Luis Suarez went off injured in the first half of Barcelona s opening LaLiga match of the season against Athletic Bilbao.
The striker appeared to hurt his calf muscle shortly before taking a shot that hit the post just after the half-hour mark at San Mames.
Uruguay international Suarez was given treatment but had to be withdrawn, being replaced by Rafinha.
It is the first time he has been substituted in the first half of a LaLiga game since he joined Barca from Liverpool in 2014.
1 Luis Suárez has been substituted in the first half for the first time since playing in (29 substitutions). Injured
— OptaJose (@OptaJose)
Lionel Messi was missing from the match due to a calf injury suffered shortly before Barca travelled to the Unite…
Igor Akinfeev was Russia s hero after saving two penalties in a shoot-out to sensationally dump Spain out of the World Cup and book the hosts a place in the quarter-finals after a 1-1 draw in Moscow.
Koke and Iago Aspas were denied by the Russia goalkeeper as 2010 champions Spain, who dominated possession without creating clear chances, were defeated 4-3 on penalties.
Sergei Ignashevich became the oldest scorer of an own goal in World Cup history when the 38-year-old gave Spain an early lead at the Luzhniki Stadium.
A right-wing Isco cross isolated Ignashevich and Sergio Ramos at the back post, the Russia defender turning the ball home via his heel as he desperately tried to block his opponent s run.
But Russia drew level in the 41st minute, Artem Dzyuba…
Manchester City completed the formality of qualification for the Champions League group stage with a 1-0 win over Steaua Bucharest as Joe Hart bid a probable farewell to his adoring Etihad Stadium public.
Hart was restored to the City starting XI for the first and most likely last time under Pep Guardiola, who has preferred Willy Caballero in goal during the opening weeks of the season and sanctioned a move for Claudio Bravo, with the Chile international expected to seal his move from Barcelona before the end of this week.
City s 5-0 romp in the first leg killed both Steaua s ambition in Manchester and the game as a spectacle, with Fabian Delph s 56th-minute header one of the few notable pieces of on-field play.
It meant much of the focus could fall upon England …
Celta Vigo have agreed a deal to sign Denis Suarez from Barcelona for a fee that could rise to €16million.
Suarez endured a disappointing loan at Arsenal in 2018-19, making just four appearances for the Gunners before a groin injury cut his season short.
The 25-year-old has had two spells at Barcelona, first signing for the club in August 2013 from Manchester City before being loaned out to Sevilla a year later.
He made a €4m switch to Villarreal in August 2015 but, less than a year later, Barcelona exercised a buyback option and he enjoyed his best season at Camp Nou in 2016-17, making 26 LaLiga appearances for the Blaugrana.
Volto a casa
— Denis Suarez (@DenisSuarez6)
His opportunities dwindled over the following two seasons …
Benfica ended their Champions League hoodoo as Alfa Semedo scored a stunning goal to secure a 3-2 victory at AEK Athens in Group E.
Viktor Klonaridis second-half double looked to have clinched a share of the spoils for AEK, who had taken full advantage of Ruben Dias red card late in the first half.
Yet Benfica, who were 2-0 up by the 15th minute thanks to Haris Seferovic and Alex Grimaldo, rallied through substitute Semedo s solo effort on his debut in the Champions League proper.
The victory ends Benfica s eight-match losing streak in the competition, getting them off the mark in a tightly-contested Group E.
Benfica were ahead inside six minutes, Seferovic reacting sharply to tuck home on the rebound after Vasilios Barkas parried Gedson Fernandes str…
England were applauded for taking a knee at the start of their World Cup Group B opener against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.
Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate confirmed in his pre-match press conference a day earlier that England had decided to perform the gesture at the World Cup.
Kneeling before a game was initially adopted on a regular basis in the Premier League following the death of George Floyd in the United States back in 2020.
Despite it being a show of solidarity against discrimination, it was an initiative that was not universally applauded, with several Premier League clubs jeered for taking part.
It was scrapped as a regular feature ahead of this season, with the Premier League instead announcing the gesture would b…
Jose Mourinho s current squad is the strongest Manchester United have had since the departure of Alex Ferguson, according to the manager who hopes to plot their downfall on Wednesday.
CSKA Moscow boss Viktor Goncharenko made the statement on the eve of his side s Champions League clash with the English giants, who have fond memories of the Russian capital after lifting the trophy there in 2008.
United will be without Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini and Paul Pogba for the battle between the top two in Group A, with both teams having won their opening fixtures.
However, Goncharenko believes his opposite number has enough quality on his roster to cope without the absent trio.
After Alex Ferguson s legacy, this current version of Manchester United is with…
Fran Kirby has praised England manager Sarina Wiegman for her honest and special communication while the Chelsea star s availability for Euro 2022 was in doubt.
Kirby missed three months of action towards the end of the season due to an illness that was causing extreme fatigue.
But having returned to action and been named in England s squad for the Euros on home soil, the 28-year-old opened up on her conversations with Wiegman while she had stepped away from the game.
Obviously, it s going to be in the back of my mind. But for me, right now, I want to make sure that I m feeling confident going into the Euros, said Kirby.
Leading into it I had loads of conversations with Sarina on the phone in terms of how I was feeling and how I was doing.
She…
Bayern Munich have completed the signing of Sadio Mane from Liverpool after striking a deal worth up to €41million (£35.2m) to sign the Senegal forward.
Mane hinted at his desire to leave Liverpool after their Champions League final loss to Real Madrid last month, at the end of a season in which he scored 23 goals.
With Liverpool signing striker Darwin Nunez in a reported £64million (€75m) deal from Benfica last week and Mane having just 12 months left on his contract, the 30-year-old has been allowed to depart after six successful years at Anfield.
He has played a key role in Liverpool winning their first Premier League title in 2020, reaching three Champions League finals and winning one of them and triumphs in the EFL Cup and FA Cup in the 2021-22 sea…
England forward Bethany England has called for stakeholders to invest in the next generation of Lionesses to ensure her side’s historic World Cup run does not amount to a one-off.
Sunday’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the Sydney final meant England’s women under Sarina Wiegman came just short of bringing a World Cup trophy home for the first time since Sir Alf Ramsey and his men were crowned world champions in 1966.
Second was still a best-ever result for the Lionesses in a global showpiece, beating the bronze medal from eight years ago in Canada, and Spurs striker England is determined for the moment to live on as part of a lasting legacy.
It s been an amazing year and we re so proud of our journey – making history on and off the pitch.
We ve truly felt …