Lionel Messi

Barcelona’s path to the Champions League quarterfinals looks assured after Lionel Messi put his side up 3-1 on aggregate over Napoli by conjuring a goal from the seat of his pants.

After beating three defenders in Napoli’s area, the chance looked over after Messi lost his balance and was sent tumbling to the floor. However, the 33-year-old brushed the dirt up off his psyche and finished beyond David Ospina while falling over for a second time. 

Oh. My. Messi.

Barcelona coach Quique Setien says he is not worried that Saturday's Champions League last-16 second leg at home to Napoli could be his last game in charge of the team.

Setien, 61, saw his side surrender the Spanish title to Real Madrid last month, while the tie with Napoli is on a knife edge after the 1-1 draw in Italy back in February.

UEFA has decided to remove pending yellow cards once the Round of 16 is completed for the 2019-20 season. This applies to both the Champions League and the Europa League.

The decision amends articles in the Regulations of the Europa League and the Champions League where yellow cards had been suspended after the quarterfinals.

The Ballon d'Or will not be awarded this year for the first time in its 64-year history after the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on the football calendar, organizers France Football magazine said on Monday.

The prestigious award, voted for by journalists, is an annual prize given to the best male footballer in the world since 1956. The women's Ballon d'Or was first awarded in 2018.

Barcelona’s LaLiga title defense came to a sputtering end last Thursday following a 2-1 loss to Osasuna, a defeat that Lionel Messi called a microcosm of Barça’s “erratic and weak” 2019-20 team. That inconsistency was again highlighted in Sunday’s final league match of the season as the Blaugrana raced to a 3-0 halftime lead against Alavés en route to a 5-0 win. 

With the team trying to stay sharp ahead of its rescheduled Champions League Round of 16 second leg against Napoli on Aug. 8, Ernesto Valverde named a strong starting XI against 15th-place Alavés. 

BARCELONA — Lionel Messi has rarely been known for speaking out but he could not help himself when analysing what has been a disastrous season finale for Barcelona and did not hold back after Thursday's limp 2-1 LaLiga defeat at home by Osasuna.

Calling his side "weak," "inconsistent" and "very easy to score against," the club captain called for urgent changes after surrendering the league title to Real Madrid, saying it was no good to use their rivals' relentless form as an excuse.

"Messi explodes," ran the cover of newspaper Mundo Deportivo.

Add another one to Real Madrid and Zinedine Zidane’s trophy cabinet — Los Blancos are the champions of Spain.

Karim Benzeman scored twice as Real Madrid defeated Villarreal 3-1 in the club’s penultimate LaLiga match on Thursday at the Alfredo di Stéfano Stadium. The victory meant Barcelona could not catch its archrival regardless of what it accomplished the remainder of the season, awarding Real Madrid its 34th league title. All this despite a maddeningly perfect free kick from Lionel Messi in Barcelona’s shock 2-1 defeat to Osasuna.

With a player as legendary as Lionel Messi, someone who break records seemingly every week, it’s easy to take for granted the history he’s making. But this latest Lionel Messi assist record set on Saturday is just another reminder that we’re watching one of the greatest players of all time, something no one should take for granted.