Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde will be banking on new signing Ousmane Dembele to fill the gap left by Neymar's departure as he looks to overcome off-pitch difficulties when the Catalans take on Espanyol on Saturday.
A clash between supposedly the two most expensive lineups in history overseen by two of the most decorated coaches will end the phoney war and ignite the Premier League season for real when Manchester United host Manchester City on Saturday.
Photos from the football matches played in the Serie A, Bundesliga and French Ligue 1 on Sunday
A weekend of surprise results across Europe's big leagues saw Bayern Munich's unbeaten run come to an end, Napoli knocked off top spot in Serie A and Manchester City toppled in the Premier League where Leicester City are the new leaders.
Brazil opened the 2021 Copa America with a 3-0 win over a depleted Venezuela
Lionel Messi's late penalty saw bedraggled Barcelona scrape a 2-1 victory over Leganes on Sunday at a divided Nou Camp as the La Liga champions looked as if they had still not recovered from their harrowing midweek defeat to Paris St Germain.
Luis Suarez ended his nine-match biting ban in fine style on Friday, grabbing the second-half equaliser that gave Uruguay a 2-2 draw in an enthralling battle with Brazil in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Having seen the domestic league and cup double go to Porto last term, Benfica missed a string of chances against PAOK in a one-sided first half as they enjoyed 72% of possession.
Facts and figures ahead of Saturday's Champions League final between holders Real Madrid and Liverpool in Kiev:
Eden Hazard finally scored his first goal for Real Madrid as his side beat second-placed Granada 4-2 in a highly entertaining game at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday to go four points clear at the top of La Liga.
Sergio Aguero, in fine scoring form for Manchester City this season, looks set to lead Argentina's attack in next month's World Cup qualifiers after being recalled to their squad on Friday.
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.
Manchester City face Chelsea in the Champions League final on Saturday. Here are five key tactical battles to watch out for:
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.
Bayern Munich conceded a stoppage-time equaliser through VfB Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy from the penalty spot for a 2-2 on Saturday, the champions' third consecutive Bundesliga draw.
IMAGES from the football matches played across Europe on Sunday.
Chelsea turned again to experienced Dutchman Guus Hiddink to guide them out of a crisis when they named him interim manager on Saturday for the rest of the season following the sacking of Jose Mourinho.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Luis Enrique is set to leave a mixed legacy when he departs Barcelona but the coach can go out on a high by lifting a third consecutive King's Cup when his side meet Alaves in Saturday's final in Madrid.
"It would be a big deal, increasing the team's appeal and also because it would bigger business for Juve, through merchandising," a Milan-based trader said.
A summary of Tuesday night's matches in the UEFA champions League.
Barcelona striker Neymar is confident the Catalans can launch another remarkable Champions League comeback as they look to overturn a 3-0 quarter-final deficit against Juventus on Wednesday.
Barcelona have been frighteningly good at home this season, scoring 15 goals in three games at the Nou Camp.
Paulo Dybala upstaged his fellow Argentine Lionel Messi by scoring two exquisitely taken goals to set Juventus on the way to an emphatic 3-0 win over an underwhelming Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Atletico Madrid's French forwards Antoine Griezmann and Kevin Gameiro fired them to a first win in three league outings as they beat Valencia 3-0 on Sunday to maintain their hold on Spain's fourth Champions League qualifying place.
Mbappe struck in the 74th minute to put PSG on 80 points from 29 games and on the brink of retaining the title with second-placed Lille, who beat Nantes 3-2 away earlier on Sunday, still 20 points behind having played a game more.
Manchester City's bid to chop Arsenal's Premier League lead to two points was scuppered as Harry Kane's record-breaking goal earned Tottenham Hotspur a 1-0 win.
The 46-year-old Norwegian has guided United to 14 wins in 19 matches in all competitions as caretaker boss since replacing the sacked Jose Mourinho in December.
This and more from the happenings in the world of football
Bayern Munich's Douglas Costa scored a first-half winner as the holders did the bare minimum to beat VfL Wolfsburg 1-0 on Tuesday and move into the German Cup quarter-finals.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique had a nerve-racking experience having to watch their stellar run from the sidelines.
Football action from across Europe in matches played on Saturday
Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has decried the fans who booed manager Luis Enrique and the players in Sunday's laboured 2-1 home win over Leganes in La Liga as having a short-term memory.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Real Madrid rested Cristiano Ronaldo and suffered a fifth Liga defeat of the season as Espanyol's Gerard Moreno struck late for a 1-0 win over the Spanish and European champions.
Images from Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Barcelona snapped a four-match winless run in La Liga with a 4-2 home victory over title rivals Sevilla on Saturday to reclaim top spot but the triumph was marred by talisman Lionel Messi fracturing his arm and being ruled out for three weeks.
Carlos Tevez has been included in the squad for the first time in three years for next month's friendlies in England against Croatia and Portugal.
List of major transfers in the top Premier League ahead of the 2019-20 season (all transfer fees as reported by British media):
Monaco's firepower was far too hot to handle for Olympique de Marseille as the Principality side moved top of the French Ligue 1 standings with a 4-0 home win on Saturday.
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