Ivan Helguera scored to lead Real Madrid over Juventus 1-0 in the Champions League knockout round on Tuesday as Europe's elite club competition resumed in freezing conditions after a two-month break.
Helguera scored in the 31st minute off an inswinging David Beckham free kick as the nine-time champion claimed the advantage ahead of the return leg in Turin in two weeks.
PHOTO: AP
German and English clubs split their two head-to-head encounters. Claudio Pizzaro scored in each half as Bayern Munich trounced Arsenal 3-1, while Liverpool beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 with goals from Luis Garcia, John Arne Riise and Dietmar Hamann.
PSV Eindhoven beat last season's runner-up Monaco 1-0.
At the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Madrid also twice hit the post as coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo made his Champions League lead debut with a victory. Luxemburgo, Madrid's third coach this season, took charge of the team in December.
"We played a good game. We would have liked a second goal. The opponent was very good, very strong defensively," Madrid midfielder Zinedine Zidane said.
Both sides sustained injuries. Michel Salgado limped off for Madrid in the ninth minute with a knee injury after a collision with Juventus midfielder Pavel Nedved, who was carried off 26 minutes later after a colliding heads with Salgado's replacement, Raul Bravo.
The match, a replay of the 1998 Champions League final, was attended by Spain's King Juan Carlos and King Abdullah II of Jordan.
In Munich, Pizarro scored in the fourth and 58th minutes, while Hasan Salihamidzic added another in the 51st. A late Arsenal goal from Kolo Toure gave the London club some hope of advancing to the quarterfinals.
The match was billed as a fight between Germany's top two goalkeepers -- current No. 1 Oliver Kahn of Bayern Munich, and his rival Jens Lehmann at Arsenal.
Four-time champion Liverpool coped with the absence of influential midfielder Steven Gerrard with a 3-1 win at Anfield.
Franca scored in injury time for Leverkusen, which hasn't won in England in six attempts.
"Shame about the end, but the problem is when you are winning 3-0 in the last minute and you concede a goal, it's a pity, but other than that it's good," Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez said.
Spanish league leader FC Barcelona hosts English front-runner Chelsea today as Manchester United faces AC Milan.
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before