On Sunday morning, for the first time this season, all of Paris Saint-Germain’s heavy hitters graced the pitch together, including a debut for Sergio Ramos at the heart of defense alongside Marquinhos. Up top, Saint-Étienne squared up with the quartet of Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Ángel Di María.
Xavi’s managerial reign at Barcelona began with a 1-0 victory over Espanyol on Saturday, and it’s clear he’s already injected some much-needed life into the club.
On the pitch, there was a debut for 17-year-old winger Ilias Akhomach while 17-year-old Gavi and 19-year-old Nico González also made the starting XI — even Riqui Puig made an appearance!
MANCHESTER, England - Manchester City moved back to second in the Premier League after a stylish 3-0 win over Everton at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday as Pep Guardiola's side responded to convincing Chelsea and Liverpool wins with a reminder of their class.
Champions City dominated possession from the start against an Everton side that struggled to get a foothold in the game, but created few real openings in the opening half hour.
Defending UEFA Women’s Champions League winner Barcelona booked its place in the quarterfinals with a 5-0 away destruction of Hoffenheim on Wednesday, bringing the team’s group-stage record to played four, won four, scored 15 and conceded one (remember that the group also contains WSL power Arsenal).
Back on Oct. 5 on the competition’s opening matchday, a 4-1 victory over the Gunners highlighted the unmatched style and quality of the Blaugranes’ play, and Wednesday was another reminder of the club’s current superiority over the rest of Europe.
One day after being named to Vlatko Andonovski’s USWNT squad for a pair of friendlies against Australia at the end of the month, 22-year-old midfielder Catarina Macario played a huge role in Lyon’s comeback victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Bayern took the lead in the 25th minute at Groupama Stadium after Kadeisha Buchanan scored an own goal with Carina Wenninger lurking.
BARCELONA - Ansu Fati marked his first start in almost a year by scoring one goal and creating another as Barcelona came from behind to beat Valencia 3-1 in LaLiga at Camp Nou on Sunday.
Despite being allowed a full capacity crowd for the first time since March 2020, Barça's ground was only half full — and those in attendance were silenced after five minutes as José Gayà's long-range strike swerved into the far corner.
JOSÉ GAYÁ GOLAZO
BARCELONA - Goals from Memphis Depay, Luuk de Jong and the returning Ansu Fati helped Barcelona claim a much-needed 3-0 home victory over Levante in LaLiga on Sunday.
The victory, Barça's first in their last four games in all competitions, moved the Catalans up to fifth in the table with 12 points from six games, five behind league leaders Real Madrid, who have played one more.
The 18-year-old Fati, who came on as an 81st-minute substitute before scoring Barça's third goal, was making his first appearance since suffering a serious knee injury last November.
Cinco triunfos en cinco partidos. Quince puntos de quince posibles. El Napoli de Luciano Spalletti vuela y se convirtió en el líder absoluto de la Serie A 2021/22, después de golear a domicilio a la Sampdoria.
Fue un 0-4 resonante en el Estadio Luigi Ferraris y con Hirving Lozano desde el primer minuto. El Chucky no anotó esta vez, pero cargado por la banda derecha castigó sin misericordia a la defensa rival, cargándole una amarilla al danés Mikkel Damsgaard, mareando a Tomasso Augello y anotándose con sus dos primeras asistencias de la temporada.
Patterns of play dictate how an attack goes about breaking down a defense. Whether it’s neat passing triangles to keep possession, an overload to gain the numerical advantage or a cross-field switch to disrupt a static backline, these predetermined moves are all integral to match-winning play.
SOUTHAMPTON - A second-half strike from Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood cancelled out an own goal from teammate Fred to earn a 1-1 draw at Southampton in the Premier League on Sunday.
United had a euphoric start to the season with a 5-1 home win over Leeds United but could not repeat that performance and were lucky not to lose to Ralph Hasenhüttl's organized and dynamic side.