FEATURES

Miami and Orlando served up a Florida classic, but it was a mixed weekend for some of the biggest managers in MLS.

Chelsea's hopes of securing a top-five finish in the Premier League were ended on Monday as they put in a shameful performance in losing 3-1 to Nottingham Forest. Cole Palmer missed from the penalty spot as the Blues' run of league defeats stretched to six games, meaning their hopes of securing Champions League qualification for next season hang by the finest of threads.

With 20 goals across the four games, and late drama at the end of both ties, it's fair to say the 2025-26 Women's Champions League semi-finals delivered. Out of them emerged Lyon, the eight-time winners, and Barcelona, the three-time champions, to set up a truly mouth-watering final in Oslo on May 23, in which there will be so many fascinating storylines.

For Manchester United, the first half of their game against Liverpool felt like a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park. They were cruising after scoring twice inside 14 minutes and their biggest rivals had barely laid a glove on them. The second half, though, was more akin to a mass brawl in a pub after one pint too many. But it all ended with local boy Kobbie Mainoo having the final say.

Lindsey Heaps and Lily Yohannes starred in Lyon's win over Arsenal, and Emily Fox, while Sam Coffey, Alyssa Thompson, Phallon Tullis-Joyce, and more USWNT regulars made their mark across a busy weekend in Europe.

It was a rough weekend for one USMNT star, but others enjoyed a memorable couple of days with the World Cup fast approaching.

Vinicius Jr bagged a brace, Jude Bellingham provided a lovely assist, and Real Madrid strolled to a convincing 2-0 win over Espanyol on Sunday evening. Madrid got things done without Kylian Mbappe, and Alvaro Arbeloa will be pleased with the performance - but with the knowledge that their win only delays Barcelona's inevitable march to the league title.

It's official: Tottenham are out of the Premier League relegation zone. Spurs capitalised on a sluggish Aston Villa performance and West Ham's defeat to Brentford a day prior to escape the bottom three on Sunday night, unexpectedly running out comfortable 2-1 winners over Unai Emery's out-of-sorts side at Villa Park.

Kobbie Mainoo scored his first goal of the season to secure Manchester United a satisfying but hard-fought 3-2 win over Liverpool on Sunday which booked their ticket back to the Champions League and left them in a strong position to finish third in the Premier League.

Liverpool lost out in a topsy-turvy game against Manchester United on Sunday, suffering a 3-2 defeat despite launching a second-half comeback. The Reds were two down at half-time, but goals from Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo got them right back into the game, only for Kobbie Mainoo to fire home and secure all three points for Michael Carrick's side.

Sam Kerr wrote her name into Chelsea's history books yet again on Sunday, as she kickstarted a comfortable 3-1 win over Leicester City that confirmed the Blues will be playing Champions League football again next season. Sonia Bompastor's side only needed a point to secure a top-three finish after Manchester United's slip-up against Brighton on Saturday, but they delivered all three in a dominant display against the Women's Super League's bottom side, with Lauren James bagging a sparkling brace after Kerr became the club's all-time top-scorer in the competition.

Manchester City's Women's Super League destiny remains in their hands after Rebecca Knaak delivered a priceless late winner to defeat Liverpool 1-0 on Sunday. It looked like the Cityzens were going to slip up again, thus taking the title out of their hands and opening the door for Arsenal to take advantage. But after chances were wasted by star names like Khadija Shaw and Kerolin, up came Knaak, from centre-back, in stoppage time to head home a goal that puts her side on the brink of a first league title in 10 years.

Struggling to find his flow and still battling fitness issues at the end of an injury-plagued season, Cole Palmer will on Monday go head to head with the player who poses an existential threat to his World Cup dream in Morgan Gibbs-White. The Chelsea talisman and the resurgent Nottingham Forest star form part of an intense fight for the No.10 shirt in Thomas Tuchel's England squad.

Inter Miami threw away a 3-0 lead against Orlando City in a quite remarkable collapse against their Florida rivals, losing 4-3 and continuing their winless streak at Nu Stadium. Lionel Messi had a goal and two assists, but it was Miami's defense that was called into question, with countless lapses seeing them drop points at home for the fourth straight game.

With Barcelona still said to be mulling over whether to sign Marcus Rashford on a permanent basis, the on-loan Manchester United attacker provided a timely - and hugely important - reminder of his worth as Barcelona beat Osasuna 2-1 on Saturday evening to move 14 points clear at the top of La Liga. The Blaugrana were struggling dismally to break down their hosts when Flick decided to bring Rashford on midway through the second half of the game in Pamplona.

Bukayo Saka marked his first Premier League start since March with a goal and an assist as Arsenal routed Fulham 3-0 at the Emirates on Saturday evening to go six points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table. The Gunners' 'Starboy' had only made his return from an Achilles heel injury during the midweek Champions League semi-final first-leg draw at Atletico Madrid but he showed few signs of rust in what was a must-win game for his team.

Arsenal's Women's Champions League title defence came to an end in Lyon on Saturday, as the eight-time winners exacted their revenge on the Gunners after losing to them at this stage last season. Buoyed by the returns of both Selma Bacha and Melchie Dumornay, OL raced into a 2-0 first half lead and though Alessia Russo did get Arsenal back level on aggregate, Jule Brand's late strike secured a 4-3 win for Lyon over the two legs that puts them into an incredible 12th UWCL final.