It is a measure of the importance of captain Robert Lewandowski to Poland that the striker is the first name coach Adam Nawalka writes on the team sheet despite his goal drought at Euro 2016. Most forwards who go more than 10 hours without scoring would be warming the bench and facing criticism from the media and fans. But the Bayern Munich striker will be a key part of Poland's efforts to defeat Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal in Thursday's quarter-final in Marseille. After scoring 13 goals in the qualifying, Lewandowski's statistics in his first four games in France make disappointing reading: no goals, two attempts on target, three attempts off target and three blocked attempts.
Fiorentina conceded a late goal, had David Pizarro sent off and lost their 100 percent Serie A record in a 1-1 draw at home to Cagliari on Sunday, with an injury to Mario Gomez compounding their frustration.
Germany midfielder Toni Kroos has eased Real Madrid's injury concerns and could be fit to play in their Champions League match at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, coach Zinedine Zidane said.
India's dream run in the Women's Junior Hockey World Cup ended as they lost 0-3 to defending champions the Netherlands scored in the second semi-final in Monchengladbach, Germany, on Friday.
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.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in his 150th European appearance to give Real Madrid a 3-1 victory at Borussia Dortmund, their first against them in Germany, and make it two wins out of two matches in their Champions League Group H.
A long-range strike from Jackie Groenen sent European Champions the Netherlands into their first women's World Cup final as they edged Sweden 1-0 after extra time in their last-four clash on Wednesday.
the game that made most news on the night was the drawn match between New Zealand and China.
David Beckham, one of the so-called "Class of 92", went on to win six Premier League titles under Alex Ferguson at United alongside youth-team buddies Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt, and Gary and Phil Neville. Beckham also won two FA Cups and, memorably, the Champions League in 1999. He topped up his trophy collection with a La Liga winners' medal for Real Madrid and added two MLS Cups during a north American adventure with LA Galaxy.
A summary of Tuesday's Group stage matches in the UEFA Champions League.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Bayern Munich forward Thomas Muller has stated that 'it would be almost boring' to see Portuguese international Cristiano Ronaldo winning the prestigious Ballon d'Or award yet again.
Ajax Amsterdam produced a performance worthy of the club's illustrious past when they crushed Olympique Lyonnais 4-1 on Wednesday to move to the brink of their first European final since 1996.
Local media reported the team captain, a dressing-room heavyweight and a huge fan favourite, would earn 10 million euros a season after tax, making him one of the best-paid members of Real's expensively assembled squad
Italy and Nigeria played out a thrilling 2-2 draw which included a goal-of-the-season contender from Shola Ameobi in an entertaining friendly at Fulham's Craven Cottage on Monday.
Arsenal fielded a strong team with Ozil installed as captain and the Premier League side soon took control against weakened opposition, given the time and space they will not be afforded when the domestic campaign kicks off in August.
RB Leipzig's Timo Werner scored a hat-trick as they demolished hosts Mainz 5-0 on Sunday to reclaim third place in the Bundesliga with an emphatic victory after three straight draws. Schalke 04 slumped to a shock 3-0 home defeat by relegation-threatened Augsburg on Sunday, their fourth defeat in five games dropping them to eighth place in the Bundesliga.
The FIFA World Cup at Russia saw a variety of celebrations -- from the weird to some fancy dance moves -- Rediff.com has got it all covered here...
Nigeria beat Bosnia 1-0 on Saturday to record their first World Cup finals victory since 1998 and condemn the European team to an early exit in their first appearance at the tournament.
At least one person has been injured by an explosion on the bus taking the Borussia Dortmund soccer team to their UEFA Champions League quarter-final first-leg match against Monaco in Dortmund on Tuesday.
Belgium used a combination of daring, intelligence, resilience and not a little luck to oust World Cup favourites Brazil 2-1 in a memorable quarter-final tie on Friday that would have made a worthy final.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
France substitute Kylian Mbappe engineered two late goals to rescue a 2-2 draw against Iceland and spare the blushes of the world champions in their friendly.
The gifted 23-year-old attacking midfielder is moving to Anfield from Germany's Hoffenheim, where he played since 2010, scoring 47 goals in 151 appearances.
Adrian fired past opposite number and Spanish compatriot Joel Robles immediately after the Everton keeper had crashed his spot kick against the crossbar as West Ham won 9-8 on penalties.
Brazil's defensive record under coach Tite has been remarkable, with only six goals conceded in 25 matches, and they have been just as miserly in Russia where they have only conceded one goal.
La Liga leaders Barcelona handed Real Madrid more hope in the title race as they drew 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, only avoiding defeat thanks to some outstanding saves by Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
India disastrous campaign at Hero Hockey World League Final continued as they lost 1-3 to New Zealand to succumb to their second straight defeat in Pool A at the floodlit Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium on Saturday.
Argentina start as hot favourites to beat Iceland in their opening World Cup Group D match on Saturday but the toughest opponent for the runners-up four years ago may be themselves rather than the tiny tournament debutants.
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
The Bundesliga was hit by another ball-over-the-line controversy on Saturday after Nuremberg were disallowed a goal in their 3-1 defeat at Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Neymar scored all four goals in a sumptuous display for Brazil as the five-times world champions routed an under-strength Japan 4-0 in a friendly in Singapore on Tuesday to maintain Dunga's perfect start since returning as coach.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Summary of the South American World Cup qualifiers played on Thursday
Atletico Madrid fell to their heaviest league defeat of the season
Kit manufacturer Puma said it had traced a problem with ripped shirts for the Swiss team at Euro 2016 to a defective batch of material used only in a limited number of home jerseys for the team.
The soccer world was in mourning on Tuesday as clubs, players and fans from around the globe sent tributes and support to Brazilian side Chapecoense following a deadly air crash in Colombia that killed 76 people, including several players.
With less than 10 days to go for their opening match in the FIH Champions Trophy in London, Indian men's hockey team chief coach Roelant Oltmans said he is eyeing a top three finish in the high-profile tournament. Oltmans believes if things go according to plans, the team will stand a good chance to win a medal in the Champions Trophy. "Everybody knows we are good in the knockout stage. But Champions Trophy this year will be slightly different and we need to finish top two to play the final and be top four to play for bronze. "It will be interesting to see how our players will cope to this situation and face the challenge. Our realistic expectation is to finish in the top three," he said about his expectations from the event.
