Real Madrid Beaten in Champions League as Villa Shock Bayern

Jonathan David (C) scored a penalty as Lille recorded a famous win over Real Madrid (FRANCK FIFE) (FRANCK FIFE/AFP/AFP)
Jonathan David (C) scored a penalty as Lille recorded a famous win over Real Madrid (FRANCK FIFE) (FRANCK FIFE/AFP/AFP)
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Real Madrid Beaten in Champions League as Villa Shock Bayern

Jonathan David (C) scored a penalty as Lille recorded a famous win over Real Madrid (FRANCK FIFE) (FRANCK FIFE/AFP/AFP)
Jonathan David (C) scored a penalty as Lille recorded a famous win over Real Madrid (FRANCK FIFE) (FRANCK FIFE/AFP/AFP)

Holders Real Madrid suffered a shock 1-0 loss to Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday, while Aston Villa defeated Bayern Munich 1-0 in a repeat of the 1982 European Cup final.

Liverpool continued their flying start under new boss Arne Slot with a 2-0 victory at home to Bologna to secure a second successive win over Italian opposition this season.

Kylian Mbappe made his return from injury for Madrid in France as a substitute but he was upstaged by Jonathan David, whose penalty condemned Carlo Ancelotti's side to a first loss in all competitions since January -- a run spanning 36 matches.

"It hasn't been a very good night for us, we shouldn't look for excuses," said Ancelotti.

"We could have equalised at the end but it wouldn't have been deserved."

Canada international David, scorer of a hat-trick in Ligue 1 at the weekend, buried his spot-kick at the end of the first half after Eduardo Camavinga used his arm to block a strike from Edon Zhegrova.

According to AFP, Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier produced a string of late saves as the French club clung on for a famous win over the record 15-time European champions.

Villa also enjoyed a night to remember as a brilliant goal from in-form Colombian forward Jhon Duran lifted the hosts past Bayern.

Duran's majestic lob in the 79th minute caught Manuel Neuer well out of position and earned Villa their second win in a row in the club's first appearance in Europe's top competition in 41 years.

Harry Kane almost snatched a last-gasp equaliser but Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez pulled off a superb stop to deny the England captain.

"It's unreal to be fair. This is the loudest Villa Park that I've heard since I joined the club, that's for sure, it was hurting my ears at some point," Martinez told TNT Sports.

"It's a statement, there's still a lot to play. We want to qualify in the first eight, in the top eight, it's one step at a time."

At Anfield, Alexis Mac Allister prodded in from close range after meeting Mohamed Salah's cross to give Liverpool an early lead.

Dan Ndoye hit the post for Champions League debutants Bologna, but Salah made the game safe with a terrific curling effort in the final quarter of an hour.

Slot is the first Liverpool manager to win eight of his opening nine matches, surpassing even the likes of Jurgen Klopp, Kenny Dalglish, Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley.

"It's hardly impossible to do something special at this club. It says a lot about how we started how players bought into it, the effort put in," said Slot.

- Juventus resilient as Atletico flop -

Juventus won 3-2 in a thrilling encounter against RB Leipzig in Germany despite having goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio sent off for handling outside his area.

Leipzig led twice through goals from Benjamin Sesko but Juventus replied both times through Dusan Vlahovic, his magnificent second coming just after Di Gregorio saw red on the hour.

Francisco Conceicao's fine solo effort late on won it for Juventus, who are one of seven teams with maximum points in the new 36-team league phase.

Atletico Madrid fell to a humiliating 4-0 loss at Benfica.

The Portuguese team went ahead through Kerem Aturkoglu, with Angel Di Maria extending the lead from the penalty spot.

Alexander Bah headed home the third and Orkun Kokcu completed the rout with another penalty.

Monaco rallied from two goals down on a sodden pitch to salvage a 2-2 draw away to Dinamo Zagreb.

Goals from Petar Sucic and Martin Baturina had Dinamo on course for victory, but Mohammed Salisu halved the deficit for Monaco before Dennis Zakaria equalized from the spot in the final minute.

Champions League newcomers Girona slid to a second straight defeat after scoring two own goals in a 3-2 home loss to Feyenoord.

David Lopez put Girona ahead before Yangel Herrera turned into his own net and Antoni Milambo then gave Feyenoord the lead.

Donny van de Beek equalised in the second half but Ladislav Krejci's own goal sank Girona as both sides also missed a penalty.

Atalanta strolled to a 3-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk in Gelsenkirchen with goals from Berat Djimsiti, Ademola Lookman and Raoul Bellanova.

Club Brugge picked up their first points courtesy of Christos Tzolis' goal in a 1-0 win at Sturm Graz.



Real Madrid Beat Valencia to Stay on Barcelona’s Heels

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, left, celebrates with Alvaro Carreras, right, and Brahim Diaz after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish LaLiga match between Valencia and Real Madrid in Valencia, Spain, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, left, celebrates with Alvaro Carreras, right, and Brahim Diaz after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish LaLiga match between Valencia and Real Madrid in Valencia, Spain, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP)
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Real Madrid Beat Valencia to Stay on Barcelona’s Heels

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, left, celebrates with Alvaro Carreras, right, and Brahim Diaz after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish LaLiga match between Valencia and Real Madrid in Valencia, Spain, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, left, celebrates with Alvaro Carreras, right, and Brahim Diaz after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish LaLiga match between Valencia and Real Madrid in Valencia, Spain, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP)

Real Madrid stayed within one point of LaLiga leaders Barcelona with a 2-0 win at Valencia on Sunday as second-half goals by Alvaro Carreras and Kylian Mbappe settled a largely uneventful contest.

Real dominated possession but found chances hard to come by, with Valencia keeper Stole Dimitrievski rarely called into action as the visitors struggled to turn control into threat.

It took them until the 65th minute to break the deadlock through Carreras before Mbappe wrapped up the points in stoppage time.

Barcelona lead the table on 58 points, with Real second on 57. Valencia are 17th, a point above the relegation zone.

Mbappe offered the main outlet with sporadic ‌runs down the ‌left but clear openings were limited.

Real coach Alvaro ‌Arbeloa ⁠was forced ‌to improvise, missing suspended winger Vinicius Jr and injured trio Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo and Eder Militao.

The absences opened the door for academy players Raul Asensio, David Jimenez and Gonzalo Garcia to start, with Mbappe providing the lone spark for an uninspiring Real side.

The deadlock was broken through fullback Carreras in a fortunate turn of events.

Making an ambitious run into the box, Carreras was dispossessed by Valencia's defenders, but ⁠the attempted clearance ricocheted back off him and fortuitously fell at his feet.

The 22-year-old was quickest ‌to react, sweeping a low shot into the bottom-left ‍corner.

Valencia offered little in response and ‍Real sealed the points in added time. Substitute Brahim Diaz launched a ‍counter-attack down the left and slid a low cross into the area for Mbappe, who finished first time from close range.

It was the France forward's 23rd league goal, leaving him eight goals clear at the top of the scoring charts.

“Playing at Valencia is always like going to the dentist," Arbeloa told reporters.

"We knew how difficult the match would be, how demanding they would be. ⁠It was a very serious and committed match. I'm happy.

"We can certainly raise our game in terms of brilliance. We have a lot of room for improvement. But a team is built on solidity and commitment. (Thibaut) Courtois didn't make a single save today. Dedication, commitment, sacrifice. Madrid demonstrated those values once again today."

Elsewhere on Sunday, Atletico Madrid slipped further adrift in the title race after a 1-0 home loss to Real Betis.

Antony struck in the 28th minute with a fierce effort from the edge of the box, earning Manuel Pellegrini's side a valuable victory as they bolstered their push for European qualification.

Atletico are a distant third ‌in the table on 45 points, three points ahead of fourth-placed Villarreal, who have two games in hand. Betis sit fifth on 38 points.


Australia Humiliated by Ecuador in Davis Cup Qualifier

Tennis - Davis Cup - Qualifiers  - Ecuador v Australia - Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador - February 8, 2026 Team Ecuador celebrate winning the doubles match between Ecuador's Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo, and  Australia's Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson REUTERS/Cristina Vega
Tennis - Davis Cup - Qualifiers - Ecuador v Australia - Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador - February 8, 2026 Team Ecuador celebrate winning the doubles match between Ecuador's Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo, and Australia's Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson REUTERS/Cristina Vega
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Australia Humiliated by Ecuador in Davis Cup Qualifier

Tennis - Davis Cup - Qualifiers  - Ecuador v Australia - Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador - February 8, 2026 Team Ecuador celebrate winning the doubles match between Ecuador's Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo, and  Australia's Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson REUTERS/Cristina Vega
Tennis - Davis Cup - Qualifiers - Ecuador v Australia - Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador - February 8, 2026 Team Ecuador celebrate winning the doubles match between Ecuador's Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo, and Australia's Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson REUTERS/Cristina Vega

Australia slumped to their worst Davis Cup result under long-serving captain Lleyton Hewitt, suffering a 3-1 humiliation away to lowly Ecuador in the first round of qualifiers on Sunday.

With Australia's number one Alex De Minaur opting out of the tie in Quito, the 28-times champions crashed out when Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson were beaten 7-6(5) 6-4 by Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo in the decisive doubles rubber.

Lacking a player in the top 200, Ecuador set up their unlikely triumph on home clay by claiming ⁠both the opening singles rubbers on Saturday.

Alvaro Guillen Meza downed Hijikata in three sets before 257th-ranked Andres Andrade shocked world number 86 James Duckworth, also in three, Reuters reported.

Ecuador next face Britain in the second round of qualifiers in September.

With De Minaur leading the charge, Australia reached back-to-back finals in 2022-23 and ⁠the semi-finals in 2024.

However, the Ecuador shock continues the team's decline following their failure to reach the eight-nation Finals in 2025, Hewitt's 10th year in charge.

India's Dhakshineswar Suresh won both his singles matches and partnered Yuki Bhambri to victory in the doubles as India beat Netherlands 3-2 in Bengaluru.

The 25-year-old held his nerve under immense pressure in the final rubber against Guy de Ouden to win 6-4 7-6 (4) and guide India to the second round of qualifiers ⁠for the first time since the new Davis Cup format began in 2019.

“It’s just a different feeling when you’re playing for your country,” Suresh, who has a world ranking of 470, told the Davis Cup website after the win. “You are not playing for yourself, you’re playing for the whole nation."

India meet South Korea in the next round in September after the Koreans defeated Argentina 3-2. The United States beat Hungary 4-0 while Britain also secured a 4-0 win over Norway and Canada beat Brazil 3-2.


Saudi Arabia: RCU Partners with ASICS to Support Sports Development

The MoU was signed at the Cultural Oasis in AlUla. SPA
The MoU was signed at the Cultural Oasis in AlUla. SPA
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Saudi Arabia: RCU Partners with ASICS to Support Sports Development

The MoU was signed at the Cultural Oasis in AlUla. SPA
The MoU was signed at the Cultural Oasis in AlUla. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ASICS, aimed at strengthening strategic cooperation to support the development of AlUla’s sports ecosystem and enhance talent pathways, in line with RCU’s long-term vision and future ambitions.

The MoU, signed at the Cultural Oasis in AlUla, establishes a framework for future collaboration through which RCU will explore opportunities to leverage ASICS’ technical, operational, and specialized advisory expertise across sports development and performance services, including assessment and analysis, to enhance the quality of sporting experiences in AlUla.

The cooperation includes joint efforts to support a more integrated sports ecosystem through initiatives that strengthen training environments, enhance athletic performance, and advance athlete development pathways and talent programs. RCU and ASICS will also explore opportunities to develop distinctive events and initiatives and attract regional and international competitions that contribute to AlUla’s growing profile on global sporting calendars.

The MoU further supports collaboration on community engagement through grassroots programs and social impact initiatives that encourage participation and wellbeing. It also enables exploration of digital enhancements that improve event delivery and participant engagement, including smarter registration, data management, and participant tracking for the AlUla Trail Race and other events across AlUla’s calendar.

This step is part of RCU’s ongoing efforts to develop the sports ecosystem in AlUla and increase community participation in sporting activities, in line with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 to advance the sports sector and enhance the quality of life.