A summary of Sunday's action in Serie A and Bundesliga.
On a good night for English clubs in the Europa League, Manchester United hammered AZ Alkmaar 4-0, while Wolverhampton Wanderers also thrashed Besiktas 4-0 in Group K, and Arsenal came from two goals down to draw 2-2 away to Standard Liege and finish first in their pool. The upset of the night came in Group J as Crivelli scored a 90th-minute winner against Borussia Moenchengladbach to send Basaksehir through and knock the Germans out, with AS Roma grabbing the runner-up spot thanks to a 2-2 home draw with Wolfsberger as the Europa League group stage concluded on Thursday.
German champions Bayern Munich sacked coach Carlo Ancelotti on Thursday, a day after they suffered a crushing 3-0 defeat to Paris St Germain in the Champions League.
Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich stumbled to a 1-1 home draw against Hoffenheim on Saturday but stayed three points clear at the top as Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang fired four goals past Hamburg SV following his midweek ban. Bayern fell a goal behind when Kerem Demirbay's thundering shot in the 16th minute left keeper Manuel Neuer rooted on the spot.
Photos from the Champions League matches played across Europe on Tuesday
Arjen Robben, Kevin Hofland and Dave van den Bergh will miss WC qualifiers due to injury.
United suffered their fourth successive defeat in all competition on Saturday when they were beaten by Stoke in the Premier League -- a result that extended their winless run to seven games.
Holders Barcelona will play Premier League leaders Arsenal in the last 16 of the Champions League, 10 years after the sides faced each other in the final, following Monday's draw for the first knockout stage.
Last year's finalists Juventus will face-off against Bundesliga champs Bayern.
Unai Emery's Villarreal were much improved in the second half and had spurned numerous chances before Moreno's leveller.
Football news from Ligue 1, Bundesliga and La liga.
Bayern Munich had to put their Bundesliga title celebrations on hold on Saturday after beating gutsy Mainz 05 2-0 while Borussia Dortmund also won, 3-0 at Hanover 96.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Poland's Robert Lewandowski has chalked up so many big-game landmarks during his club career that the 27-year-old seems overdue a major tournament performance with his country.
Spanish forward Joselu struck deep into stoppage time as Hanover 96 rallied from two goals down to draw 2-2 at bottom club Freiburg in the Bundesliga on Sunday.
Champions Bayern Munich comfortably beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 in the Bundesliga season opener on Friday to lay down a marker as they eye a record-extending sixth straight German league title.
Volkswagen announced plans on Tuesday to refit up to 11 million vehicles and overhaul its namesake brand.
The club won its 18th German crown with four games left.
Nothing usually fazes an ice cool Zlatan Ibrahimovic but the Sweden striker was taken aback when he failed to score a penalty during Paris St Germain's 2-2 draw with Manchester City in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.
Paris St Germain will play Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona were pitted against an unpredictable Napoli, while Chelsea were drawn against Bayern Munich. City, who will be at home in the second leg, have yet to beat the Spanish side with two draws and two defeats in their previous four meetings.
IMAGES from all the Bundesliga action on Saturday.
The ace midfielder has been in Germany's squad for the Euro 2004 qualifier against Scotland.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain became the second England international to leave Arsenal in two days when he joined Premier League rivals Liverpool for a reported 40 million pounds on Thursday.
The 32-year-old, who captained the Dutch to third place at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, has been overlooked by coach Danny Blind, who is not convinced about his form with Fenerbahce.
Fiorentina tore apart Italian rivals AS Roma to reach the Europa League quarter-finals with a 3-0 win that left their opponents' season in tatters and under-fire coach Rudi Garcia tottering on the brink of the sack.
A solid defence helped Schalke 04 secure a 1-0 win at home to Borussia Moenchengladbach on Friday that lifted them above their rivals into third spot in the Bundesliga in the battle for Champions League places.
Bayern Munich's outgoing coach Pep Guardiola has failed to make an impact at the club despite keeping the Bavarian giants as the dominant force in Germany, the club's former forward Ivica Olic said on Thursday.
Rediff.com brings these and other big news from the sporting world, encapsulated in this photo feature...
Holders Sevilla maintained their Europa League challenge with a 1-0 win over Rijeka in a winner-takes-all clash on Thursday.
The Greek league leaders confirmed the move but did not give financial details. Local media said Toure would be paid around 2.5 million euros ($2.9 million) for one season.
Mandzukic signing adds to the Serie A champs' big haul of strikers as Paul Pogba is targetted by Barca and PSG among other clubs
Germany's new-look team made a promising return to the international stage with a 1-1 draw against Serbia in a friendly on Wednesday, showing signs of improvement following a disastrous 2018.
In-form Borussia Moenchengladbach struck three times in 14 minutes in the second half to floor champions Bayern Munich 3-1 on Saturday and inflict their first Bundesliga defeat of the season.
Borussia Dortmund steam-rollered hapless Freiburg 5-0 while Bayern Munich plodded past VfL Wolfsburg 1-0 as the two unbeaten arch-rivals remained level on points at the top of the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Holders Bayern Munich beat Bayer Leverkusen 5-3 on penalties after a 0-0 draw to move into the German Cup semi-final and stay on course for a treble of titles on Wednesday.
The former Chelsea player, who now plies his trade with Vfl Wolfsburg in Germany, scored the opener and created the second for Marc Wilmots' side.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Poland's star striker Robert Lewandowski scored the winner to secure Poland a place at Euro 2016 with a 2-1 victory in Warsaw on Sunday.
A Romelu Lukaku hat-trick in a 4-1 win for Everton at Young Boys and a thrilling 3-3 draw between Celtic and Inter Milan.
Borussia Dortmund beat Hertha Berlin 3-2 on penalties to reach the German Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday after the match finished 1-1 after extra time.
