sunday.
But a loss for either team -- combined with a draw between Brazil and Switzerland -- would prematurely bring the curtains down on their campaign, with nothing to play for but pride in their final group game on December 2.
Chelsea's title ambitions suffered a major blow with a shock 2-1 home defeat by bottom side Sunderland on Saturday, handing the initiative to English Premier League leaders Liverpool who visit lowly Norwich City on Sunday.
City completed the treble of Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup titles, matching Manchester United's feat in 1999 and drawing comparisons with Guardiola's 2008-09 Barcelona team.
Jose Mourinho made winning titles a habit for Chelsea's players when he first arrived in 2004 and three months into his second stint at Stamford Bridge he is urging them to rediscover it.
Chelsea ripped apart Premier League title rivals Arsenal in a 6-0 mauling at Stamford Bridge on Saturday to ensure Arsene Wenger's 1,000th game turned sour and Liverpool and Manchester City kept up the pressure with big wins.
Jose Mourinho has played down Chelsea's chances of winning silverware this season, because they lack a killer "selfish" striker.
Midfielder Jean Makoun scored twice as Cameroon qualified for the World Cup finals after beating Tunisia 4-1 in Yaounde on Sunday to win their two-legged playoff tie and book their place in Brazil next year.
Eden Hazard scored from the spot in stoppage time to salvage a 2-2 draw for Chelsea against West Bromwich Albion, who were seconds away from inflicting a first Premier League home defeat on a Chelsea side managed by Jose Mourinho.
Cameroon goalkeeper Charles Itandje made several sparkling saves to help his side force a 0-0 draw in Tunisia on Sunday in the first leg of their World Cup playoff.
As Chelsea's Samuel Eto'o turns a year older today, Rediff.com celebrates this African gem and a milestone man...
Rediff.com brings a preview of the main matches coming up this weekend in the English Premier League.
Juventus landed a fourth successive Serie A crown, and their first under coach Massimiliano Allegri, with four games to spare by winning 1-0 at Sampdoria on Saturday.
Mexico got just rewards for their attacking intent when Oribe Peralta's 61st minute strike gave them a 1-0 win over Cameroon in their World Cup opener at a rain-saturated Dunas arena on Friday.
Zenit St Petersburg's Brazilian striker Hulk has pulled out of Saturday's World Cup qualifying draw, only days after complaining of "gross and ugly" racism in Russian football.
Former Barcelona and Chelsea veteran Samuel Eto'o may be heading to Anfield.
Ross Barkley scored a sublime goal as Everton beat Queens Park Rangers 3-1 at Goodison Park on Monday to subject the travel-weary Londoners to their eighth away defeat in as many Premier League matches this season.
Mario Balotelli's misfiring career at Anfield took another turn for the worst against Real Madrid on Wednesday with a halftime shirt-swap that did not impress manager Brendan Rodgers.
Croatia gave themselves a fighting chance of reaching the World Cup knock-out phase when they thrashed a toothless Cameroon 4-0 on Wednesday.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho gave himself the credit as his substitutions paid off with Eden Hazard and Willian scoring late to grab a 3-1 win at Norwich City in the Premier League on Sunday.
The 'Pass the message to kick out coronavirus' campaign calls for people around the world to follow five key steps to protect their health in line with WHO's guidelines.
Diego Costa left the Stamford Bridge pitch to exultant cheers after a hat-trick against Swansea City on Saturday highlighted a breathless start to a Chelsea career for a team that has been designed around him.
Atletico Madrid produced an inspired display of counter-attacking football to beat Chelsea 3-1 in the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg in London on Wednesday and set up an all-Spanish final against city rivals Real.
In-form striker Romelu Lukaku said he chose to join Everton on loan for the season from Chelsea because he needed to play regularly and not because he was not wanted at Stamford Bridge.
With both Serbia and Cameroon desperate for points after their opening defeats, they played out one of the most entertaining games of the tournament
Real Madrid have defied injuries to keep the pressure on leaders Barcelona and notched up over 100 La Liga goals but they now face arguably the toughest test of their title charge in an away match to Sevilla on Saturday.
Victor Moses has become the third player to join Liverpool on Monday, with the forward signing on a season-long loan from Chelsea, the Premier League club confirmed.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Cristiano Ronaldo will not be the only number seven hoping to redeem himself when his Portugal side meet Austria in their Euro 2016 group F match in Paris on Saturday. Ronaldo's less heralded opposite number for Austria, Marko Arnautovic, also came into the tournament with high hopes only to start with a below-par display made worse by a sulky attitude.
Juventus missed a chance to extend their advantage over second-placed AS Roma when they played out a dismal 0-0 draw away to Udinese on Sunday, while Napoli closed in on Serie A's top two with a 2-1 win at Chievo.
On the pitches of ramshackle football academies across West Africa, teenage boys chase one another in pursuit of the ball, the chance to impress, and the prospect of a lucrative contract with one of Europe's top teams.
Chelsea heaped more Christmas misery on Liverpool with a 2-1 victory at Stamford Bridge and Olivier Giroud ended a seven-game scoring drought to help Arsenal win 1-0 at Newcastle United and return to the top of the Premier League on Sunday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances