Third division Murcia will face the current holders in the fourth round, while Fuenlabrada have been drawn against the reigning La Liga champions Holders Barcelona will begin their Copa del Rey defence against Murcia in the fourth round, while Real Madrid face third-tier Fuenlabrada. Barca continued their dominance of the domestic cup competition last season with a third successive triumph, the 29th in their history. Barca 6/10 favs to win La Liga Article continues below Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in Spurs win Magnificent Mane takes centre stage as league leaders Liverpool put on a five-star show Lukaku sends reminder that his Man…

The Atletico Madrid head coach was full of praise for his two-goal hero following Wednesday’s triumph over Elche Diego Simeone hailed the “quality” of Fernando Torres after the veteran forward fired Atletico Madrid into the Copa del Rey last 16. Torres scored twice as Atletico saw off third-tier Elche 3-0 on Wednesday and 4-1 on aggregate at the Wanda Metropolitano midweek. Torres 6/5 to score v Sociedad Article continues below Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in Spurs win Magnificent Mane takes centre stage as league leaders Liverpool put on a five-star show Lukaku sends reminder that his Man Utd career is far from…

The Brazilian is still looking for his first Barcelona goal or assist after making four total appearances with the club thus far Philippe Coutinho will start from the bench as Barcelona look to get past Valencia and advance to the Copa del Rey final. The Blaugrana won last week’s first leg 1-0 at the Camp Nou, meaning they just need to avoid defeat in the semi-final second leg at Mestalla on Thursday. Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde has opted for Andre Gomes instead of Coutinho, who has yet to register a goal or an assist over four appearances with the Blaugrana thus far.  Article continues below Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping…

Arsenal travel to Belarus on Thursday night as they begin the knockout stage of the Europa League against BATE Borisov. The Gunners, who reached the semi-finals of the competition last season, face the Belarusian champions for the round of 32 first-leg tie. Unai Emery won the European tournament three times as Sevilla boss and will be looking to secure an advantage against BATE to take back to north London. The clash will be live on talkSPORT 2 and here’s how you can tune in. BATE Borisov v Arsenal: How to listen We will have in-depth coverage of the match on talkSPORT 2, with our build-up beginning at 5:30pm. Jim Proudfoot…

The coach is satisfied overall with how Barcelona’s transfer window has panned out, with the arrival of the Brazil international the highlight Ernesto Valverde insists Philippe Coutinho can excel in a number of different positions for Barcelona as he looked back on a busy transfer window at the club. Coutinho has made a low-key start to his Barca career on the back of his blockbusting €160m move from Liverpool. The Brazil international was initially laid low by a thigh injury before appearing as a substitute against Espanyol in the Copa del Rey and playing an hour as late goals from Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi sealed a dramatic 2-1 La…

Arsene Wenger has admitted he tried to sign Jadon Sancho for Arsenal when he was still at Manchester City. The 18-year-old has announced himself on the world stage in the past year as one of the brightest young talents in European football. After leaving City in 2016, Sancho joined Borussia Dortmund in the hope of getting regular game time – a move which was initially viewed with scepticism. However, the winger has established himself at Dortmund as one of the first names on the team sheet and only Eden Hazard and Lionel Messi have more assists in Europe’s top five leagues this season. Before turning Tottenham Hotspur defender Davinson Sanchez…

The Barcelona attacker has been on fire in the cup competition and continued his unstoppable form with two more goals on Thursday Lionel Messi continued his unstoppable form in the Copa del Rey with two more goals and an assist against Celta de Vigo as his Barcelona side rolled to a 5-0 win in the second leg of round of 16 clash.  The Argentine’s scoring exploits are nothing new, but his form in the Spanish cup competition is outstanding even by his lofty standards.  Messi has now accounted for 24 goals in his last 14 matches in the competition, racking up 14 goals and 10 assists.  Article continues below Editors'…

The Argentine star was on target as Barcelona beat Atletico Madrid 2-1 in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semis, though his coach was not surprised Luis Enrique heaped praise on Lionel Messi for his goalscoring exploits against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, insisting you can always count on the Barcelona star to deliver when it matters most. Mixed feelings for Luis Enrique after Barca win Messi was on target as Barcelona defeated Diego Simeone’s men 2-1 at the Vicente Calderon in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals. Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in Spurs win Magnificent Mane takes…

Leeds United’s Jack Clarke has been taken to hospital after falling ill during Saturday’s game against Middlesbrough. Paramedics rushed to the scene after the highly-rated youngster, who started the match and was replaced at half-time, complained of feeling unwell in the visitors’ dugout. A lengthy delay followed with a total of 12 minutes stoppage time added on at the end of the game at the Riverside. Marcelo Bielsa’s men grabbed a late equaliser in that time, courtesy of Kalvin Phillips’ first goal of the season. Speaking to the media after the game, Whites boss Bielsa confirmed the 18-year-old was feeling “better”. He said: “What we know is that he didn’t feel…

Jamie Vardy blew the chance to equalise for Leicester when he came off the bench and missed a penalty against Tottenham with his very first touch. After James Maddison was brought down in the box by Jan Vertonghen, it appeared that the Foxes midfielder would take the resulting spot-kick. However, Vardy – who replaced Demarai Grey between the foul occuring and the taking of the spot kick – took the ball and the responsibility that comes with it. But he had his effort from 12 yards well saved by Hugo Lloris in the Spurs goal. Four minutes later, the home side went 2-0 ahead with Christian Eriksen firing beyond Kasper…