Barcelona's bid for a fourth straight La Liga title is foundering due to their erratic away form but Tuesday's 3-1 Champions League victory at Bayer Leverkusen suggests they are unlikely to suffer the same problem in Europe.

Barcelona are in the unusual position of having drawn their last three matches as they prepare for Saturday's home La Liga game against Real Sociedad and Pep Guardiola's unwillingness to commit to a new contract is not helping settle jangled nerves.

Real Madrid moved seven points clear at the top of La Liga with a comfortable 3-1 win over bottom side Real Zaragoza as Barcelona could only draw 0-0 at lowly Villarreal on Saturday.

Real Madrid and Barcelona were made to work hard before grinding out wins in La Liga at the weekend while Inter Milan scored a surprise derby victory over AC Milan in Serie A.

Barcelona slipped five points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid when Alvaro Vazquez netted a shock late equaliser to snatch a 1-1 draw for Espanyol in the Catalan derby on Sunday.

Tighter rules should be introduced by FIFA to stop European clubs from "stealing" talented young players from other countries, England manager Fabio Capello said on Thursday.

King's Cup holders Real Madrid and 2011 runners-up Barcelona are on course to meet in next month's quarter-finals following Friday's draw for the last 16.

Barcelona, fielding a side full of youngsters from the club's academy, routed Catalan neighbours Hospitalet to complete a 10-0 aggregate win over the third-tier side to reach the last 16 of Spain's King's Cup on Thursday.

European champions Barcelona have pledged to capture the Club World Cup for striker David Villa, who suffered a sickening leg break in Thursday's semi-final in Japan.

Jose Mourinho wants to prove there has been a shift in the balance of power towards his Real Madrid side when the La Liga leaders host bitter rivals Barcelona in the opening 'Clasico' of the campaign on Saturday.

Xavi produced a goal of surgical precision to give Barcelona a 3-2 win over AC Milan on Wednesday in an enthralling Champions League match which also featured Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring against the Catalan club he left acrimoniously last year.

Grandmaster Koneru Humpy misplayed a fine position and went down to defending champion Yifan Hou of China in the third game of the Women's World Championship.

Levante's first experience of life at the top of La Liga in their 102-year history ended when the surprise early pacesetters suffered a first defeat of the season in a 2-0 loss at 10-man Osasuna on Sunday.

Xavi celebrated setting a club record for La Liga appearances when he netted a superb free kick to give an otherwise listless Barcelona a 1-0 win at Granada on Tuesday in a scrappy game in which the home side finished with nine men.

Lionel Messi has dismissed talk of chasing records after the Argentine struck twice in Wednesday's 5-0 Champions League win at BATE Borisov to equal Ladislau Kubala as Barcelona's second highest scorer of all time on 194 goals.

Cesc Fabregas has finally signed for Barcelona on a five-year deal.

Chelsea have signed Barcelona's teenage midfielder Oriol Romeu on a four-year deal, last season's Premier League runners-up said on their website on Thursday.

Barcelona have agreed to sign Udinese's Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez for 26 million euros ($36.9 million) plus a possible 11.5 million euros in variables as the Spanish and European champions made their first addition to their squad for next season.

The situation Cesc Fabregas finds himself in at Arsenal is akin to a 'kidnapping' and the English club should allow him to return to Barcelona, the mayor of his home town was quoted as saying on Friday.

ZNMD doesn't earn our laughs, says Raja Sen.

Thousands of Barcelona fans danced, sang and shouted with joy on the streets of the Catalan capital after their heroes secured a fourth European Cup triumph at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.

Nemanja Vidic fears Champions League heartbreak for Manchester United if they become obsessed with shackling Lionel Messi in Saturday's final against Barcelona at Wembley.

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola and leading scorer Lionel Messi described their 2011 La Liga crown as the toughest of titles after securing top spot with a 1-1 draw at Levante on Wednesday.

Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo repeated allegations that referees favour Barcelona after his side were eliminated from the Champions League by their bitter rivals in the semi-finals on Tuesday.

Barcelona's slick football at a rain-swept Nou Camp had Real Madrid chasing shadows for long periods again as the Catalans reached the Champions League final after a 1-1 draw sent the 2009 winners through 3-1 on aggregate.

Barcelona reached the Champions League final for the second time in three years when a 1-1 draw at home to Real Madrid in their semi-final second leg sent the 2009 winners through 3-1 on aggregate.

Barcelona plan to attack Real Madrid in Tuesday's Champions League semi-final second leg despite holding a 2-0 advantage from the first leg, coach Pep Guardiola said on Monday.

Barcelona missed a chance to virtually wrap up a third straight La Liga title when they surrendered the lead and lost 2-1 at Real Sociedad Saturday.

Jose Mourinho is more determined than ever to continue as Real Madrid coach despite Wednesday's 2-0 Champions League defeat by Barcelona and the disciplinary case he faces for his post-match comments.

Jose Mourinho wrote off Real Madrid's Champions League chances and accused Barcelona of being favoured by the footballing authorities after his 10-man side lost their semi-final first leg 2-0 on Wednesday.

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola described Lionel Messi's achievements as 'outrageous' after the World Player of the Year produced another masterclass in Wednesday's 2-0 Champions League win at Real Madrid.

Lionel Messi's sublime double lifted Barcelona to a 2-0 win over bitter rivals Real Madrid and lit up an acrimonious Champions League semi-final first leg in which the hosts finished with 10 men and had coach Jose Mourinho sent off.

Real Madrid and Barcelona, the world's two richest clubs, have already played each other twice in five days in La Liga and the King's Cup, and now face off again over two legs for a place in the Champions League final.

Jose Mourinho is ready to haunt Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals again on Wednesday, this time with Real Madrid.

World number one Rafael Nadal crushed Gael Monfils of France 6-2, 6-2 to ease into the Barcelona Open semi-finals on Friday.

World number four Andy Murray pulled out of the Barcelona Open on Tuesday due to an elbow injury.

World number seven Tomas Berdych has withdrawn from the Barcelona Open due to illness, organisers said on Tuesday.

Hindi films are seeing a wave of foreign technicians.

Tottenham Hotspur and Schalke 04 belied their reputations to knock seven-times winners AC Milan and twice finalists Valencia out of the Champions League on Wednesday with performances that went entirely against type.

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has been diagnosed with a spinal disc hernia after he was admitted to hospital overnight suffering from acute lower back pain, the La Liga club said on Thursday.