Spanish prosecutors have won a series of cases against high profile footballers and coaches for tax fraud in recent years, including Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho.
Former Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba was offered a whopping $1 million by Atletico de Kolkata's co-owners to become the marquee player of the Indian Super League side though the high-profile player is yet to respond, according to a report in London.
The France striker was fouled by Leicester's Marc Albrighton on the edge of the box and referee Jonas Eriksson deemed the action to have continued into the penalty area.
Two years on from their defeat by Real Madrid in the Champions League final, Atletico Madrid are back on the same stage against the same rival - wiser and determined not to be haunted by the memories of Lisbon.
- 'We will have to play with a lot of intelligence' - 'We will be able to see a fantastic footballer on the pitch'
Images from matches played across top football leagues in Europe.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti is counting on his wealth of experience to help fix the holders' midfield woes as they prepare to host FC Basel in Tuesday's Champions League Group B opener at the Bernabeu.
A towering Diego Godin header secured Atletico Madrid a 1-1 draw against Barcelona and a first La Liga title for 18 years in a thrilling climax to the campaign on Saturday.
The 28-year-old Argentine has scored seven goals from direct free-kicks in this year's La Liga, the latest in Sunday's 5-0 triumph over Espanyol.
'It's evident that we are in a hole, we aren't at our best at the moment nor our most effective.'
PSV Eindhoven will miss striker Luuk de Jong when they entertain Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.
Atletico Madrid's players will not allow praise to go to their heads even though they are level on points with Barcelona at the top of La Liga, coach Diego Simeone has said.
The Portuguese forward, who also scored a treble in the quarter-final against Bayern Munich at the Santiago Bernabeu, and five goals across that tie, is revelling in the central striker's role he has adopted this season.
Atletico Madrid turned up the heat on champions Barcelona when they fought back to secure a 2-1 win at home to Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday as Real Madrid slipped off the pace with a 1-0 loss at Villarreal.
A rousing 2-1 La Liga victory at Real Madrid on Saturday may suggest otherwise, but Atletico Madrid are still rebuilding after losing several key players in the close season, coach Diego Simeone said on Monday.
Zinedine Zidane had few equals as a player but heading into his first Champions League final as a coach, he admits that unlike Atletico Madrid counterpart Diego Simeone he still has much to learn. The former France playmaker, who was promoted from Real's reserve team to replace Rafa Benitez in January, steered the side to a runners-up finish in La Liga and Saturday's final in Milan. Real have won 21 out of 26 games under Zidane and lost two, scoring 71 goals and giving away 18. Simeone led Atletico to their second Champions League final in three years. "He has everything that a coach needs but above all, he knows his team and his players well, which is the most important thing," Zidane told a news conference on Tuesday.
Guardiola is on track to lead Bayern to a third consecutive Bundesliga title but his three-year spell there will ultimately be judged on whether he can win Europe's elite club competition with them.
First meets second as Barcelona host Atletico Madrid on Saturday looking to tighten their grip on the La Liga title race. The sides are level on 48 points at the top of the table, but Barca have a game in hand on Atletico and can take a huge step towards a fifth title in seven years with an eighth consecutive win in all competitions. Indeed, Luis Enrique's men remain on course for a repeat of the treble of La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey they won last season after progressing to the semi-finals of the Cup with a come from behind 3-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in midweek. Yet, the European champions have been far from their best in the past week as they were outplayed by Malaga and Bilbao in the first-half before being salvaged by individual moments of magic after the break. "We are aware of the errors we need to correct," said Luis Suarez after taking his tally for the season already to 30 with the equalizer against Bilbao.
Antoine Griezmann scored twice off the bench as Atletico Madrid sealed a place in the King's Cup quarter-finals with a 3-0 win at home to Rayo Vallecano on Thursday while Valencia also advanced with victory by the same scoreline at Granada.
Neymar struck twice as Barca beat Atletico Madrid to reach the King's Cup semis
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.
FC Barcelona's Asia Pacific director general Jordi Camps believes it is a matter of time before an Indian plays in Spanish top-flight.
Simeone's side leapfrogged Real Sociedad into fourth on 42 points, while Sevilla stayed third in the standings on 46 after beating Las Palmas 1-0, also on Sunday, thanks to a late strike from substitute Joaquin Correa
Atletico Madrid must not let down their guard after Wednesday's thumping Champions League win at home to Malmo, coach Diego Simeone said.
Joao Miranda and new signing Mario Mandzukic led Atletico Madrid to a 2-1 home win in La Liga on Saturday as visitors Eibar were unable to cope with the aerial threat of the champions.
Atletico Madrid have built a reputation for gargantuan achievements under coach Diego Simeone and have not given up hope of a remarkable turnaround against Real Madrid in Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg.
Atletico aim for Champions League revenge against Real at fourth attempt.
Atletico Madrid extended their dominance over neighbours Real with a 1-0 derby win on Saturday that leaves the Bernabeu team virtually out of the Liga title race.
Atletico Madrid surrendered top spot in La Liga to Barcelona when they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to 10-man Sevilla in a fiercely contested La Liga clash on Sunday.
After the reigning English Premier League champions suffered a shocking 0-1 defeat at home to Bournemouth on Saturday, will Jose Mourinho continue to lead the defending champions for the second half of the season? Here's a look the men who could take over at Stamford Bridge.
France international striker Antoine Griezmann has reached an agreement with Manchester United over a transfer from Atletico Madrid at the end of the season, Yahoo Sport has reported.
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola was brought to the club to extend their European dominance, but will leave at the end of the season having lost three successive Champions League semi-finals.
With Real Madrid facing an injury crisis ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid attention will be on talisman Cristiano Ronaldo to lead them through but James Rodriguez may hold the key.
IMAGES from the Europa League matches played on Thursday
Thomas Partey scored his first goal for Atletico Madrid as they reached the last 16 of the King's Cup with a 1-0 home victory over third-tier Reus on Thursday that secured a 3-1 aggregate success.
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone rates Antoine Griezmann as one of the top three players in the world and says the forward owes it to his ability to work hard and the willingness to listen.
Atletico Madrid suffered a first defeat in 13 games in all competitions as they lost 1-0 at home to Villarreal on Tuesday after a late strike from substitute Roberto Soriano.
Costa turned Juanfran's low cross into the net in the 69th minute for Atletico's third goal in the first leg of the last 16 tie against third division Lleida but immediately limped to the sidelines. He did return to the pitch, however, and completed the game despite bleeding from his knee.
Suarez moved ahead of Ronaldo as the league's top scorer on 34 goals after netting four times, twice with penalties, in the space of 25 second-half minutes
Simeone urges Atletico fans to keep violence out of football 'I don't think this (violence) has anything to do with sport and it seems they are using sport to make a greater impact'
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances