Lionel Messi kept his nerve from the penalty spot to give Barcelona a 1-0 win over Real Sociedad in La Liga on Saturday and return his side to the top of the table.
A debatable penalty awarded with the use of FIFA's new video replay system proved a turning point in the World Cup final on Sunday and raised more questions over whether the new technology is being used in the way it was originally intended.
Villa remain fourth on 56 points, three points above Spurs in fifth, having played a game more. West Ham are seventh on 44, three points behind sixth-placed Manchester United who have a game in hand.
Arsenal moved up to second in the Premier League and within six points of Liverpool after a largely trouble-free, if slightly pedestrian, 1-0 win at home to struggling Ipswich Town on a chilly night in north London on Friday.
Championship side Derby County hit back from two goals down to beat Premier League Southampton on penalties in an FA Cup third-round replay marred by another VAR controversy on Wednesday.
Images from Saturday's La Liga action.
Images from Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Several countries across the globe use VAR in their domestic club competitions after it was first introduced in Australia and the United States.
Letexier will be joined at Sunday's final by French assistants Cyril Mugnier and Mehdi Rahmouni, while Szymon Marciniak (Poland) will be fourth official.
A brilliantly-worked goal by Ryan Christie and a Justin Kluivert penalty gave Bournemouth shock 2-0 Premier League win at home to 10-man Arsenal.
Barcelona suffered a shock 1-0 LaLiga defeat at Real Sociedad on Sunday that ended their seven-match winning streak in all competitions.
While the tournament saw the emergence of young stars, the usual suspects, the big names flattered to deceive.
Video Assistant Referees (VARs) will be making their debut at the World Cup in Russia this month but the technology will not be perfect, FIFA's director of refereeing, Massimo Busacca, warned on Tuesday.
IMAGES from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Wednesday
Joe Root was miffed after a blunder by Anil Chaudhary denied them the wicket of India vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane after a DRS review.
Images from Sunday's action in the English Premier League.
The 4-3 win on the night for Manchester City was so nearly 5-3 -- and progress to the last four for City -- but Raheem Sterling's stoppage time effort was ruled out by a VAR review which correctly spotted Sergio Aguero off-side.
Spain secured the gold medal in the Olympic men's soccer tournament after Sergio Camello scored twice in extra-time to earn a dramatic 5-3 win over hosts France in a nail-biting final at Parc des Princes on Friday.
A second-half double from Antoine Griezmann earned Atletico Madrid a stunning 4-3 comeback home win over Sevilla in LaLiga on Sunday.
Arsenal emerged victorious over Tottenham Hotspur at their rivals' home ground. Gabriel Magalhaes' decisive header in the second half proved to be the difference-maker
Images from Thursday's action in the Premier League.
Magnificent Martinez helps Inter defeat Sparta Prague 1-0
Many were hoping that with Vajpayee's NDA gone, there would be a return to the Congress normal. Nobody was prepared for the opposite. Sonia Gandhi was sceptical. This became the only issue over which Manmohan Singh took on his party bosses and risked his government. Politically, it was riskier than the 1991 reform, recalls Shekhar Gupta.
Video assistant referees (VARs) will be used at the World Cup for the first time in this year's finals in Russia, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Friday, and teams will be allowed a fourth substitute in matches that go to extra-time.
A fan invasion in the opening match of the Olympic football tournament between Argentina and Morocco on Wednesday caused chaos, with Argentina eventually beaten 2-1 following a VAR review after play was suspended with the score tied at 2-2.
A summary of Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Mohamed Salah's late equaliser earned Liverpool a 2-2 draw with rivals Arsenal in an entertaining Premier League encounter.
Dinamo Zagreb and Celtic played out a lifeless 0-0 draw in the Champions League on Tuesday, with Celtic keeper Kasper Schmeichel producing the match's memorable moment with a late save.
Jarrod Bowen converted a last-gasp penalty to lift West Ham United to a 2-1 Premier League victory over Manchester United in a fluctuating clash between two struggling sides on Sunday.
A round-up of Saturday's action in the UEFA Nations League group stage matches.
FIFA's head of global development Arsene Wenger will attempt to make a major change to the offside law which could end a run of contentious decisions in the game since the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
France and the Netherlands are level on four points at the top of the group standings, with Austria on three, while Poland have no points and cannot advance to the last 16.
Real Madrid fought back from two goals down as Vinicius Jr grabbed a hat-trick in a thrilling 5-2 win over visitors Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League.
Liverpool's Diogo Jota bagged a last-gasp equaliser to salvage a breathless 2-2 Edraw against Fulham.
Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala's second-half goals sent Germany into the Euro 2024 quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over Denmark on Saturday after their last-16 clash was delayed by thunderstorm.
A Dani Carvajal strike in the ninth-minute of stoppage time rescued Real Madrid, earning them a 3-2 comeback win at home against bottom side Almeria on Sunday in a frantic LaLiga tussle that was marked by VAR controversy.
Liverpool's Luis Diaz scored a hat-trick as they maintained their perfect Champions League campaign with a barnstorming second-half display in a 4-0 victory over Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen at Anfield on Tuesday.
Manchester City thrashed West Ham United 4-1 in the Premier League on Saturday to claim their first back-to-back wins since October.
Images from Sunday's action in the Premier League.
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