Bolton Wanderers picked up an important three points to move to two points from safety in the Championship. There were five fixtures taking place on Tuesday evening and here is how they got on. Birmingham City 0-1 Bolton Wanderers Callum Connolly made the most of some lenient refereeing to fire struggling Bolton to 1-0 victory against Birmingham at St Andrew’s. Wanderers recorded their first win in eight Sky Bet Championship outings after the 21-year-old was shown a yellow card for only one of two late challenges in as many second-half minutes, before heading the only goal of the game moments later. Bristol City 2-1 Queens Park Rangers Famara Diedhiou netted…

Real Madrid climbed to second in La Liga with a 3-1 win over Atletico Madrid and leapfrogged their arch-rivals in the process. Gareth Bale scored his 100th goal for Madrid as he scored the third and final goal in the thrilling match at the Wanda Metropolitano. The last four league encounters had seen four draws with just four goals scored, but both sides threw caution to the wind with three goals in an entertaining opening 45 minutes. Casemiro gave the visitors the lead with an overhead kick in the 16th minute. Antoine Griezmann levelled calmly levelled nine minutes later but captain Sergio Ramos fired Real into a half-time lead from…

Winners of the trophy for the last two years, the Merengue are hoping to make up for domestic woes with yet another victory in 2018 Cristiano Ronaldo believes Real Madrid can still enjoy an “incredible” year if they manage to retain their Champions League title. Ronaldo was left out by Zinedine Zidane as Madrid crashed out of the Copa del Rey at the quarter-final stage on Wednesday, losing to Leganes on away goals after a 2-1 home defeat. With Madrid a massive 19 points behind LaLiga leaders Barcelona, their chances of adding to the Supercopa de Espana they won at the start of the campaign look remote. Article continues below…

Neil Warnock praised his Cardiff players for paying tribute to the late Emiliano Sala with a crucial 2-1 win at relegation rivals Southampton. At the end of the week in which the club-record signing’s body was recovered from the crashed plane that had been taking him to Cardiff, the Bluebirds secured back-to-back top-flight victories with a 2-1 victory thanks to Kenneth Zohore’s 93rd-minute winner. Southampton had equalised just two minutes earlier through Jack Stephens, who cancelled out Sol Bamba’s opener, but the Welsh club’s never-say-die attitude lifted them out of the relegation zone. Cardiff boss Warnock said: “We could easily have folded, but we were determined. “We’re limited, but you…

The former Chelsea goalkeeper has become the latest player in Santiago Solari’s squad to suffer an injury setback Real Madrid have confirmed goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is set for a spell on the sidelines after suffering an injury to the left iliac muscle. The Belgium international has joined an increasingly long list of players in the treament room at the Santiago Bernabeu, with the likes of Marcos Llorente, Marco Asensio, Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos and Mariano Diaz also out of action at present. It’s believed that Courtois’ injury will keep him out for around a fortnight, with Keylor Navas set to deputise for the Galacticos in his absence. Article continues below Editors' Picks Sarri…

There are many legitimate criticisms to be made over how relevant Barcelona’s ‘more than a club’ motto is these days, but what undoubtedly remains true is that the question of style – of how Barça should go about winning – is still more important than for any other team. It’s for that reason Barça’s announcement earlier this week that Ernesto Valverde would be extending his contract as head coach was met with mixed reviews. Virtually anywhere else, the decision to continue working with a coach who won a league and cup double in his first season, and is still on course for a treble in his second, would be seen…

The 19-time winners of the knockout competition begin their quest for a 20th title on the north coast of Africa Real Madrid will face one of the most unusual Copa del Rey matches in their 116-year history on Wednesday as they will have to travel to Africa to play their first game of the tournament away to Melilla. Los Blancos have entered the competition at the last-32 stage and have been paired with the third-tier side, who hail from a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa, sharing a border with Morocco. With a population of around 80,000, it is one of two cities to enjoy such a…

Maurizio Sarri has insisted he did not see Pep Guardiola at full-time at the Etihad. The Chelsea boss scampered down the tunnel after watching his side succumb to a 6-0 drubbing to Manchester City. But Guardiola seemed upset that his opposite number had not shaken his hand before presumably preparing to tear into his troops. Assistant boss Gianfranco Zola consoled the Spaniard as the Chelsea players went over to apologise to the travelling fans. And Sarri has admitted he was desperate to return to the dressing room as soon as possible. “I didn’t see at that moment,” the Italian said. “But of course as usually I will go to say hello…

Tottenham Hotspur star Dele Alli is “feeling good” as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury. The Spurs midfielder has been plagued by muscular problems throughout the season. And his latest setback came in Spurs’ 2-1 win over Fulham last month when he was forced off in the latter stages of the game. Alli is in Dubai taking part in warm weather training and tweeted an encouraging fitness video of his recovery with the caption “feeling good”. The England midfielder is not expected to return until March. And in his absence, Tottenham have won back-to-back league games to keep alive their slim title hopes. Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino provided…

Gareth Bale has been reported by LaLiga to the Spanish Football Federation over his celebration in Real Madrid’s 3-1 derby win at Atletico Madrid on Saturday. After scoring his side’s third goal, the Real forward waved his right hand by his head before lowering the arm and then, as he began to raise it again, bringing his left hand down into the middle of it. A statement on LaLiga’s official website said: “In minute 73 of the game, after Gareth Bale, number 11 of Real Madrid, scored his team’s third goal, some jeering is heard from the home crowd by the audio-visual recordings during the celebration. “And he moves his…