After an almighty push by all parties concerned, Spain's La Liga roars back into action next week after a three-month pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with matches taking place every day and with everything to play for. The season resumes on Wednesday in bizarre circumstances with the second half of a Segunda Division match between Rayo Vallecano and Albacete that was abandoned in December due to offensive chanting.
Barca finished the season second in the standings on 82 points, four behind champions Real Madrid who visit Leganes later on Sunday. Alaves are 16th on 39.
All non-professional leagues have been cancelled although clubs in the top two divisions have resumed training in groups of up to 10 players.
Sevilla will attempt to draw Bayern Munich out of their comfort zone and take the game to the Germans,
New Atletico striker Diego Costa, whose transfer from Chelsea was agreed this week, watched on from the stands as both sides hit the woodwork in the opening 20 minutes of an even first period.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
With football matches cancelled across Europe to stop the spread of the coronavirus, La Liga players Borja Iglesias and Sergio Reguilon found a novel way to attract 60,000 online fans - by battling out a thrilling Seville derby on the FIFA 20 videogame. Fans in Andalusia suffering from La Liga withdrawal symptoms after Sunday's clash between Sevilla and Real Betis was postponed tuned in for the showdown between Betis's Iglesias and Sevilla's Reguilon on streaming service Twitch.
Barcelona snapped a four-match winless run in La Liga with a 4-2 home victory over title rivals Sevilla on Saturday to reclaim top spot but the triumph was marred by talisman Lionel Messi fracturing his arm and being ruled out for three weeks.
Italy's top sports body on Monday called for all sports events to be cancelled until April 3, and asked the government to issue a decree to enforce the measure as the country fights with the worst coronavirus outbreak in Europe.
Chelsea have signed Germany's highly-rated attacking midfielder Kai Havertz from Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen on a five-year contract, the Premier League club announced on Friday.
Playing without crowd will be peculiar: Suarez
Second half of abandoned Rayo-Albacete will kick-off proceedings on return.
Manchester United breezed into the next round with a 6-1 aggregate win over Club Brugge
Joe Maguire was found guilty of repeated bodily harm, violence against public employees and attempted bribery. Sharman was found guilty of insult, repeated bodily harm and violence against public employees.
The result also means second-placed Real Sociedad can reclaim top spot if they beat Eibar on Sunday.
Manchester City must rebuild for title challenge: Guardiola
Substitute David Villa scored a superb last-gasp winner and Cesc Fabregas netted twice as leaders Barcelona came from two goals down to stun 10-man Sevilla 3-2 and extend their perfect La Liga record on Saturday.
RB Leipzig scored twice in the opening 13 minutes but had to survive a late comeback from Manchester United to cling on to a 3-2 win on Tuesday that sent them into the Champions League knockout stage and eliminated the English side.
The old format was skewed in favour of the bigger clubs, who could rest players for a first leg and swallow defeat before calling on their stars to turn the tie around in the return game.
Third-placed Inter Milan scored twice in the last six minutes through Stefan De Vrij and Alessandro Bastoni to snatch a 2-1 win at Parma in Serie A on Sunday despite a subdued display. The scarcely-deserved victory left Inter eight points behind leaders Juventus and four adrift of second-placed Lazio with 10 games each to play.
Barcelona's fourth defeat of the season left them seventh in the standings on 14 points after 10 games, 12 points behind leaders Atletico.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored the 750th goal of his remarkable career in a 3-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Jose Callejon took advantage of Napoli's numerical advantage in the 48th minute of the playoff round second leg tie, handing them an away goal which, added to their 2-0 win from the first leg, effectively ended Nice's challenge as it left the French side needing to score four goals.
Manchester United took a big step towards the Europa League quarter-finals by thrashing Austrian side LASK Linz 5-0 on Thursday in their last 16 first-leg tie at an empty Linzer Stadium due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Juventus progressed to the Champions League last 16 after a Cristiano Ronaldo goal and a late header from substitute Alvaro Morata gave them a comeback 2-1 home win over Hungarians Ferencvaros on Tuesday.
Despite two goals from Franco Vazquez, Sevilla's defeat leaves them on 68 points, three behind third-placed Atletico Madrid, but now only five clear of fifth-placed Villarreal -- and they still have to visit Real Madrid on May 14.
Indian football heavyweights Mohun Bagan clinched their second I-League title with a 1-0 win over Aizawl FC with four rounds to go in the season, in Kalyani, on Tuesday. Senegalese striker Baba Diawara scored the all-important goal for Mohun Bagan in the 80th minute to beat former champions Aizawl in their 16th round match and give their supporters a memorable Holi gift.
Images from football matches played in La Liga and Serie A in Spain and Italy on Wednesday.
Inter Milan midfielder Christian Eriksen scored his first goal for the club since last month's move from Tottenham Hotspur to set up a 2-0 win at Ludogorets Razgrad in their Europa League last 32, first leg on Thursday. Getafe pulled off a surprise 2-0 home win over last year's Champions League semi-finalists Ajax Amsterdam, while Manchester United were held 1-1 at Club Brugge in wet and windy conditions. Wolverhampton Wanderers' Diogo Jota scored a second successive hat-trick in the competition to lead his side to a 4-0 victory over Espanyol and Arsenal won 1-0 at Olympiakos Piraeus with a late Alexandre Lacazette goal.
Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea added another heart-stopping save to his collection as his team held a highly-impressive Sevilla side to a 0-0 draw away from home in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi scored a penalty for the third Champions League game in a row with the Spaniards maintaining their winning start to the group stage.
Sevilla goalkeeper Sergio Rico blundered and then made two brilliant late stops as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Alaves on Monday that dented their La Liga title bid.
Barca lead the standings on 39 points from 18 games, three clear of second-placed Real Madrid who host Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
Simeone's side leapfrogged Real Sociedad into fourth on 42 points, while Sevilla stayed third in the standings on 46 after beating Las Palmas 1-0, also on Sunday, thanks to a late strike from substitute Joaquin Correa
Real Sociedad are fourth in the table on 28 points, three points behind third-placed Sevilla.
IMAGES from the Champions League matches played on Tuesday
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday night.
Real Madrid set a Spanish record of 40 matches unbeaten in all competitions after they came back from two goals behind to snatch a 3-3 draw at Sevilla with a last-gasp equaliser from Karim Benzema in the King's Cup on Thursday.
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