Lionel Messi netted his first hat-trick in 10 months as Barcelona swept aside struggling Granada 4-0 to climb above Atletico Madrid to the top of La Liga on Saturday.
Barcelona made a brisk start to the season with new coach Luis Enrique at the helm in place of Gerardo Martino and a host of additions to the squad, including midfielder Ivan Rakitic and goalkeeper Claudio Bravo.
Jose Mourinho admitted that Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Arsenal means it will now be "impossible" for Manchester United to finish in the top four.
Blackburn Rovers have signed former Real Madrid defender Michel Salgado for two years on a free transfer, the Premier League club said on Wednesday.
Barcelona's bid for a fifth La Liga title in six years suffered a surprise setback when the champions crashed to a 1-0 defeat at lowly Real Valladolid on Saturday.
Real Madrid became La Liga champions for the first time since 2012 on Sunday with a 2-0 win at Malaga, denying arch-rivals Barcelona three consecutive league titles.
Angel Correa saw La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid snatch a 2-1 victory away to Granada on Saturday
Zinedine Zidane has said his side are in a delicate situation as they prepare to host arch-rivals Barcelona in a La Liga title showdown on Sunday
Real Madrid did not specify if he would be out of action for any length of time
This summer, enrol for free English lessons at the British Council, Mumbai.
Premier League-based trio Diego Costa, Juan Mata and Santi Cazorla were among a high-profile list of absentees when Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque named his provisional 25-man squad for Euro 2016 on Tuesday. Costa injured his hamstring against Liverpool in Chelsea's penultimate game of the season. Atletico Madrid striker Fernando Torres was also absent from the squad despite his improved form towards the end of the season, as were Arsenal midfielder Cazorla and Valencia forward Paco Alcacer, Spain's top scorer in their qualifying campaign.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Jaume Costa atoned for giving away a first-half penalty when his strike five minutes from time rescued Villarreal a 1-1 draw against Eibar that put them fourth in La Liga on Sunday.
Barcelona's inconsistency over the season had cost them the La Liga title, coach Luis Enrique has said.
Arsenal right back Hector Bellerin will be in Spain's Euro 2016 squad, the country's football federation said on Tuesday. The 21-year-old Bellerin and the other 18 players named to face South Korea in a friendly in Wals-Siezenheim, Austria on Wednesday, have been guaranteed spots in the European Championship squad. Bellerin was included after Real Madrid right back Dani Carvajal sustained a leg muscle injury in Saturday's Champions League final victory over Atletico Madrid. The Real Madrid and Atletico players in the squad will be named later on Tuesday when Spain coach Vicente del Bosque announces his final list.
The British Council announces free English lessons for adults by teacher trainees on the University of Cambridge CELTA course.
The draw interrupted a run of four straight league wins for Zinedine Zidane's side and left them second on 67 points after 31 games, three behind leaders Atletico who thrashed Eibar 5-0 earlier in the day.
Lionel Messi is back in the Argentina squad for next month's World Cup qualifiers against Brazil and Colombia after missing the last three due to injury in which his team have dropped seven points. Messi was named on Friday in coach Edgardo Bauza's 26-man squad and will captain Argentina away to arch-rivals Brazil in Belo Horizonte on Nov. 10 and at home against Colombia in San Juan five days later. Argentina have slipped down the South American group standings to fifth after a shock 1-0 home defeat by Paraguay and 2-2 draws with Peru and Venezuela, all without Messi.
Villarreal went top with a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday after a toothless Real Madrid were held 0-0 at home to 10-man Malaga and Lionel Messi suffered a serious injury as Barcelona beat Las Palmas 2-1.
Images from football matches played in the La Liga, Serie A and Bundesliga on Saturday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Lionel Messi scored one penalty and missed another as his double helped Barcelona sweep Levante aside in the second half in a 4-1 victory on Sunday to maintain their perfect La Liga start.
Here are five talking points from the weekend in La Liga:
Organisers of the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix have bowed to local sensitivities by banning the traditional champagne podium celebration.
Gijon spoiled Asier Illarramendi's return to Real Sociedad's midfield after rejoining from Real Madrid this week when they held the Basque club, coached by Scot David Moyes, to a 0-0 draw in San Sebastian.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Cristiano Ronaldo netted a first-half penalty as injury-depleted Real Madrid recovered from their derby defeat by Atletico Madrid at the weekend with a 3-1 win at Levante on Wednesday.
Barcelona will attempt to give Luis Enrique his 100th victory in his 125th game in charge of the team when they play at Athletic Bilbao in la Liga on Sunday. A former Barca player, the 46-year-old led them to a La Liga, King's Cup and Champions League treble in his first year in charge and the domestic double last season. The Catalans started the campaign with a 5-0 aggregate triumph over Sevilla in the Spanish Super Cup and a 6-2 victory over Real Betis in La Liga.
Real Madrid brushed off the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale to beat Espanyol 2-0 away and maintain their 100 per cent start to the league season while matching the La Liga record of 16 consecutive victories.
The British Council, Mumbai, invites applications for the first batch of its new, full-time Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages programme.
Sevilla and Real Madrid kept the pressure on leaders Barcelona with home wins in the Primera Liga on Sunday.
Barcelona have been frighteningly good at home this season, scoring 15 goals in three games at the Nou Camp.
Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers and Rangers secured four berths for British teams in the knockout phase of the UEFA Cup on Thursday.
Lionel Messi scored yet another hat-trick and surpassed 400club goals as Barcelona came from behind to win the Catalan derby 5-1 against Espanyol.
Spanish soccer's 'El Clasico' encounters between Barcelona and Real Madrid will happen in December and April, two of the most anticipated games of the 2016-17 Primera Division season whose fixtures were announced on Friday. Defending champions Barca host Real on Dec. 4 at the Camp Nou. The reverse fixture will take place on April 23, at the Bernabeu stadium, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed after the draw. As the La Liga season kicks off, Barca will begin their title defence at home to Real Betis on Aug. 21.
The Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages programme deadlines have been extended.
United are 16th in the standings with a game in hand heading into the international break.
Nolito is adamant that he will not allow growing speculation about his club future to become a distraction as he "lives a dream" with Spain at Euro 2016.
Manchester City's Premier League home match against Arsenal has been postponed because players from the London club have had contact with the owner of Greek side Olympiakos Piraeus, who has contracted the coronavirus. Meanwhile La Liga matches will be played without fans for at least the next two rounds of fixtures to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus, the Spanish league said.
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