Lamine Yamal and Raphinha put on an attacking masterclass in the first half to swat aside Benfica and make it to the quarter-finals Barcelona get the ball rolling. The city so beautiful in the background. Ah, memories of the diving at the 1992 Olympics. The teams are out. Barcelona are in their famous blaugrana, Benfica in third-choice white/silver/grey with neon yellow trim. A crackling atmosphere at the Olímpic Lluís Companys despite the place not yet totally full, as per Steve McManaman. We’ll be off once a poignant moment is taken to remember Carles Minarro Garcia. Continue reading...

Wrexham defender Eoghan O'Connell enjoyed a star studded beginning to his career at Celtic after featuring alongside Virgil van Dijk and marking Lionel Messi against Barcelona

Raphinha struck a second-half winner to give Barcelona a lion-hearted 1-0 victory at Benfica on Wednesday as they overcame a red card for Pau Cubarsí early in the game to steal an advantage in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie. Barcelona’s teenage defender Cubarsí was given a straight red card for a last-man foul on Vangelis Pavlidis in the 22nd minute, but the visitors hung on with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny putting in a brilliant performance. Continue reading...

The fallout from Spain’s Liga F game at the weekend led to Daniela Caracas suffering horrendous online abuse On Monday footage began to circulate on social media that appeared to show the Barcelona defender Mapi León inappropriately touching the crotch of the Espanyol defender Daniela Caracas during Sunday’s Liga F match. León then appears to say something to her opponent. It then spiralled out of control. León was condemned for her perceived actions by some and a torrent of horrific online abuse was aimed at Caracas followed by others. Espanyol released a statement shortly after the footage began to circulate and gain traction expressing their “complete discontent and condemnation” of what they described as an “unacceptable” incident. The club said the incident should “not be overlooked” and that they would make their legal services available to the Colombia international should she wish to take legal action. Continue reading...

León accused of inappropriately touching CaracasBarcelona player denies the allegations Espanyol have insisted that the “footage is crystal clear” and dismissed the claims of the Barcelona defender Mapi León after she denied inappropriately touching opponent Daniela Caracas in the crotch area during the city derby on Sunday. The club’s next steps, including any decision over whether to take legal action, will be guided by the wishes of Caracas, with the Spanish Liga F yet to make any public statement. León was included in Barcelona’s squad to play the Copa del Reina on Wednesday night. Continue reading...

Defender denies touching rival’s ‘private parts’Espanyol offering legal services to Daniela Caracas Espanyol have expressed their “complete discontent and condemnation” of an “unacceptable” incident in which the Barcelona defender Mapi León appeared to gesture towards the crotch area of their player Daniela Caracas during the Liga F match between the sides on Sunday. The incident, which Espanyol said “should not be overlooked”, occurred in the first half of the derby when León was being marked by Caracas before a set piece was taken. León has since denied touching Caracas’s crotch or having any intention to do so. Continue reading...

The Manchester City midfielder becomes the sixth player to top our ranking of the world’s best 100 male footballersThe 100 best male footballers in the world 2024 One of the worst things about seeing Rodri in agony on the pitch against Arsenal in September – and the subsequent news that he had ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament – was the he had criticised the workload being put on players in the buildup to the injury. It was as if he knew something bad was about to happen. In April, after an epic 3-3 draw at Real Madrid the Manchester City and Spain midfielder said: “I do need a rest.” He added: “Let’s see how we speak, how we live the situation. Sometimes it is what it is. I need to adjust. It [rest] is something we are planning, yes.” Continue reading...

This year 197 judges took part and here is a chance to see how every single point has been awarded through the years Sometimes it feels as if it does not matter if you vote or not because your effort is not going to make a difference. Every now and then, however, there is a contest – whether that is the 2016 US election or the Guardian’s top 100 best male footballers in 2024 – where the result is so tight that a few people may very well have made a difference. The US election may be slightly more important all things considered but the fact is that this year there were only 68 points separating the top two in our annual countdown with Rodri receiving 7,495 points to Vinícius Júnior’s 7,427. Continue reading...

Rodri has beaten Vinícius Júnior and Erling Haaland to top our ranking of the most talented players in the world this calendar yearMeet the judges | The top 100 female players in the worldHaaland heads 2023 list | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 Continue reading...

Liverpool icon Jamie Carragher has given his verdict on the speculation surrounding Trent Alexander-Arnold and Real Madrid, including what he thinks the defender should do

Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe has admitted he wishes he could have played with the Spanish club's all-time record goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo, who now plays for Al-Nassr