Images from football matches played in the Italian Serie A and the La Liga on Friday.
Images from the football matches played across Europe on Wednesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Napoli have agreed to buy Spain centre back Raul Albiol from Real Madrid, the Serie A club said on Sunday.
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.
Angel Di Maria and Sergio Aguero will miss Argentina's final South American World Cup qualifier against Uruguay on Tuesday as the team who have already booked their place at next year's finals prepare to field yet more reserves.
Senad Lulic scored a late goal to give Lazio a 1-0 win at Napoli which sent them into the Coppa Italia final and added to Rafael Benitez's problems on Wednesday.
Argentina had a scare when Lionel Messi had to be substituted after incurring a back injury during a 1-0 win over rugged Honduras in a Copa America Centenario warm-up friendly on Friday. Messi walked off in pain in the 64th minute in San Juan after a clash with Honduras substitute Oliver Morazan 10 days before Argentina's opening Group D match against Chile. The team later dispelled fears of a serious injury, saying on their Twitter account that Messi had "suffered bruising on the left of his lower back and ribs." Gonzalo Higuain scored the only goal for Argentina. In other warm-up matches for the June 3-26 tournament in the United States, Edinson Cavani struck twice as Uruguay overcame Trinidad and Tobago 3-1 and title holders Chile were upset 2-1 by Jamaica.
Second-placed Napoli comfortably overcame the absence of suspended top scorer Gonzalo Higuain to brush aside bottom-of-the-table Verona 3-0 in Serie A on Sunday. Napoli stayed points six behind leaders Juventus, who won 2-1 at AC Milan on Saturday, with six matches each to play, and remain outsiders to win their first title since 1990 despite the win. Higuain, who has led Napoli's challenge with 30 goals, will miss the next three games as he completes a four-match ban for his sending-off and furious reaction in last week's 3-1 defeat at Udinese. Fiorentina's recent dismal run continued when they lost to their smaller Tuscan neighbours Empoli for the first time since 1997, leaving them fifth in the table. Juventus have 76 points from 32 games with Napoli on 70, AS Roma on 63, Inter Milan on 58 and Fiorentina on 56. Napoli hit the post twice and had a goal disallowed before Manolo Gabbiandini headed them in front in the 33rd minute, his fifth goal in only seven starts this season, after Verona goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini parried Jose Callejon's shot.
Goals from Gonzalo Higuain and Jose Callejon sent Napoli top of Serie A after they beat Atalanta 2-0 on Saturday while an injury-time Mario Balotelli penalty helped AC Milan come from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw at Torino.
Check out the top footballers of the weekend...
Stand-in defender Vlad Chiriches atoned for an early blunder by scoring his first Serie A goal to help Napoli come from behind and beat Chievo 3-1 in Serie A on Saturday, putting them level at the top with Juventus.
Napoli ended Juventus's hopes of securing a record seventh Italian Super Cup after snatching a dramatic 6-5 shootout win.
, Juventus thumped Chievo 4-0 away to win their 12th league game in a row but it was not enough to topple leaders Napoli who thrashed Empoli 5-1.
Tottenham Hotspur paid the highest price for two mistakes as their Champions League dream came to a bitter end against Juventus on Wednesday, manager Mauricio Pochettino said.
Nine-times European champions Real Madrid fielded their big guns on Sunday for a friendly against Bournemouth that was all about a once-in-a-lifetime occasion for the English second tier club rather than the Spanish giants' 6-0 victory.
Playing in a "false nine" role, Messi capped a disappointing tournament with another subdued display at Kazan Arena as Argentina bowed out of the last 16 with a 4-3 defeat.
Paraguay drew 1-1 with Uruguay at the Copa America to go top of Group B, one point ahead of Argentina before the tournament favourites take on eliminated Jamaica later on Saturday.
'Whenever I talk with Leo, we always say 'Pray that one day it happens for us'. It's what he wants and it's what we all want. I put myself in his shoes and I want to do the best'
Sevilla stayed firmly on course for a second consecutive Europa League crown when an Aleix Vidal double and a Kevin Gameiro strike secured a thumping 3-0 win at home to Fiorentina in their semi-final first leg on Thursday.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has reportedly given the green light to break the bank and spend 40 million pounds on controversial Liverpool striker Luis Suarez and the club is confident that Suarez will quit Liverpool for a sensational move to the Emirates.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi rescued a 1-1 draw at Villarreal with a sensational late free-kick on Sunday but could not prevent the champions finishing the weekend third in La Liga, five points behind leaders Real Madrid.
AS Roma coach Rudi Garcia succeeded where his three predecessors failed by taking his team to a 2-0 win over arch-rivals Lazio on Sunday and maintaining their 100 percent record in Serie A alongside Napoli who won 2-1 at AC Milan.
Belgium and France meet in the World Cup semi-final at the Saint Petersburg Stadium on Tuesday.
Two goals each for Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane helped Liverpool to keep in touch with Premier League leaders Manchester City with a 4-2 win over lowly Burnley at Anfield on Sunday.
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri shunned the plaudits after his side move closer to the treble by beating AS Monaco to reach the Champions League final on Tuesday.
Olympique de Marseille were the fall guys on a hectic opening night of Europa League group stage action as German club Eintracht Frankfurt returned from the south of France with a surprise 2-1 victory on Thursday.
Sergio Aguero and other Argentina players could follow the lead of captain Lionel Messi and retire from international football after losing the final of the Copa America on penalties to Chile for the second straight year.
Coach Gerardo Martino believes Argentina can improve on Tuesday's 6-1 Copa America semi-final demolition of Paraguay, adding that aspects of the goalless draw against Colombia in the previous round had pleased him more.
Lampard must re-energise the team to even hold onto Chelsea's tag as best of the rest behind Premier League champions Manchester City and runners-up Liverpool.
Argentina have reached three major finals in three years but the team who came so close to winning the 2014 World Cup face crunch games against Peru and Ecuador that will determine if they miss out on the global showpiece event for the first time since 1970.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Immobile strikes in Lazio's win, in contention for golden boot. IMAGES from the Serie A matches played on Wednesday.
Not even a lively performance from Lionel Messi - at least in the first half in St Petersburg - as they edged out Nigeria 2-1 to finish second in Group D will give their large travelling band of supporters in Russia much in the way of confidence.
The Argentina captain turns 31 in a few days and may be playing his last World Cup. He would need to win it to rival fellow great Diego Maradona for the eternal love of his compatriots.
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has mastered the art of the "double-edged compliment" and his praise for Juventus, after Tuesday's 1-0 defeat by the Italians, will have made uncomfortable listening for executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.
Juventus slumped to another surprise defeat on Wednesday when the champions lost 1-0 at Sassuolo while AS Roma reclaimed top spot in Serie A with a 3-1 home victory over Udinese.
The Belgian wizard tormented West Ham throughout and scored both goals to move Chelsea above Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal in the race for a top-four finish.
His first overseas coaching adventure -- Maurizio Sarri has chosen a devilishly difficult league to try and make it happen and a club not exactly known for its patience.
After playing the most soporific game of the World Cup so far, France will feature in a seismic last-16 clash of former champions with a resurgent Argentina on Saturday, and they will have to drastically improve if they are to stop Lionel Messi.
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