Barcelona

Vini Jr. supplies Karim Benzema with assist of the year in 4-0 thrashing of Barcelona

Vini Jr. and Karim Benzema stole the show at Camp Nou Wednesday as the attacking duo were dominant during Real Madrid’s 4-0 victory vs. Barcelona in the Copa del Rey semifinals. Madrid won on aggregate 4-1.

Benzema scored a hat trick while Vini Jr. scored one, drew a penalty and had what could be assist of the year.

Let’s skip straight to the good part and look at that fancy assist from the Brazilian. With Los Blancos leading 3-1 on aggregate in the 80th minute, Vini Jr. and Benzema put the nail in the Camp Nou coffin with a splendid move.

Are the stars aligning for a Messi return to Barcelona?

Before the 2022 World Cup, the idea of Lionel Messi extending his contract with French multi-champion PSG seemed a safe bet. Back from Qatar, however, that certainty has started to crumble and the leading narrative around the player's future is pointing to a sensational return to Barcelona. 

Is Messi returning to Barcelona?

Of course, there are a lot of rumors going around, but the blaugranas fans are feeling optimistic after the club's vice-president Rafa Yuste and coach Xavi spoke on Friday about how much they wish for Messi's return to the team. 

Mapi León's 25-yard missile fires Barcelona into Champions League semifinals

Barcelona vs. Roma was the biggest mismatch of the Women's Champions League quarterfinals on paper, and so it proved over two legs as Barça stormed to a 6-1 aggregate victory over the Italian side.

After winning 1-0 in Rome last week, Barcelona scored five at the Camp Nou on Wednesday night through Fridolina Rolfö's brace and further goals from Mapi León, Asisat Oshoala and Patri Guijarro. 

Italy international Annamaria Serturini was able to score one for La Lupa in Catalonia. 

Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas returns to Barça training after long-term knee injury

Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas completed part of the training session with her Barcelona women's teammates on Monday as she continues to recover from a knee injury.

The Spain midfielder injured her knee in July before the women's European Championship.

"I'm glad to move on to the next phase of rehabilitation. I'm happy to be back training with the team," Putellas said on Monday. "It's a matter of patience, of continuing to work progressively with the team and getting back into shape."

The Americans to watch in this week's Women's Champions League quarterfinals

The UEFA Women's Champions League resumes Tuesday with the quarterfinal first legs, and don't forget that all the action is available to watch for free through the DAZN UWCL YouTube channel.

Action begins Tuesday with Bayern Munich hosting Arsenal at Allianz Arena (1:45 p.m. ET) and continues at the Stadio Olimpico as Roma takes on Barcelona (4:00 p.m. ET). Wednesday features Lyon vs. Chelsea at Groupama Stadium (1:45 p.m. ET) followed by PSG against Wolfsburg at the Parc des Princes (4:00 p.m. ET).

Weekend review: The major talking points from European soccer

Talking points from the weekend in European soccer leagues:

BARCELONA TAKE HUGE STEP TOWARDS LALIGA TITLE

Barcelona have tightened their grip at the top of the LaLiga standings after an electric 2-1 comeback win in an El Clásico against bitter rivals Real Madrid on Sunday.

Franck Kessié's stunner in added time gave Barça a well-earned victory that left second-placed Real trailing the leaders by 12 points with only 12 games to be played.

Gavi makes history by attempting two head tackles in one game

There are all sorts of stats and accolades that illustrate how talented Gavi is — the Golden Boy award, Spain's youngest goalscorer, the youngest World Cup scorer since Pelé — but he's a phenomenon best experienced live.

The sky might be falling on Barcelona (littered with fake cash featuring the word "MAFIA"), but Gavi's willing to take on that duel. "Lost cause" is not in the 18-year-old's lexicon. 

Prosecutors sue Barcelona for allegedly buying refereeing favors

BARCELONA — Spanish prosecutors have filed a complaint against Barcelona and two of the LaLiga club's ex-presidents over alleged payments to a company owned by a senior refereeing official to influence match results, the public prosecutor's office said on Friday.

A judge has yet to decide whether to take up the case.

The club allegedly paid over $7.8 million between 2001 and 2018 to firms owned by Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, who was vice-president of the refereeing committee of the Spanish football association in 1993-2018.

No penalty call, no review despite clear Barcelona foul in 1-0 win over Valencia

Despite playing down a man for over 30 minutes after Ronald Araújo's red card, Barcelona escaped with a 1-0 victory over Valencia at the Camp Nou on Sunday to keep second-place Real Madrid at a comfortable distance.  

Valencia, mired in 19th and desperate for every point, were left fuming at referee Javier Alberola Rojas for his decision to look the other way when Franck Kessié clearly fouled Fran Pérez in the area in the 85th minute.

Ansu Fati provides a fantastic goal-saving clearance in El Clásico… against his own team

Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 1-0 on Thursday at the Santiago Bernabéu in the first of two legs of their Copa del Rey semifinal. The victory came as a surprise to some as Barça were without star players Robert Lewandowski, Pedri and Ousmane Dembélé.

Last Sunday, Almería defeated Barcelona 1-0 in LaLiga for a shock result. Following back-to-back losses (the other to Manchester United) and with a less than ideal starting XI, Real Madrid seemed destined to win the first leg at home. That wasn’t the case, and it should’ve been a 2-0 win for Barcelona.

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