Liverpool striker Luis Suarez wants an "amicable agreement" to leave the club, honouring last year's contract clause that said he could leave if they failed to qualify for the Champions League.
World champions France had eight players, one less than former holders Spain, in international players' association FIFPro's 55-name shortlist for its World XI of 2018 award.
Luis Suarez marked his return to Premier League action with two goals to help Liverpool to a 3-1 win at managerless Sunderland that lifted them to second in the table on Sunday.
Salah, 25, struck four goals in Liverpool's 5-0 thrashing of Watford that lifted them back into third place in the Premier League on Saturday.
Barcelona have been linked to a host of forwards during the winter transfer window as they seek experienced backup options for Luis Suarez.
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.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said he believes Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the Spanish champions despite reports the five times World Player of the Year is stalling over a new deal.
Alexander-Arnold, seeing the Spanish club's defenders still getting organised, feigned to walk away from the corner before racing back to whip the ball to the unmarked Divock Origi, who clipped it past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Real Madrid trimmed Barcelona's lead at the top of La Liga to one point when they recovered from conceding an early goal to secure a stirring 3-1 comeback win in the 'Clasico' on Saturday.
Barcelona have one hand firmly on the La Liga title after winning 2-0 at Alaves on Tuesday, leaving them 12 points clear at the top of the table with four games to play.
Lionel Messi squeezed home a stoppage-time penalty to grab a 3-2 win for champions Barcelona at Valencia in a thrilling and controversial La Liga match on Sunday.
Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola has denied a newspaper report that he tried to sign strikers Lionel Messi and Neymar from former club Barcelona in the close season.
'I'm definitely not going to change, players have to know that when they face me that I have my own way of playing and that is dribbling, scoring goals and helping my team mates'
Luis Suarez struck twice and Lionel Messi scored on his 500th appearance for Barcelona who set a new Spanish record of goals in a calendar year with a 4-0 win over Real Betis that lifted them top of La Liga on Wednesday.
France meet Belgium in a World Cup semi-final on Tuesday. Here is a look at some of the key head-to-head duels which could prove decisive.
'I arrived at Manchester United a boy, and I left a man'
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp wants his players to be "angry" and guard against complacency when they entertain promoted HullCity on Saturday.
'It has been good on pitch and off pitch,' Lampard said.
West Ham United's Michail Antonio has come to the defence of teammate Kurt Zouma, who has been targeted by fans for abusing his cats.
Former Newcastle United striker Faustino Asprilla is entering the world of business by designing and selling fruit-flavoured condoms in his native Colombia.
Images from football matches played in the La Liga, Serie A and Bundesliga on Saturday.
But despite some early close attempts from Uruguay, Japan began to impose themselves on the game and Koji Miyoshi gave them the lead in the 25th minute with a confident finish following a counterattack.
Real Madrid ended their long wait for a La Liga victory by beating Real Valladolid 2-0 on Saturday with two late goals in interim coach Santiago Solari's first home game in charge of the struggling European champions.
'I want the market to damn well close so that I know who I can count on'
Winning the treble last season has spurred Barcelona to try and win all six trophies up for grabs this year and replicate the feat they achieved in 2009, midfielder Andres Iniesta said on Monday.
Lionel Messi scored one penalty and missed another as Barcelona beat Real Valladolid 1-0 on Saturday to open up a seven-point lead at the top of La Liga.
Uruguay crushed Ecuador 4-0 in their Copa America opener on Sunday with help from an early sending off that deflated their opponents and assured the 15-times champions the simplest of starts to their campaign.
It was Messi's 30th goal in 39 competitive games against Atletico
Chelsea ripped apart Premier League title rivals Arsenal in a 6-0 mauling at Stamford Bridge on Saturday to ensure Arsene Wenger's 1,000th game turned sour and Liverpool and Manchester City kept up the pressure with big wins.
Real Madrid overcame an early howler from Sergio Ramos to beat Real Sociedad 3-1 at home on an eventful Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu, where Gareth Bale was loudly booed by his own supporters and Luka Modric returned to his very best form.
After an even first 45 minutes, strikes from Pablo Sarabia and Wissam Ben Yedder stunned the Catalans and left them needing a second-leg comeback at the Nou Camp for the second consecutive round in the competition.
It was a night of mixed emotions at the Camp Nou on Saturday as FC Barcelona's veteran midfielder and captain, Xavi, known for his slick short passes, played his final La Liga match against Deportivo la Coruna.
"I don't know how this affects my future," Valverde said.
It's been a week now since Real Madrid Cristiano Ronaldo hobbled off the pitch after injuring his thigh against Villarreal during a La Liga match last Wednesday.
Here are five talking points from the weekend's La Liga action:
Rediff.com brings these and other big news from the sporting world, encapsulated in this photo feature...
Liverpool need a top-level striker who can play every week and Daniel Sturridge could lose his role as the club's leading man after an injury-hit season, manager Brendan Rodgers has said.
Barcelona were held to a 1-1 draw at relegation-fighting Las Palmas on Thursday in an unexpected setback that left them with a five-point lead in La Liga ahead of their top-of-the-table showdown with Atletico Madrid this weekend.
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu hit out at Neymar's lack of loyalty to the club on Monday and criticised the Brazilian for staying silent up until his world record 222 million euro ($261 million) move to Paris St. Germain.
