Lewandowski Strikes Twice for Champion Barcelona but Can’t Catch Mbappé for Scoring Title 

Football - LaLiga - Athletic Bilbao v FC Barcelona - San Mames, Bilbao, Spain - May 25, 2025 FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scores their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Athletic Bilbao v FC Barcelona - San Mames, Bilbao, Spain - May 25, 2025 FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scores their first goal. (Reuters)
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Lewandowski Strikes Twice for Champion Barcelona but Can’t Catch Mbappé for Scoring Title 

Football - LaLiga - Athletic Bilbao v FC Barcelona - San Mames, Bilbao, Spain - May 25, 2025 FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scores their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Athletic Bilbao v FC Barcelona - San Mames, Bilbao, Spain - May 25, 2025 FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scores their first goal. (Reuters)

Barcelona capped its title-winning campaign with a 3-0 victory at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, with Robert Lewandowski scoring twice, but falling short of catching Kylian Mbappé as the Spanish league's top scorer for the season.

Lewandowski found the net in the 14th and 17th minutes in Bilbao to finish the league season with 27 goals, four fewer than Mbappé, who scored twice in Madrid's 2-0 win against Real Sociedad on Saturday.

Lewandowski, who was out injured in some recent matches, hadn't scored since April 9 in a Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund. His last league goal was in March against Girona.

Lewandowski had led the scoring race during most of the season, but Mbappé finished with a red-hot run that included 10 goals in his last six matches.

Barcelona finished with a goal-difference of plus 63 after scoring 102 times and conceding 39. It won 28 matches, drew four and lost six.

It ended with 88 points, four points more than second-placed Madrid and 12 points more than third-placed Atletico Madrid.

Athletic had already secured a fourth-placed finish to secure a Champions League spot for the first time in a decade.

‘Under control’

The 36-year-old Lewandowski reached 101 goals in total across all competitions in his three seasons with Barcelona. He had 42 this year after scoring 26 last season and 33 in his debut campaign.

“We had it under control,” Lewandowski said. “This season was almost perfect. We have to enjoy this moment.”

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick praised his team.

“We wanted to finish like we started it, like we performed during the season, and they did a great job,” Flick said.

Levante promoted

Carlos Álvarez scored seven minutes into stoppage time as Levante won 3-2 at Burgos to seal its promotion to the first division three years after being relegated.

Levante rallied for the victory after trailing 2-1 up to the 85th minute. It secured one of the top two spots in the second tier to automatically advance to the first division.

Relegation and European places

Saturday's matches decided the final European places and the last relegated team. Leganes was demoted after Las Palmas and Valladolid had already been relegated in advance. Celta Vigo grabbed the final Europa League spot and Rayo Vallecano earned the Conference League place.

Barcelona, Madrid, Atletico, Athletic and Villarreal will play in the Champions League next season. Real Betis got the other Europa League spot.

Atletico finished the season with a 4-0 win at Girona with a hat trick by striker Alexander Sorloth. He had scored four goals in a 4-0 win over Real Sociedad earlier this month.

Sorloth, often used as a substitute by Atletico coach Diego Simeone, ended with 20 goals, fourth in the league's scoring list. Ante Budimir of Osasuna was third with 21 goals, six fewer than Lewandowski and 10 fewer than Mbappé.

Fifth-placed Villarreal beat 17th-placed Sevilla 4-2 with a pair of goals by Pape Gueye.



Real Madrid Defender Éder Militão Set to Be Sidelined for Few Months because of Injury

Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
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Real Madrid Defender Éder Militão Set to Be Sidelined for Few Months because of Injury

Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid defender Éder Militão is expected to be sidelined for at least three months because of a left leg injury.

The club said Monday that Militão underwent tests and was diagnosed with a rupture of the biceps femoris tendon in his leg. It said his “progress will be monitored.”

Such injuries could require from three to fourth months of recovery, Spanish media said, The AP news reported.

Militão had to leave Madrid's 2-0 loss to Celta Vigo in the Spanish league on Sunday in the first half. He was assisted off the field at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.

Militão, a Brazil international, had to deal with serious knee injuries in recent years.

He is the latest setback to affect Xabi Alonso's squad that has been depleted by injuries recently.


Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A Champions League clash between Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland will surely happen in the final one day.

On Wednesday, it is a routine league-phase game when Real Madrid hosts Manchester City and the most feared forwards in soccer cross paths for the third time in the competition since Haaland debuted in 2019.

Also this week, Liverpool brings its season of turmoil to San Siro against Inter Milan on Tuesday, when Bayern Munich hosts Sporting Lisbon. Paris Saint-Germain is at Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, The AP news reported.

In the sixth of the eight rounds, league-leading Arsenal can become the first team to reach the 16-point total that last season ensured advancing direct to the round of 16, The AP news reported.

Arsenal is the only team with five straight wins on 15 points and needs to avoid defeat Tuesday at Club Brugge to reach the potential cutoff between eighth and ninth place in January.

Mbappé vs. Haaland Tuesday at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium likely won’t be the last time they meet this season.

France will play Norway on June 26 at the New England Patriots’ stadium in Foxborough, Mass., in one of the most anticipated games from the World Cup draw made Friday.

There might also be more in the Champions League given that Real Madrid and Manchester City met in the knockout rounds in each of the past four seasons. They combined to win three titles in that time though Mbappé still seeks his first.

Mbappé vs. Haaland first happened in the round of 16 in February 2020. Newly arrived at Borussia Dortmund, Haaland scored two in the first leg against Paris Saint-Germain and revealed his “Zen” goal celebration, sitting down cross-legged as if meditating. Mbappé and PSG won in Paris to advance 3-2 on aggregate score.

Last season, in the knockout playoffs in February, Mbappé scored four times including a hat trick in the second leg as Madrid beat Man City in both games, despite Haaland’s two goals in the first leg.

Mbappé’s four goals at Olympiakos last month lifted him to be top scorer in the Champions League this season. He needs one more to reach 10 in a Champions League season for the first time during his decade in the competition.

Haaland has five so far, and already got into double figures in three Champions League campaigns.

Madrid starts the week in fifth place on 12 points, two ahead of City in ninth in the 36-team standings.

Equally prolific Kane Harry Kane is just as prolific for Bayern Munich this season. He has scored 28 in just 22 games for Bayern plus five in five World Cup qualifiers for England.

Kane has kept pace with Haaland’s goal-a-game ratio in the Champions League and kept Bayern third in the standings, despite losing at Arsenal two weeks ago.

Ahead of Kane and Haaland is six-goal Victor Osimhen, who is fit to return with Galatasaray at Monaco on Tuesday. Both teams are in contention for a top-24 finish and places in the knockout stage starting in February.

Frankfurt fans return Barcelona hosting Eintracht Frankfurt is a repeat of a remarkable show of force by visiting fans four seasons ago — and one the Spanish club has now worked to avoid.

Eintracht’s road to winning the Europa League in 2022 included what looked and sounded like a home game to win 3-2 at Camp Nou in the second leg of the quarterfinals.

About 30,000 German fans were there after most bought tickets from Barcelona fans, who last week were warned by their club not to do that again.

“If the traceability of ticket purchases and their final destination reveals fraudulent behavior, the case will be referred to the disciplinary committee,” Barcelona said last week in a statement.

Barcelona is certainly favored to win this time. The La Liga leader scored five in winning at the weekend while Eintracht was routed 6-0 at Leipzig.

Winter is coming It will be an unusually early Champions League kickoff at 4:30 p.m. Central Europe Time when Kairat Almaty hosts Olympiakos on Tuesday. That is 8:30 p.m. in eastern Kazakhstan where evening temperatures can plummet in December.

UEFA planned well to schedule the game Tuesday instead of Wednesday. Forecast temperature at kickoff is about 0 Celsius (32 Fahrenheit) while it should be -12 C (10 F) at the same time one day later.

Bodo/Glimt’s European season continues at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday after its domestic season finished in Norway being edged for the title by Viking. The Norwegian league avoids the bitter winter and Glimt has two more Champions League games in January, and maybe more in the knockout phase, during the Norwegian offseason.


Salah Is Destroying His Liverpool Legacy, Says Rooney 

A man photographs his wife next to a mural of Egypt soccer player Mohamed Salah, who joined Liverpool FC as a winger in 2017, painted by artist John Culshaw, in Liverpool, Britain, December 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A man photographs his wife next to a mural of Egypt soccer player Mohamed Salah, who joined Liverpool FC as a winger in 2017, painted by artist John Culshaw, in Liverpool, Britain, December 7, 2025. (Reuters)
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Salah Is Destroying His Liverpool Legacy, Says Rooney 

A man photographs his wife next to a mural of Egypt soccer player Mohamed Salah, who joined Liverpool FC as a winger in 2017, painted by artist John Culshaw, in Liverpool, Britain, December 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A man photographs his wife next to a mural of Egypt soccer player Mohamed Salah, who joined Liverpool FC as a winger in 2017, painted by artist John Culshaw, in Liverpool, Britain, December 7, 2025. (Reuters)

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah is destroying his legacy at the club with his fiery reaction to being left out of the side, former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney said.

Salah has failed to start their last three matches and lashed out at the club and coach Arne Slot following Saturday's 3-3 Premier League draw with Leeds United, saying he had been made a scapegoat for their poor start to the season.

The Egyptian, who signed a two-year contract extension in April, has become an iconic figure in an eight-year spell at Liverpool in which he has won two Premier League titles and scored 250 goals in all competitions.

However, he has scored just five goals and appeared in 19 games in all competitions this season.

"He is absolutely destroying his legacy at Liverpool," Rooney said on his podcast. "It would be sad for him to throw it all away. He's gone about it all wrong.

"Arne Slot has to show his authority and pull him in and say, 'you are not travelling with the team, what you said is not acceptable.'

"Take yourself off to Afcon (Africa Cup of Nations) and let everything calm down. If I was him there would be no way he would be in the team."

Salah had said he felt as if he had been "thrown under the bus" with Liverpool failing to reproduce their title-winning form from last season.

They are ninth in the current campaign, 10 points behind leaders Arsenal after 15 games.

"If anything, he has thrown Liverpool under the bus with his words...," Rooney said. "I am sure over the next couple of years he will regret saying what he has."