Kylian Mbappe's start at Real Madrid has been satisfactory, his performances neither spectacular nor underwhelming, but Saturday's La Liga Clasico offers the French superstar a springboard to kick on from.

Pep Guardiola saluted his Manchester City stars' "incredible" mentality as he insisted his bond with the squad is as strong as ever.

Both president aspirants of Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) elections were in relaxed mood on the eve of today's elections, unlike the previous polls of the country's second-most affluent sports body.

Vinicius Jr's remarkable performances at Real Madrid have put the 24-year-old forward as the odds-on favourite to claim his first Ballon d'Or when the award for the best player in the world is announced in Paris on Monday.

Herve Renard is negotiating a surprise return as coach of the Saudi Arabia national team, a source close to the federation told AFP on Friday.

Former Brazil full-back Ze Carlos, runner-up at the 1998 World Cup, died on Friday aged 56, his old club Sao Paulo announced.

Captain Nazmul Huda Faysal scored four goals as Bangladesh thrashed Macau 7-0 on Friday to stay alive in their AFC U-17 Asian Cup Qualifiers campaign.

La Liga leaders Barcelona visit rivals Real Madrid in a mouthwatering Clasico on Saturday, aiming to strike a significant blow in the Spanish title race.

Tottenham teenager Mikey Moore was compared to Brazilian ace Neymar after a standout role in the 1-0 win over AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League on Thursday with Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou admitting it will difficult to "keep the lid" on expectations.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag admitted his team lacked a "killing" instinct in their Europa League 1-1 draw at Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce on Thursday.

Fenerbahce coach Jose Mourinho wryly congratulated the referee who sent him off as one of the best in the world after his side drew 1-1 with Manchester United in the Europa League on Thursday, a score he teasingly called a good result for his former club.

Saudi Arabia's football body said it was ending the contract of national coach Roberto Mancini after 14 months in the job on Thursday, following a run of poor results.

Tottenham Hotspur made it three wins from three in the Europa League with a 1-0 win at home to AZ on Thursday but Manchester United remain winless after being held to a 1-1 draw at red-carded Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce.

Players of the Bangladesh women’s team were upbeat yesterday on their rest day, riding the high of their tremendous 3-1 win over five-time champions India in their final group-stage match of SAFF Women’s Championship in Nepal on Wednesday.

Joao Felix ended his goal drought with a brace as Chelsea powered to a 4-1 win against Panathinaikos in the UEFA Conference League, while Welsh club The New Saints made history with a 2-0 victory against Kazakh side Astana on Thursday.

Bhutan thrashed Maldives 13-0 in their final group-stage match in Kathmandu today to set up a semifinal clash against Bangladesh in the SAFF Women’s Championship 2024.

The viral social media campaign before the September 29 clash encouraged Atletico fans to arrive at the club's Metropolitano stadium and utter "degrading and discriminatory insults with racist connotations" against a Real player, police said.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said it was too early to say his team were contenders to win the Champions League even after they hammered six-time winners Bayern Munich 4-1 on Wednesday.

Under pressure following a listless 1-1 draw against Pakistan in their first match and destabilised by the talk of rift between the coach and senior players becoming public, Bangladesh couldn’t have come up with a better response than their 3-1 win against five-time SAFF Women’s Championship winners India in their final Group A fixture at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu yesterday.

Nunez sprang forward to prod home the goal-bound ball, grabbing his first Champions League goal since February 2023.