Saturday's 4-0 rout of Athletic Club was a very meaningful match for Barcelona - and not just because it marked the Blaugrana's belated return to Camp Nou. Indeed, the Catalans winning without conceding a goal was arguably of far greater significance than the long-awaited reopening of their beloved home ground, as it was their first clean sheet for nine games in all competitions. Not since the facile 3-0 win over Getafe on September 21 had Barca shut out an opponent.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has backed Brazilian wonderkid Estevao Willian to emulate Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal but warned against comparisons ahead of the Champions League showdown between the European giants. Although his minutes have been carefully managed and he is not yet a guaranteed starter, Estevao has made an impressive start to life at Stamford Bridge, making five goal contributions already.
Is this the greatest goal Chelsea has ever conceded in the Champions League? The beautiful artistry of the Brazilian wonder is the stuff of legend at Stamford Bridge, even today.
Vincent Kompany insists that his Bayern Munich side will iron out their set-piece weakness before they take on Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday night. Bayern returned to winning ways with a resounding 6-2 victory over Freiburg but went behind on home turf to two early corners as their dead-ball issues came to the fore once more.
Bayern Munich are preparing to appeal the red card picked up by Luis Diaz after he received a 'very harsh' Champions League ban for the foul that injured Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi earlier this month. Diaz was slapped with a three-game ban by UEFA, which came as a huge blow for the German giants ahead of their key Champions League clash against Arsenal.
Cole Palmer has suffered another unfortunate injury setback, in a serious blow to Chelsea’s plans, with the England international fracturing his toe following an "accident at home". The 23-year-old playmaker has made just four appearances this season, as he struggles for fitness, and has now been ruled out of the Blues’ next three fixtures across all competitions.
In the latest episode of the Beast Mode On podcast, Adebayo Akinfenwa sits down with Arsenal and England star Eberechi Eze to discuss his incredible journey from suffering multiple club rejections as a teenager, to becoming one of the Three Lions' most gifted players. The pair, who were team-mates at Wycombe, relive their days together in the EFL, and talk through Eze's emotional return to his boyhood team last summer.
Micky van de Van scored a stunning solo goal for Tottenham in their Champions League clash with FC Copenhagen, but a couple of his club colleagues have snubbed the Dutchman when naming the best strike that they have ever seen. Another effort recorded in European competition, by Portuguese GOAT Cristiano Ronaldo, gets the nod from a few of those in north London.
Wayne Rooney has sought to bring an end to his supposed feud with Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk. The Manchester United legend has found himself caught up in a war of words with the Netherlands international, with the pair coming face-to-face during an awkward television exchange after Van Dijk helped Liverpool to a Champions League win over Real Madrid.
Jamie Carragher has accused a Daily Mail journalist of having "sympathy about 115 charges" at Manchester City after seeing his attempts to sit in the away end at the Etihad Stadium reported on. The legendary former Liverpool defender has mingled with Borussia Dortmund fans in the past and had hoped to join them again for a Champions League fixture on English soil.
Chelsea's players were criticised by Qarabag manager Gurban Gurbanov for being "inattentive" in their 2-2 draw in the Champions League on Wednesday. What was expected to be a routine night for the Premier League giants quickly descended into chaos as the travelling Blues clung on to secure only one point on their travels to Azerbaijan.
A Champions League record long held by Manchester United legend David Beckham has been taken by Club Brugge star Carlos Forbs following his sparkling goalscoring display against Barcelona. The 21-year-old scored twice and bagged an assist as the Belgian side held the Spanish giants to a 3-3 draw in a thrilling encounter. And he notched a bit of history along the way, too.
Enzo Maresca tore into his Chelsea players following Wednesday's 2-2 draw with Qarabag. The Blues were expected to ease to victory in Azerbaijan in their early Champions League clash but were forced to share the spoils despite dominating for large periods. And the Italian pulled no punches as he criticised his side at both ends of the pitch following the midweek stalemate.
Phil Foden picked up his wand and produced more magic in the Champions League to inspire Manchester City to a 4-1 win over Borussia Dortmund. Foden broke the deadlock with a brilliant finish before Erling Haaland struck against his former club. Foden scored a delightful second goal to give City a three-goal cushion but Pep Guardiola's side then lived dangerously.
Erling Haaland set a new Champions League record with a goal against former side Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night. Haaland added to an extensive fine haul in Manchester City's welcome of the German giants as he netted his fifth Champions League goal of the season on the half-hour mark. And the first-half strike saw the Norwegian goal machine make history.
Alejandro Garnacho broke new ground for English clubs in the Champions League with his goal for Chelsea against Qarabag. The Argentina international came off the bench when his side were 2-1 down but grabbed a crucial equaliser soon after his introduction. And in doing so, the former Manchester United star created a little bit of history for himself.
Chelsea's trip to Qarabag for their midweek Champions League tie was marred by a racist incident. The abuse took place during the Youth League meeting between the two sides on Wednesday as the young Blues eased to a 5-0 win. Eyewitnesses have claimed that they saw and heard monkey gestures as Chelsea opened the scoring in the 57th minute and celebrated in close proximity to a section of fans.
Harry Kane has opened up on family life and revealed the battles with his daughter Vivienne over his phone. Kane moved to Bayern Munich in 2023 and lived in a hotel for the first six months of his time in Germany as he initially struggled being away from his family. However, they have since settled in the country with the striker tearing up the Bundesliga.
Super-sub Alejandro Garnacho saved Chelsea's blushes against Champions League surprise package Qarabag while Estevao enhanced his burgeoning reputation in a thrilling 2-2 draw on Wednesday. However, young defender Jorrel Hato had a night to forget in Azerbaijan as his calamitous display almost proved the undoing of Enzo Maresca's side, who survived a real scare.
Thomas Frank has responded to Jamie Carragher's assessment of his Tottenham team, telling the ex-Liverpool defender that it's 'easier' to be a pundit and criticise managers for their shortcomings than to actually coach a team. Frank's Spurs lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday, tallying a club-record low of 0.05 expected goals in the process. Supporters booed the Dane's team throughout the game and at full-time.
Tottenham boosted their chances of reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League with a commanding 4-0 win at home to Copenhagen, despite playing much of the second half one man light. Goalscorer Brennan Johnson was sent off with Spurs already two to the good, but Thomas Frank's side showed fantastic character to score twice more as they put in arguably their best performance of his tenure so far.
Trent Alexander-Arnold has opened up on what it means to him to return to boyhood team Liverpool ahead of Real Madrid's trip to Anfield this week. The full-back swapped the Reds for the Spanish giants this summer after spending the entirety of his career at the Merseyside outfit. Now, the England international is preparing for an emotional return to his former employers - something he had been preparing for.
Trent Alexander-Arnold's return to fitness could not have come at a more important time for Real Madrid, following the loss of Dani Carvajal to injury. It comes just a week before Los Blancos are due to face Liverpool in the Champions League at Anfield, only five months after Alexander-Arnold decided to end a 20-year association with his boyhood team.
From confronting Patrick Vieira in the Highbury tunnel to spurring his team on to victory in the 1998-99 Champions League semi-final, there is no shortage of examples of Roy Keane's aura - here, GOAL remembers the famous Ronaldo handshake snub.
Erling Haaland has opened a window to all the hard work and preparation that lies behind his incredible goal-scoring form. In the first video on his brand new YouTube channel, the Norwegian takes viewers inside his home and into Manchester City's training ground to show them a day in the life of a striker who has scored 24 goals already this season for club and country.
U.S. men's national team midfielder Yunus Musah came off the bench to play a key role in Atlanta's Champions League 2-1 victory over Club Brugge. The 22-year-old assisted Atalanta's late winner to help the Serie A side secure three crucial points in the second round of Champions League league phase. La Dea now sit 19th in the standings.
Anthony Gordon has revealed what Jose Mourinho told him at full-time after Newcastle beat Benfica 3-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday evening. The England winger scored the first goal of the game and assisted the third from Harvey Barnes as Eddie Howe's side recorded a thumping win.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has made an interesting comparison between Cityzens midfielder Bernardo Silva and Lionel Messi, claiming after the Portuguese's goal against Villarreal on Tuesday night that both him and the great Argentine have a "hammer in their necks", capable of scoring great headed goals despite their comparatively short stature.
Harry Kane made another piece of history on Wednesday night as the Bayern Munich striker hit 20 goals for the season in just 12 games for Bayern Munich. In a quite remarkable stat, this is faster than either Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi managed to achieve the feat in their careers. Kane struck the second goal of the game as Bayern comfortably beat Club Brugge 4-0 in the Champions League.
It was a night of mixed emotions for Liverpool boss Arne Slot, who saw his side end their four-match losing streak courtesy of a dominant 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt, but there was a massive blow in the first-half as Jeremie Frimpong pulled up and had to be substituted. And there was further bad news as it was revealed after the match that record signing Alexander Isak had to come off at half-time due to feeling pain in his groin.
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