Barcelona roared back to winning ways in La Liga in spectacular fashion with a 7-1 demolition job against struggling Valencia at Camp Nou on Sunday night.

A free-scoring La Blaugrana, who were winless in the league since December 3 and had only taken maximum points from one of their previous eight top-flight games, showed no sign of the form that had seen them rapidly slump from champions-elect to third in the table, racing into a 5-0 lead before half time as they put their relegation-threatened visitors to the sword in brutal, ruthless fashion.

Barca wasted no time and raced into an early lead courtesy of a Frenkie de Jong strike with just three minutes on the clock, before Ferran Torres netted a second on the eight-minute mark.
It was clear by that point that Los Ches were in for a tough night, and the feeling was confirmed when Raphinha – who has been a standout for Hansi Flick’s resurgent Barca this season – followed up with a third with less than a quarter of an hour played.

Perhaps the most distinctive characteristic of Flick’s tenure at Barcelona has been his use of young players, and La Masia’s produce once again combined to deliver the goods when centre-back Pau Cubarsi assisted midfielder Fermin Lopez for the hosts’ fourth.
The visitors were given a glimmer of hope when Wojciech Szczesny was shown a yellow card for what they deemed a sure penalty, but a VAR review decided against awarding a spot kick, and Lopez made it five with his second of the game just before the interval.

Valencia’s Hugo Duro scored a consolation goal early in the second half, but it did little to dampen the blow of such a humiliating scoreline, and the visitors even failed to win the second half when substitute Robert Lewandowski added a sixth with 25 minutes to play, and centre-back Cesar Tarrega scored an own goal late on.

Barcelona continue to blow teams away with the intensity and relentlessness of their attack under Flick, and Valencia are just the latest in a long list of victims this season.
The Catalan giants’ reliance on youth may come with an inherent lack of experience, and they could miss out on the La Liga title this season given they are in third place behind Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, but their future – on the pitch at least – seems exceptionally bright.

Carlos Corberan’s struggling Valencia came into Sunday’s clash hoping to extend their four-game unbeaten streak, but their dreams came tumbling down when the hosts raced into a five-goal lead before half time.
Though the relegation candidates should not be too disheartened with the result, they will be disappointed with the embarrassing nature of such an extreme scoreline, and the prospect of dropping into the second tier for the first time in almost 40 years remains very real, with Los Ches four points behind 17th-placed Deportivo Alaves.

Barcelona will try to make it eight games unbeaten across all competitions when they face Atalanta in their final Champions League group stage game, while Valencia will host Celta Vigo in La Liga on February 2, hoping to pick up some desperately needed points.

Pep Guardiola: Man City no longer feared by opponents

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said teams have changed tactics because they are no longer intimidated by his side, which is making their Champions League campaign more difficult.
City are down in 25th place in the Champions League table, two points off the playoff spots, and Guardiola has noticed an increase in opposing teams adopting a man-marking approach, showing they don’t fear City as they used to.

“Everyone came to the Etihad and stayed back,” he told a news conference on Friday.
“The first team I saw man-marking was Neil Warnock at Cardiff. Now everybody does it. Everybody comes here, it doesn’t matter, man-to-man.
“They just jump on [City’s goalkeepers] Éderson or Stefan Ortega. You have to adapt, you have to be better with the ball, otherwise you will not qualify for the Champions League.”

Guardiola said while his side may have been outplayed by Paris Saint-Germain in a 4-2 defeat on Wednesday, their problems were more about effective use of the ball than physicality.
“Speed is important, but against PSG we ran more than they did,” he said. “Our problem is with the ball. That is what we have been lacking this season.
“When you have the ball and you don’t pass it properly to your partner, everything is so difficult.”
He stressed the importance of passing accuracy and said there was room for improvement despite the influx of new talent.

City signed Egypt forward Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday after bringing in 19-year-old Brazilian defender Vitor Reis and Uzbekistan defender Abdukodir Khusanov.
Guardiola believes Champions League qualification would be as significant an achievement as winning a trophy, especially with injuries to key players like Rodri and a depleted defence.
City are fifth in the Premier League, 12 points adrift of leaders Liverpool, as they prepare to host fourth-placed Chelsea on Saturday trailing the London club by two points.
Despite their struggles, Guardiola remains focused on making tactical adjustments to restore their competitive edge and a return to the Champions League via a place in the top four.

Storm Éowyn: Celtic vs. Dundee postponed due to stadium damage

The Scottish Premiership fixture between Celtic and Dundee has been postponed due to the damage inflicted on Celtic Park by Storm Éowyn.
The match will now take place on Feb. 5.
Storm Éowyn made landfall on Friday, bringing extreme winds that have caused the death of a man in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland and left thousands of homes without power. A gust of 100mph was recorded in Drumalbin, Scotland.
“Unfortunately, due to the stadium damage sustained yesterday we have been advised that we are unable to proceed with today’s match,” Celtic said in a statement on Saturday.

“While clearly this is disappointing, the safety of our supporters will always be our priority.”
Elsewhere, the Scottish League One match between Arbroath and Kelty Hearts was called off on Friday due to storm damage at Gayfield Park.

​​England right-back Kyle Walker joined AC Milan on loan from Manchester City until the end of the 2024-25 season, the clubs announced Friday.
“AC Milan is pleased to announce the loan signing of Kyle Andrew Walker from Manchester City FC, with an option to buy,” AC Milan said in a statement.

The 34-year-old defender has been a key figure at Manchester City since joining from Tottenham Hotspur for a reported $62.6 million in 2017.
He has made 319 appearances, scored six goals and helped the club win 17 major trophies, including six Premier League titles and the 2023 UEFA Champions League in seven-and-a-half seasons.
Walker expressed his gratitude in an Instagram post for his time at City.

“Signing for this incredible club in 2017 was a dream come true. To play alongside top players has pushed me to be the best version of myself. Your unwavering support will never be forgotten,” he said.
The full-back will wear the number 32 with AC Milan. It remains unclear if he will be featured in Sunday’s Serie A clash against Parma.

AC Milan is currently eighth in the Serie A standings, eight points behind fourth-placed Lazio and 19 adrift of current leader Napoli.

The inaugural Europa League league phase is set for an exciting final day next week – with plenty still to play for.
All 18 games will be played at the same time – at 20:00 GMT on Thursday, 30 January.
Manchester United and Tottenham can both secure a place in the top eight and with it direct passage to the last 16.
Rangers could join them should they win and other results go in their favour.
All three are guaranteed a least a place in the play-off round.

How many teams qualify for the knockout phase?

Those finishing in the top eight automatically progress to the last 16, where they will be seeded.
They will await the winners of eight two-legged knockout play-off ties featuring the clubs ranked from ninth to 24th.
Those finishing between ninth and 16th will be seeded and face a team placed 17th to 24th, with the advantage of playing the second leg at home.
The clubs who finish 25th or lower are eliminated.
The play-off ties take place in mid-February, with the last-16 matches in the first two weeks of March.

What’s at stake for British clubs?

A late Bruno Fernandes goal gave Manchester United a 2-1 victory against Rangers on Thursday.
That moved them up to fourth in the league table with 15 points, meaning victory at Romanian side FCSB next week will cement a top-eight finish. A draw might be enough depending on results elsewhere.
Tottenham, meanwhile, put themselves on the verge of a place in the knockouts by winning 3-2 at Hoffenheim.
They are sixth on 14 points, meaning only a win against Elfsborg will guarantee a place in the last 16.
Rangers may have suffered frustration with the late Fernandes goal, but they have still done enough to secure at least a place in the play-off round.

They are 13th on 11 points, three ahead of Porto in 25th place – with teams who finish between ninth and 24th going through to the two-legged play-offs.
But the combination of fixtures on the final day means – according to Uefa – that the Ibrox side have done enough before welcoming Belgians Union Saint-Gilloise.

Who has qualified and who is out?

Lazio have assured their place in the knockouts as the Italians have 19 points from their seven games, six more than Galatasaray in ninth with just one game remaining.
As well as the three British teams, Anderlecht, Athletic Bilbao, AZ Alkmaar, Bodø/Glimt, Eintracht Frankfurt, FCSB, Galatasaray, Lyon, Olympiacos, Union SG and Viktoria Plzen are guaranteed at least a place in the play-off round.
Dynamo Kyiv, Nice, Qarabag, Ludogorets, Malmo, Slavia Prague and RFS are all mathematically unable to finish in the top 24.
There will be just one game with nothing to play for on the final day – Slavia Prague versus Malmo.

What else is there to watch out for?

Eintracht Frankfurt are second in the table and remain on track for the top eight after beating Ferencvaros.
Ajax are 16th and cannot finish in the top eight after they lost 1-0 to Latvians RFS on Thursday. They will need to beat Galatasaray in their final league phase game next week to be assured of a play-off spot.
Roma’s top-eight hopes are also over after former Tottenham forward Troy Parrott fired AZ Alkmaar to a 1-0 victory against the Italian side.
Roma have a tough test against Frankfurt in their final game.

Barcelona extends contract of Uruguay central defender Ronald Araújo to 2031

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – Barcelona has extended the contract of Uruguay central defender Ronald Araújo for six more seasons, ending speculation about a possible move to Juventus

The club said Thursday it reached an agreement with the player to keep him until June 2031.
The 25-year-old defender has been with Barcelona since 2018, first with the club’s “B” squad and then full-time with the main squad beginning in the 2020-21 season.

Araújo has 154 appearances with Barcelona’s first team, with eight goals and six assists. He helped the club win a Spanish league and a Copa del Rey.
This season he has been promoted to second captain.

Barcelona extends contract of Uruguay central defender Ronald Araújo to 2031

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – Barcelona has extended the contract of Uruguay central defender Ronald Araújo for six more seasons, ending speculation about a possible move to Juventus

The club said Thursday it reached an agreement with the player to keep him until June 2031.
The 25-year-old defender has been with Barcelona since 2018, first with the club’s “B” squad and then full-time with the main squad beginning in the 2020-21 season.

Araújo has 154 appearances with Barcelona’s first team, with eight goals and six assists. He helped the club win a Spanish league and a Copa del Rey.
This season he has been promoted to second captain.

Real Madrid have made history by becoming the first football club to surpass €1bn (£844m) in revenue during a single season, cementing its dominance in European football both on and off the pitch. 

The Spanish giants generated €1.046bn (£883m) in the 2023-24 season, according to Deloitte’s Football Money League report. The club’s revenue surge was driven largely by the redevelopment of the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, which saw match-day revenue double to €248m following the completion of renovations. 
In addition, Real Madrid experienced a 19 per cent boost in commercial revenue through new sponsorship deals and increased merchandise sales. On the pitch, the team’s treble-winning campaign — including victories in the Champions League, La Liga, and the Spanish Super Cup — further underscored its status as a global powerhouse.

One billion euros in revenues is a landmark in club football,’ said Theo Ajadi, assistant director at Deloitte’s Sports Business Group. ‘The redevelopment of Madrid’s stadium has been the catalyst for the club’s growth. 
‘They’ve licensed some seating, which has provided a significant uplift in revenue, and also increased merchandising and brought in new sleeve sponsorship. That, along with strong on-pitch performance, has led to Madrid’s strong financial performance.’
Trailing Madrid, Manchester City ranked second with €838m (£708m) in revenue, while Paris Saint-Germain came in third with €806m (£681m). Manchester United and Bayern Munich rounded out the top five, earning €771m (£651m) and €660m (£557m), respectively. 

Across Europe, clubs collectively saw record revenues of €11.2bn (£9.46bn), a 6 per cent increase from the previous season. The Premier League continued its financial dominance, with nine of its clubs placing in the top 20. 
Arsenal, Liverpool, and Tottenham Hotspur ranked seventh, eighth, and ninth, respectively, while Chelsea closed out the top 10. Clubs such as Newcastle, West Ham, and Aston Villa also featured prominently, reflecting the league’s unmatched broadcasting revenues.
‘The Premier League still dominates the money league table and that is driven by such a big gap between the media rights it is able to generate,’ said Ajadi. ‘It is the most-watched league of the big five leagues, and that drives spending to perform well in Europe.’
Meanwhile, the women’s game also reached new heights, with Barcelona topping the revenue list for a third consecutive year. The Catalan club generated €17.93m (£15m) in revenue, a 26 per cent increase from the previous season. Arsenal followed closely with €17.88m, while Chelsea, Manchester United, and Real Madrid rounded out the top five.

The women’s side of the game continues to grow from strength to strength, with revenue up 35 per cent this year among the top 15 clubs,’ added Ajadi. ‘We are seeing more clubs hosting games in their main stadiums and attracting new audiences, which provides significant growth potential.’

The report also noted a resurgence in match-day revenue, which accounted for 18 per cent of clubs’ total income — its highest share since the 2014-15 season. Clubs like Arsenal and Liverpool saw notable increases in match-day earnings, rising by £21m and £24m respectively. Meanwhile, others, such as Tottenham, experienced a decline of £9m due to the lack of European football.

As European football clubs continue to recover from the financial impact of the pandemic, Real Madrid’s historic achievement underscores the importance of strategic investments and on-field success in driving sustainable growth.

Paris Saint-Germain pushed Manchester City to the brink of Champions League elimination after coming from two goals down to win 4-2 on Wednesday, while Arsenal all but secured their place in the last 16.

Holders Real Madrid remain in contention for a top-eight spot after sweeping aside Red Bull Salzburg 5-1, but Bayern Munich’s hopes of automatic qualification took a hit with a 3-0 defeat by Feyenoord.
Pep Guardiola’s City were left stunned as they blew a two-goal lead after Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland struck early in the second half in pouring rain at the Parc des Princes.

Substitute Ousmane Dembele soon halved the deficit for PSG and Bradley Barcola equalised on the hour after Desire Doue’s effort came back off the crossbar.
Joao Neves’ diving header put PSG on top before Goncalo Ramos added a late fourth as the French champions climbed from 26th in the table to 22nd and bumped City out of the qualifying spots for the knockout phase

“I don’t know how we did it, to be honest,” PSG coach Luis Enrique told Canal Plus.
“We started the second half in the worst way possible by conceding two goals. It was tricky at that point, but at the same time this team believes in itself.”

City, the European champions in 2023, are down in 25th having failed to win any of their last four games in the competition and must beat Club Brugge at home next week to salvage their campaign.
“I accept the defeat because the best team won,” said Guardiola.
“It’s in our hands, we have to win the last game,” he added. “Hopefully we can qualify. If it doesn’t happen, we don’t deserve it.”
Arsenal are on the verge of the last 16 as goals from Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard sealed a 3-0 home win over Dinamo Zagreb – their fifth victory in seven games in Europe.

“It’s a massive step. We’re very close to achieving the goal we had before the group stage started,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told TNT Sports.
The Gunners, who go to Girona in their final game in the league phase, are third in the 36-team table and three points clear of ninth-placed Aston Villa with a far superior goal difference.

Rodrygo Goes and Vinicius Junior both struck twice, with Kylian Mbappe also on target as Madrid thumped Salzburg to move up to 16th, but just a point back from eighth-placed Bayer Leverkusen.
“We’ve been through difficult moments we didn’t want to,” said Rodrygo.
“But this victory in the Champions League, that we needed, will give us a lot of confidence to keep going now with the big challenges ahead of us.”

The record 15-time European champions are just behind Bayern Munich after the German giants came unstuck in Rotterdam.
Santiago Gimenez scored two goals, including a penalty, in the first half before Ayase Ueda’s late goal completed a superb display from Feyenoord, who could also still finish in the top eight.
Inter Milan look guaranteed to reach the last 16 after their 1-0 win away to Sparta Prague courtesy of Lautaro Martinez’s volley.

The Italian champions are fourth on 16 points, level with Arsenal, and one above city rivals AC Milan.

Rafael Leao’s first-half strike was enough to earn Milan a 1-0 win that also eliminated Girona.

Celtic advanced to the Champions League knockout stage for the first time in 12 years after inflicting a seventh successive defeat on Young Boys, with Loris Benito’s 86th-minute own goal handing the Hoops a 1-0 win in Glasgow.
“It’s a little bit of history created, we haven’t been in the knockout stages for a long time. For the supporters it’s an amazing night,” said Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers.
French club Brest saw their bid for an automatic spot in the last 16 dented by a 2-0 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk in Germany.
Sporting Lisbon suffered a third straight defeat as previously pointless RB Leipzig won 2-1 with goals from Benjamin Sesko and Yussuf Poulsen.

The Champions League fixture between Feyenoord and Bayern Munich was suspended almost immediately after kick-off due to heavy smoke caused by fans’ flares.
The match, held at De Kuip, kicked off at 8pm. However, the referee was forced to bring a stop to events after the first minute due to the fact that players on the pitch were unable to see anything.

There was a seven-minute delay before the match got back underway after fans let off fireworks and smoke bombs as the players headed out onto the pitch.

While Bayern heading into Rotterdam as the red-hot favourites to win, it was Feyenoord who headed into the break with a 2-0 lead.

Santiago Gimenez broke the deadlock in the 21st minute before adding to his and Feyenoord’s tally with a penalty right towards the end of first half stoppage time.
Gimenez gave the Eredivisie outfit the lead after beating Kim Min-jae failed to deal with a long ball over the top. Manuel Neuer was unable to get there before the Feyenoord star, who swept home with aplomb.

Victory would take Feyenoord above Bayern Munich in the new-look Champions League standings, with both teams currently on course to compete in the play-offs. Only the top eight teams get automatic passage through to the Round of 16.

Liverpool maintained their 100 per cent record in Europe’s premier competition with a 2-1 defeat of ten-man Lille on Tuesday night.
The Reds appeared to be heading for a comfortable victory as Aissa Mandi was given his marching orders midway through the second half after Mohamed Salah’s 34th-minute opener on Merseyside.
But Jonathan David equalised just moments after Mandi’s red card to set up an intriguing finish, only for Harvey Elliot to restore the hosts’ lead with a deflected strike just five minutes later.

The win – Liverpool’s seventh on the spin in Europe – secured Slot’s men a place in the round of 16, which begins in March. The Premier League leaders will be seeded and face one of the eight teams that advance from February’s playoffs.

If in tennis you are the No.1 seed it is better to face the No.24 than the 12th, but it is a ranking based on years,’ Liverpool head coach Slot said shortly after the final whistle.
‘Now we are in a new format when some teams are high in the league table because they had a lucky draw and some teams are low because they have a very difficult draw.

It is far off to say it is an advantage to be one or two.
‘You might be lucky, you might be very unlucky.
‘For me, it doesn’t tell me anything. The most important thing is we managed to skip a round.’

Speaking to German publication Sport Bild after Tuesday’s fixtures, Ballack picked out Liverpool as the standout contenders to get their hands on this year’s trophy over the holders Real Madrid.
‘Judging by their performances so far, Real Madrid are not my top favourite,’ the former Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Germany midfielder said.
‘That would be Liverpool, who are currently dominating the Champions League.

I was positively surprised by how Arne Slot managed the transition after the Jurgen Klopp era came to an end.
‘It is always twice as difficult when you follow greats like Klopp or somebody like Jose Mourinho at my former club Chelsea, who achieved something unique.
‘I see Atalanta as the secret favourite. They have a clear plan offensively and defensively and dominated Bayer Leverkusen in last year’s Europa League final.’

Assessing Bayern’s chances in Europe, Ballack said: ‘It depends on two factors: our own performance and how strong the competition is.

‘I can see that the team have improved under Vincent Kompany compared to the previous season.
‘He’s got them going with his style of play, with aggressive and offensive football after a few adjustments in defence.
‘There is not a lot of competition with five or six outstanding teams so the final is absolutely doable for Bayern, especially if Jamal Musiala continues to play well.’

By his standards, Kylian Mbappe has had a steady start for Real Madrid in this year’s Champions League, managing just two goals in his opening six matches.
But Ballack has no doubt that the France forward will be a ‘sensation’ for Madrid once he has fully settled into life in the Spanish capital.
‘Because he does not yet have the stability that he had during his time in Paris, he does not yet have the influence on the team that Lionel Messi once had at Barcelona or Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid,’ Ballack explained.

This example shows that going to Real is a different matter altogether. Nevertheless, Kylian Mbappe is an outstanding player and will of course be a sensation.

Borussia Dortmund have fired head coach Nuri Sahin in the wake of Tuesday’s 2-1 Champions League loss at Bologna, saying they had “lost faith” in him. Dortmund were beaten finalists in the competition last season, but the loss on Tuesday was the club’s fourth successive defeat in all competitions.

In the Bundesliga, Dortmund sit 10th, 20 points behind leaders Bayern Munich. Sahin was assistant to former Dortmund coach Edin Terzic in last season’s surprise run to the Champions League final where they lost to Real Madrid and the 36-year-old was promoted to head coach in the summer. 
“We have unfortunately lost faith that we will achieve our sporting goals,” sporting CEO Lars Ricken said on Wednesday. 

Ricken added the decision “hurts… but was unavoidable after the game in Bologna.
“We value Nuri Sahin and his work very much, we hoped for a long collaboration and until the end we had hope that we could achieve a sporting turnaround together.”
The sacking continues a tumultuous time for recent Dortmund managers. 

Since Jurgen Klopp’s departure in 2015, Dortmund have had eight head coaches, including Terzic’s two stints at the club. Only one, Lucien Favre, has stayed for longer than two years. 
Dortmund, who host Werder Bremen in the league on Saturday, said “information will be provided in due course” as to a successor.

German media reported candidates included former Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag, who has been seen attending Dortmund games recently, or one-time Benfica and Bayer Leverkusen handler Roger Schmidt. 
Terzic, who remains jobless since leaving the Dortmund post in the close season, is reportedly not a candidate for the position. 

A disappointed Sahin said he “unfortunately was not able to live up to Dortmund’s sporting ambitions at this point in time. 
“I wish this special club all the best.”

Sahin’s hiring maintained the club’s recent strategy of hiring former players in leadership roles. 
Terzic grew up in the area and was a Dortmund scout and junior coach before taking the top job.

Ricken and sporting director Sebastian Kehl also had long careers as Dortmund players.
Sahin came through Dortmund’s junior ranks and played 274 games for the club — he was a member of the side that won the 2011 Bundesliga title — either side of stints at Real Madrid and Liverpool. 
The Germany-born former Turkish international’s first head coach position was at Turkish side Antalyaspor, where he finished his playing career. 
Sahin took Antalyaspor to seventh and 13th-placed finishes in the league, before he departed to become assistant manager at Dortmund in January 2023.

After Tuesday’s loss, Sahin told reporters “if I am the problem, or if a change of coach solves the issues, then that’s no problem at all.”

Under Sahin this season, Dortmund have found it particularly tough away from their 82,000-capacity Westfalenstadion fortress, having lost nine and won just four of their 15 matches. 
In addition to their poor league form, Sahin’s side were eliminated in the last 32 of the German Cup by Wolfsburg.

They do though still entertain hopes of reaching the knockout stage of the Champions League, despite the defeat by Bologna, as they lie 13th in the table.