Luis Suarez completed a hat-trick thanks to a cheeky Lionel Messi assist from the penalty spot as Barcelona crushed Celta Vigo 6-1 to restore their three-point cushion over Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga on Sunday.
Barcelona's stuttering title bid suffered another setback when they lost 2-1 at home to Valencia on Sunday, while Atletico Madrid moved level on points with the La Liga leaders after a comfortable win over Granda.
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi set a La Liga record of 253 goals when he grabbed a hat-trick in Saturday's 5-1 win at home to Sevilla, the latest milestone for the four-times World Player of the Year.
Real Madrid's star striker Cristiano Ronaldo made up for his otherwise quiet night by scoring the winner to beat Barcelona 2-1 win at the CampNou in Barcelona on Saturday.
Bayern Munich and Barcelona registered easy wins, while Manchester United came from behind to beat CSKA Moscow 2-1 and Chelsea surrendered the top spot after a 1-1 at home against Atletico Madrid.
Asian champions India have never won the Champions Trophy in its last 36 editions but will be hoping to claim the feat in the tournament's last edition.
Spain's biggest selling sports daily Marca summed it up in Monday's headline after Barcelona wrapped up a fifth La Liga title in seven years and their 23rd overall on Sunday: 'Messi's League'.
Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane regrets having apologised to Alex Ferguson after the falling-out which led to him leaving the club in 2005, leaked extracts from his new autobiography have revealed.
Second-half headers from Diego Godin and Raul Garcia gave holders Atletico Madrid a 2-0 win over Valencia and a place in the King's Cup quarter-finals by 3-1 on aggregate.
Real Madrid kept alive their hopes of overhauling La Liga leaders Barcelona when a James Rodriguez stunner set them on their way to a serene 3-0 home victory over struggling Almeria on Wednesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
One of the most disappointing aspects of Barcelona's failure to win major silverware last season was the lack of on-field chemistry between Lionel Messi and Neymar.
Everton have been handed the dubious distinction of being the 'dirtiest' Premier League team after a study on the all-time cards and fouls by www.dirtyteams.co.uk.
Atletico Madrid secured a berth in the Champions League group stage for next season and Deportivo La Coruna narrowly escaped relegation when they came from two goals down to draw 2-2 at champions Barcelona on the final day in La Liga on Saturday.
Lionel Messi passed up the chance to net his 300th La Liga goal and instead put a hat-trick on a plate for team mate Luis Suarez with an outrageous penalty routine.
Athletic Bilbao ended Getafe's run of four straight wins and climbed above them into fifth place in La Liga when Aymeric Laporte's early bullet header secured a 1-0 win at the Coliseum in Madrid on Monday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday.
Just as he did two years ago, Sergio Ramos left his footprint all over Real Madrid's Champions League final triumph over Atletico Madrid following a turbulent 12 months.
Barca dominated possession and Luis Suarez had several early chances but it was Villarreal who took the lead with Denis Cheryshev redirecting a Mario Gaspar shot past keeper Claudio Bravo on the half hour.
Barcelona and Bayern fought hard but failed to break the shackles until the 77th minute in the match when Messi struck the first and three minutes later struck his 77th Champions League goal to double Barca's advantage.
Cristiano Ronaldo, fired up by rival Lionel Messi's midweek hat-trick for Barcelona, struck four goals in 26 second-half minutes as Real Madrid crushed Celta Vigo 7-1 at the Bernabeu on Saturday.
India entered the final of the men's hockey tournament at the Asian Games after a solitary goal victory over South Korea in the semi-finals, in Incheon, on Tuesday.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi broke free from Arsenal's shackles to score two late goals and put the Champions League holders on the brink of the quarter-finals with a clinical 2-0 victory at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Atletico Madrid kept pace with leaders Barcelona and restored their five-point lead over third-placed city rivals Real when Diego Costa and David Villa each scored a penalty in a 2-1 win at Granada in La Liga on Thursday.
AFC Cup semi-finalists East Bengal suffered a jolt ahead of their big match next week as they were beaten by former champions Dempo 3-1 in Kalyani on Thursday.
Barcelona thrashed Sporting Gijon 6-1 to go top of La Liga on a dramatic night in Spain on Wednesday as Luis Enrique announced he was stepping down as the Catalan club's coach at the end of the season.
Lopetegui blends youth and experience in Spain World Cup squad
A summary of Wednesday's matches in the UEFA Champions League.
Barca captain Messi opened the scoring with a "Panenka" penalty chipped straight down the middle in the 17th minute after Luis Suarez was fouled in the area, putting the home side ahead in the tie after a goalless first leg in France.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Lionel Messi marked his 300th La Liga appearance with a record-equalling hat-trick and an assist for Neymar as Barcelona stayed hard on the heels of leaders Real Madrid with a 5-0 romp at home to Levante on Sunday.
Luis Suarez had the Barcelona fans chanting his name after he set up Lionel Messi to score the opening goal in their King's Cup semis.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The women's World Cup final between the United States and Japan on Sunday may not rival the Super Bowl, but soccer fans, wild with excitement.
Barcelona followed up Saturday's win over Real Madrid with another victory when Alexis Sanchez set the champions on their way to a 3-0 success at Celta Vigo on Tuesday that put them four points clear at the top of La Liga.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona followed up last weekend's 3-1 defeat at Real Madrid with another reverse on Saturday, squandering a host of chances to lose 1-0 at home to Celta Vigo and handing the lead in La Liga to their arch rivals.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
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