Atletico Madrid were denied the opportunity to restore their 10-point lead at the LaLiga summit after Facundo Ferreyra s 89th-minute equaliser sealed an unlikely 2-2 draw for Celta Vigo on Monday. 

Wins for Real Madrid and Barcelona over the weekend put the pressure on Diego Simeone s men, who lost Thomas Lemar and Hector Herrera shortly before kick-off after positive COVID-19 tests were confirmed.

They started poorly at the Wanda Metropolitano and slipped behind to Santi Mina s third top-flight goal of the season, but Luis Suarez levelled matters in the 45th minute with a simple finish at the back post. 

The former Barcelona striker repeated the trick five minutes after the interval, but Los Rojiblancos were denied a ninth consecutive top-flight win when Ferre…

Title-holders Bayern Munich face a repeat of last season s final against Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals of the 2020-21 edition.

While the Parisians will be sure to test their title defence, Bayern have won each of their previous four knockout encounters with French opposition in the Champions League, including August s final.

Real Madrid and Liverpool will face each other in a two-legged knockout tie for only the second time – the first saw the Reds inflict Los Blancos biggest-ever aggregate defeat (5-0) in 2008-09.

Similarly, Jurgen Klopp has faced Madrid more often than any other opponent in the Champions League (seven), with only Ottmar Hitzfeld (12) managing against them more often in the competition.

5 In their only previous meeting in a…

Simone Inzaghi did not hide his frustration at Romelu Lukaku s struggles in front of goal after Inter lost 1-0 to Fiorentina on Saturday.

Inter s losing streak in Serie A was extended to their worst in six years as Giacomo Bonaventura s second-half header proved decisive at San Siro.

The Nerazzurri have now lost three straight top flight matches, with Bonaventura s winner coming shortly after a woeful miss from Lukaku.

Having rediscovered his goalscoring touch while on international duty with Belgium, Lukaku was unable to transfer that form across to his club side as he failed to hit the target from close range with the goal gaping.

No Inter player had more shots than his three, with Lukaku not managing to get any of them on target, despite accumulating 1…

Gareth Bale has scored five goals in Euro 2016 qualifying and will be hoping to add to that tally this evening as Wales visit Cyprus

Down the years the story of the Wales national football team has been one of close calls and heartbreak. However, all those years of near misses could be forgotten, as the Dragons close in on qualification for Euro 2016.

Close

Wales are just two wins away from securing their place in France for next year’s competition, as Chris Coleman’s side prepare for a visit to Cyprus this evening.

A win in Cyprus and then a victory at home to Israel next week will seal the Dragons place in their first major international tournament since the 1958 World Cup in Sweden.

Rise

Wales are no longer whipping boys in world f…

Manchester United are reportedly keeping a close eye on Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar as a possible transfer target following the expected change of ownership in coming months.

Neymar, 31, is one of the biggest names in the sport, boasting over 100 goals for both former club Barcelona and with Paris Saint-Germain, as well as 77 goals in 124 international caps for Brazil – tying Pele for the country s international goals record.

While his resume as an all-time great is secured, Neymar is battling injuries yet again this season, with a serious ankle injury in February marking a premature end to his campaign.

After becoming the most expensive transfer in world football history back in 2017, Neymar holds all the cards for when, and if he will leave Paris, but he …

Yaya Toure is eying a return to international football with Ivory Coast when his country resume their Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign next March.

Manchester City star Toure has taken a break from international commitments since captaining Ivory Coast to glory in the continental competition in February.

Toure is not a part of Michel Dussuyer s squad for the back-to-back World Cup qualifiers against Liberia over the coming week, but the 32-year-old told his national federation s official website that he is not closing the door on his international career.

I am not part of the squad list for the games against Liberia, but my heart is with them, Toure said.

I think the next fixture after this will be in 2016, when the qualification for the 2…

Kylian Mbappe and Neymar both scored twice and Lionel Messi ended a barren spell as Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain crushed Lorient 5-1 on Sunday.

Mauricio Pochettino s side were overwhelmed in a 3-0 loss to Monaco before the international break, but they were soon ahead at the Parc des Princes when Neymar scored after 12 minutes.

Mbappe added a second 16 minutes later, and although Terem Moffi pulled one back after the interval, PSG s star France forward restored his side s two-goal advantage with 23 minutes remaining.

Messi halted his seven-game scoring drought before Neymar collected his second of the night, with Mbappe playing a part in all five of the hosts goals as PSG maintained their 12-point lead over second-placed Marseille. This was the first…

Inter confirmed their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League and simultaneously eliminated Barcelona after cruising to an Edin Dzeko-led 4-0 win over Viktoria Plzen.

The Nerazzurri knew they would be through regardless if Barcelona failed to win later in the day at home to Bayern Munich, but Simone Inzaghi s men removed all doubt with a professional display in San Siro.

Initially there were hints of nervousness when Inter spurned a couple of first-half opportunities, but Henrikh Mkhitaryan gave them the breakthrough before Dzeko ensured it was effectively game over – for Plzen and Barcelona – by half-time.

A clinical Dzeko finish just past the hour was then added to by a late Romelu Lukaku strike on his return from injury as Inter eased into the…

Graham Arnold has refused to mention the names of France s star players, including Kylian Mbappe, ahead of Australia s clash against the World Cup holders.

The Socceroos meet Les Bleus for the second successive finals, with Paul Pogba s deflected late strike sealing a narrow 2-1 win for Didier Deschamps side in Russia four years ago.

Australia head into their Group D opener having failed to register a clean sheet in 10 previous World Cup matches against European nations, with their only clean sheet at the finals against any opposition coming in a goalless draw against Chile in 1974.

But Arnold, who was the Socceroos assistant to Pim Verbeek at the 2010 tournament in South Africa, has tried to ease the pressure on his players.

It s not being disrespectful…

Sevilla defender Daniel Carrico has signed a two-year contract extension, tying him to the club until the end of June 2020.

The centre-back initially joined the club on a season-long loan from Championship side Reading in July 2013, before signing on a permanent basis the following year.

A Portugal international, Carrico was a vital member of Sevilla s squad for all three of their Europa League triumphs in 2014, 2015 and 2016, playing in each final.

The 29-year-old was more of a peripheral figure last season under coach Jorge Sampaoli, making just six LaLiga appearances due to numerous injury problems.

But with those issues seemingly a thing of the past, new coach Eduardo Berizzo has tied his vice-captain down for another two years.

A club stateme…