"It's one of those games when you have to play smart. With the ball, without the ball, you have to be patient, you have to be ready, you have to be focused," Alonso told reporters before Tuesday's game with Milan.

Ronaldo, making his first appearance in the rebranded Asian Champions League having missed last week's 1-1 opening draw against Iraqi club Al Shorta, had a goal disallowed for a narrow offside at the beginning of the second half.

"Happy to be back in the group," Neymar posted on Instagram, with pictures of him running and kicking the ball, watched by Al Hilal's Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus.

"It is with a heart full of memories that I am closing this chapter of my life," France vice-captain Griezmann, 33, wrote on X.

Real Madrid, without injured star striker Kylian Mbappe, largely kept Atletico at arm's length on a spiky night in the Spanish capital, taking the lead through Eder Militao midway through the second half. The match was suspended for around 15 minutes soon afterwards when Atletico fans threw objects including lighters at Madrid players, and Rojiblancos midfielder Marcos Llorente was sent off at the death.

Messi tied Saturday's match in the 67th minute when he lasered a shot from beyond the box that evaded diving Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina to make it 1-1.

The boys in red and green fought from two goals down to force a tiebreak, which they eventually won 8-7 at the Changlimithang Stadium on Saturday night.

The Catalans won all seven of their opening fixtures but Flick's heavily rotated side came badly undone in Pamplona as Ante Budimir scored a brace either side of Bryan Zaragoza's strike.

Arsenal wanted to provoke Manchester City into a war during last weekend's Premier League clash but the champions are ready for the challenge, City manager Pep Guardiola said on Friday.

Arteta, who worked as Guardiola's assistant at City before becoming Arsenal boss, said the controversy would not get in the way of his personal relationship with his fellow Spaniard.

Sterling marked his maiden Arsenal start following his transfer deadline day move from Chelsea with a second-half strike in the third-round tie at the Emirates Stadium.

The Polish forward struck from close range in the first half to maintain Barca's 100 percent record in the league so far this season with their seventh victory.

The midfielder has been in Spain this week consulting specialists after limping off midway through the first half of the match at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday after a collision with Thomas Partey.

Rodri's absence could mean a more prominent role for Matheus Nunes and the Portugal international blasted in his first goal since joining City for £53 million a year ago.

Mbappe was taken off after 80 minutes and appeared to be suffering some discomfort, holding the back of his thigh. "He's fine, he's fine, a little overloaded, he asked me for the change to avoid problems," explained Ancelotti.

Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann said news of Marc-Andre ter Stegen's serious knee injury came as a major shock after the Barcelona goalkeeper underwent an operation that is expected to sideline him for at least eight months.

United are considering whether to pursue a £2 billion plan for a brand new 100,000-seater stadium or redevelop the existing 74,000 capacity Old Trafford.

New AS Roma coach Ivan Juric said his players were disappointed by the sacking of Daniele De Rossi, but he was pleased with their performance as they clinched their first Serie A win of the season by beating Udinese 3-0 on Sunday.

It’s the latest remarkable signpost for the greatest goalscorer of his generation, after winning the Premier League Golden Boot in his first two campaigns in England.

Hansi Flick's side extended their winning streak in the league to six games as they bounced back from their 2-1 loss against Monaco in the Champions League on Thursday.