Carlo Ancelotti is confident he will remain in charge of Real Madrid next season, despite his team's eight point deficit on Barcelona at the top of La Liga, he said Friday.

Sergio Ramos retired from international duty with Spain on Thursday, saying new coach Luis de la Fuente told him he did not count on him.

Liverpool had raced into a 2-0 lead at Anfield, but a double from Vinicius levelled the match before the break and laid the foundation for a thumping Champions League, last-16 first leg win.

"It's a very important night for us, I want to dedicate this win to our honorary president, Amancio," Madrid captain Benzema told Movistar

Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah had given the hosts a perfect start in a repeat of last season's Champions League final

For many Liverpool fans the scenes brought back memories of a crush at Hillsborough Stadium in 1989 that resulted in the deaths of 97 supporters

Amancio scored 155 goals in 471 games for Madrid, before going on to coach the team in the 1984-85 season.

Forced to step into Cristiano Ronaldo's shoes when Madrid's all-time top goalscorer left in 2018, it seemed too much too soon for Vinicius – it would have been for almost anyone, let alone a teenager

Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema was missing from Real's matchday squad as coach Carlo Ancelotti rested the France attacker ahead of Tuesday's Champions League last-16 first leg at Anfield

Kroos has won the Champions League five times – once with Bayern Munich and on four occasions with Real – but he thinks a Super League could be good for European soccer

The 26-year-old scored against Real Betis in a 2-1 win on February 1 and then again in the 3-0 win over Sevilla on Sunday, helping Barcelona open an eight point chasm above second place Real Madrid.

After retiring from playing in 1991 he went on to manage Rayo Vallecano, Racing Santander, Sevilla, Atletico Madrid, Real Zaragoza, Real Valladolid, Malaga and Granada 74.

Al Hilal, the first Saudi side to reach the Club World Cup final, will face the winners of Real Madrid's semi-final against Al Ahly on Wednesday in Rabat.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has a selection headache for the Club World Cup semifinal with Egypt's Al Ahly on Wednesday as he will be missing several key players due to injury.

Erik ten Hag criticised "inconsistent" VAR after Manchester United's Casemiro was the only player sent off following a mass brawl in Saturday's 2-1 win against Crystal Palace.

Former Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale impressed on his PGA Tour debut on Thursday as he made a swift switch from his glittering soccer career into following his passion for golf.

Marco Asensio and Vinicius Jr. scored second-half goals to earn Real Madrid a solid 2-0 win over struggling Valencia on Thursday as the visitors finished the match with 10 men.

Spain's High Council for Sport (CSD) said Monday that more than 10 Real Valladolid fans who racially insulted Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior in a La Liga game last month will be punished.

 Real Madrid's Brazil forward Vinicius Jr expects punishment to be handed out by Spanish authorities against hate crimes after a mannequin wearing his No. 20 shirt was hung from a bridge in front of the club's training centre ahead of the Madrid derby.

A dummy dressed in a Vinicius Junior shirt was hung from a bridge near Real Madrid's training ground ahead of the Copa del Rey quarter-final clash against Atletico Madrid on Thursday.