Cesc Fabregas is not one to shy away from a challenge and the Chelsea midfielder says he will bank on his experience to nail down a first team spot after making his 300th Premier League appearances in Saturday's 3-1 win over Swansea City.

Manchester United supporters should camp outside Zlatan Ibrahimovic's house to make sure he signs a contract extension at the club, manager Jose Mourinho said after the Swede's deadly double decided the League Cup final on Sunday.

Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo hauled Real Madrid back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Villarreal on Sunday and regain top spot in La Liga from Barcelona.

Sevilla captain Vicente Iborra came off the bench to lead his side to a second-half comeback at fierce local rivals Real Betis on Saturday, assisting and scoring in a 2-1 win to provisionally take Jorge Sampaoli's side joint-top of La Liga.

Romelu Lukaku became Everton's joint highest Premier League scorer on Saturday and the powerful striker is showing no signs of slowing down as he leads his team's bid to qualify for European competition.

Napoli's remote hopes of overhauling Serie A leaders Juventus were dealt a possibly fatal blow when they lost 2-0 at home to Atalanta on Saturday and the Turin side ploughed on by beating Empoli by the same score.

Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick as the Bundesliga leaders mercilessly obliterated Hamburg SV 8-0 on Saturday as coach Carlo Ancelotti celebrated his 1,000th game as manager.

Former Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is the bookmakers' favourite to replace compatriot Claudio Ranieri as Leicester City manager after the Italian was sacked by the Premier League champions on Thursday.

Barcelona will open a soccer academy in southern China this year in partnership with local developer Mission Hills Group, the La Liga club said on Friday.

Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo is comfortably the most influential soccer player online in China, while Manchester United are the most dominant club, according to a report.

Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League hopes were crushed by mid-table Belgian side Gent, who booked their spot in the last 16 with a 2-2 draw at Wembley on Thursday as the hosts paid the penalty for Dele Alli's first-half red card.

Even by the standards of modern soccer management mayhem, the vertiginous rise and equally stunning fall of Leicester City coach Claudio Ranieri takes the breath away.

Sevilla left-back Sergio Escudero was rewarded for his fine form this season with a new four-year contract, the Spanish club confirmed on Thursday.

Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla's recovery from ankle surgery could see the Spain international ruled out of the rest of the English season, British media reported Thursday.

Real Madrid suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat at struggling Valencia on Wednesday as they missed the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of La Liga after losing for only the second time in the league this season.

Even before stepping onto the field for their third and final match, Bangladesh Premier League champions Abahani had been eliminated from the group stage of the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup for the second successive time, leaving local hopes resting on holders Chittagong Abahani and Mohammedan SC.

Wayne Rooney's agent Paul Stretford held talks in China on Thursday amid mounting speculation over the Manchester United captain's future, British media said.

Having helped Chelsea to win the Premier League as assistant to Carlo Ancelotti, Paul Clement will be looking to put a dent in their title hopes this season when he takes his resurgent Swansea City side to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Five times World Cup winners Brazil will play Australia in a friendly at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on June 13, giving the Socceroos the toughest of warm-ups for the Confederations Cup later that month.

As Manchester United continue to battle on four fronts, wracking up too many air miles is proving a concern to manager Jose Mourinho.