Antonio Rudiger, a Real Madrid defender, will miss up to eight weeks following knee replacement surgery on Tuesday.
The German center-back was kicked out for throwing an object at the referee during his team’s Copa del Rey final defeat against Barcelona on Saturday.
Rudiger’s outburst in Seville is expected to cause him to miss four to twelve games.
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Real Madrid CF and RC Celta de Vigo play in the Spanish league football match on March 10, 2024 at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, with German defender #22 Antonio Rudiger celebrating Celta’s owngoal. (Photo by Pierre-Philippe MARCOU / AFP)
Without specifying how long Rudiger would be out, Real Madrid announced in a statement that “he had surgery today to repair a tear in the outer meniscus of his left knee.”
Rudiger will miss between six and eight weeks while he recovers, according to Spanish media.
The 32-year-old may still be able to take part in Real Madrid’s Club World Cup campaign in the US this summer, which will begin on June 14.
Rudiger was substituted in extra-time for Madrid after his aggressive protests from the sideline resulted in his dismissal.
With five games left, Madrid, who is second, is four points clear of La Liga leader Barcelona. The matchup will take place on May 11 at the Olympic Stadium.
Barcelona’s torch-bearer was Lionel Messi, who was their last champions league champion ten years ago.
When they take on Inter Milan on Wednesday in a semi-final first leg match, the Catalan giants will now rely on Lamine Yamal as their “X-factor.”
Messi scored two incredible goals in the 2015 semi-final first leg against Bayern Munich on the way to the treble, and Yamal, age 17, is still improving his finishing, which could help the team achieve success this year.
The teenager, who is left-footed but has freedom of movement like Messi did for many years, gives Hansi Flick’s brilliant Barca their edge.
In their enthralling Clasico Copa del Rey final victory over Real Madrid on Saturday in Seville, Yamal scored two of Barcelona’s three goals.
On top of his outstanding Euro 2024 displays against champions Spain last summer, he has been showing it all season with 14 goals, 24 assists, and numerous but crucial flashes of invention, genius, and flair.
Yamal is responsible for a large portion of the attention that Flick’s attacking Barca has captured.
It’s unusual to walk for more than a few minutes in Barcelona’s city center without seeing a replica Yamal shirt.
On matchdays, a crowd of No 19 shirts flies up the city’s Montjuic hill’s rolling staircases and escalators leading to the Olympic stadium.
With a variety of different Barcelona shirts from different years and the sky-blue and white stripes of Argentina, it was once Messi’s No 10.
Given that Yamal has risen to fame so quickly, and this is his first season wearing the No 19, the shirts are identical.
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We have seen a genius, they say.
On April 12, 2025, Leganes’ Spanish defender #02 Adria Altimira challenges Barcelona’s #19 Lamine Yamal (L) during the club’s Ligue 1 encounter with FC Barcelona at the Estadio Municipal Butarque in Leganes, near Madrid. (Photo by Thomas COEX/AFP)
Yamal could become a winner of the Ballon d’Or if Barcelona wins the Champions League.
When Xavi Hernandez made his La Liga debut as a 15-year-old against Real Betis in April 2023, it was difficult to imagine such a feat.
As tens of thousands of people watched him every step, a little intimidated, Yamal appeared to be right in the middle.
Perhaps this was the only occasion because he has never shown even the slightest sign of daunted ever since.
Ronald Araujo, the captain of Barcelona, said last week, “I’m surprised by how incredible the (young players’) mentality is.”
They appear to be very calm, which surprised me greatly.
Yamal’s mother was more concerned for the child than the youngster.
He continued to find his footing at the club, praising his mother, who is afraid of him when I first start.
Yamal started putting the team’s creative weight at the age of 16 despite the fact that those initial nerves had already dissipated so quickly.
Yamal became a household name with Spain at the Euros in Germany the day before the final while awaiting results from his secondary school exams.
After Yamal scored a stunning goal against France in the semi-finals, Spain coach Luis de la Fuente gushed, “We have seen a genius, the work of a genius.”
He is now crucial for Barcelona, who have always struggled without him this season.
Although Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski are responsible for most of the goals, Yamal’s assistance would be invaluable.
Due to his sharp dribbling, either directly or indirectly, in the build-up, he can do so through his risky in-swinging crosses.
“Lamine Yamal… he’s like Messi,” he says. Does he make me laugh? No. Former Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde earlier this year, “Everyone knows how good he is, he can dribble past anyone.”
Yamal has always been wary of the parallels, as they may seem, and was remarkably photographed as a baby in 2007 as being bathed by the then 20-year-old Messi for a charity calendar.
In February, Messi stated that being compared to him would mean he was acting morally, but he made an effort to be himself.
These comparisons will only increase if Yamal can bring Barcelona back to the Champions League final.
After a late-season slump that shattered their treble hopes and has left them wondering where the next victory will come from, Inter Milan are at risk of coming away from the Champions League semi-finals.
Inter, who have lost three games in a row without scoring a goal, could not have anticipated the daunting matchup with Barcelona on Wednesday.
With only four matches left, Napoli held a three-point lead over Napoli in Serie A, and Inter was eliminated from the Italian Cup following their disappointing 3-0 derby defeat at AC Milan last week.
The team led by Simone Inzaghi appears to be stale and without any fresh ideas. Roma lost 1-0 at home on Sunday in front of a soporific San Siro crowd, which was even more incongruent with the upbeat atmosphere that accompanied their thrilling victory over Bayern Munich two weeks prior.
On Sunday, Inzaghi said, “We deserved more and created circumstances where we failed to get anything, primarily because we lacked sharpness.”
“We need to find that from within ourselves, but a positive outcome might have given us more energy.” Both mentally and physically, we must recharge our batteries.
During Claudio Ranieri’s disastrous time on the Nerazzurri bench, Inter last lost three games in a row without scoring.
Roma last defeated Inter in October 2022. In the final of that season’s competition in Istanbul, Inter defeated Barcelona 1-0 three days later, narrowly falling to Manchester City.
15 years ago, when Barca defeated Inter in the semi-finals, the eventual treble winners almost lost to Roma under the direction of Ranieri before triumphing in the championship match.
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Not afraid to ask?
At the conclusion of Inter Milan’s UEFA Champions League quarter final second leg football game against Bayern Munich at the San Siro stadium in Milan on April 16, 2025, Argentine forward #10 Lautaro Martinez celebrates with teammates #32 Italian defender Federico Dimarco and #23 Italian midfielder Nicolo Barella. (Photo by Isabella BONOTTO/AFP)
Inter will also have one day less rest after their match against Roma was moved back to Sunday, so that it won’t clash with Pope Francis’ funeral, giving France defender Benjamin Pavard less time to recover from an ankle sprain that he picked up over the weekend.
Real Madrid and Barca both won the Cope del Rey on Saturday, but Barca are now on a high following their former foe’s petulant meltdown as they prepare to suffer a third consecutive defeat at the Clasico.
The best way to be in April and still have something to play for, wing-back Carlos Augusto said on Sunday. “We’re not scared, we’re not scared.
“We have a chance to achieve something extraordinary, and we don’t have any fears.” This team is always focused and has already accomplished great things.
Since Lautaro Martinez has looked worn and frustrated, Inzaghi will be hoping that Marcus Thuram will be available because his replacements have failed to do so.
With goals that first secured Inter’s position in the top eight of the league, Captain Martinez’s team advanced to the semi-finals before dragging his team to the final four.
Since the start of the year, the 27-year-old has scored seven goals in five Champions League games, accounting for half of his total goals.
He scored both goals against Bayern and away from home, and he excelled against the Bundesliga champions-in-waiting two weeks ago, when Inter appeared to be leading the charge in the world.
Inter are now working to salvage something from a season that appeared to be a dream but quickly turns into a nightmare.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has agreed to take over the Brazilian national team, several Spanish media outlets reported Monday.
The veteran Italian has one more year on his contract with the Spanish giants but after quarter-final Champions League elimination by Arsenal and Copa del Rey defeat by rivals Barcelona, is poised to depart the Santiago Bernabeu.
Ancelotti has not hidden that a potential exit was on the cards and said his future was “a topic for the next weeks” after defeat by Barca on Saturday.
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Spanish media report Ancelotti would take over ahead of 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June, leaving Madrid before the Club World Cup starts in the United States this summer.
Brazil sacked Dorival Junior after a 4-1 thrashing by Argentina in March and are fourth in the South American qualifying table for the tournament in the US, Mexico and Canada.
Ancelotti led Real Madrid to a Champions League and La Liga double last season, with Brazil stars Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes vital parts of the team, and is one of the most successful coaches in the club’s history.
In his first spell at Real Madrid he led them to La Decima — their 10th Champions League triumph.
He has won the competition three times with Los Blancos over two stints, sacked in 2015 but returning in 2021 after Zinedine Zidane resigned.
This season Madrid have been defensively fragile and trail La Liga leaders Barcelona by four points, with a title defence their only remaining hope of major silverware.
Ancelotti has also coached AC Milan, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain among other teams.
President Bola Tinubu has congratulated The Remo Stars Football Club on winning the 2024–2025 Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) title, describing the achievement as “a proud moment” for Ikenne, Ogun State, and Nigeria’s sporting community.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Monday, Tinubu praised the team’s resilience, perseverance, and commitment to excellence, noting that their triumph comes just four years after their promotion to Nigeria’s top football division.
He particularly admired the team’s courage in staying focused after enduring three previous seasons of narrowly missing out on the title.
The President expressed optimism that Remo Stars’ journey would inspire other Nigerian clubs to pursue success with renewed determination and optimism.
He also commended the club’s owner and chairman, Mr Kunle Soname, for his visionary investment in grassroots football development.
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He noted that the construction of a state-of-the-art stadium in Ikenne has played a pivotal role in providing a solid foundation for the growth of sports, not just in Ogun State but across Nigeria.
“Mr. Soname’s commitment to grassroots football development is a model for others to follow,” the statement read.
With the NPFL title secured, Remo Stars will now represent Nigeria in the CAF Champions League.
President Tinubu urged the team to maintain the same “undaunting spirit, focus, and excellence” as they step onto the continental stage.
The President called on Nigerian football fans across the country to rally behind Remo Stars as they carry the nation’s hopes into African competition.
Play was interrupted at the Madrid Open on Monday when a power cut struck the city after world number four Coco Gauff and rising Russian star Mirra Andreeva booked their quarter-finals spots.
A power cut affecting “the whole of the Iberian peninsula and part of France”, according to Portuguese electricity network operator REN, halted matches shortly after 10. 30am GMT.
On Centre Court, the match between Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov and British qualifier Jacob Fearnley was suspended when the Bulgarian was leading 6-4, 5-4 with his opponent serving to stay in the match.
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Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka serves to Russia’s Anna Blinkova during their 2025 WTA Tour Madrid Open tennis tournament second round singles match at the Caja Magica in Madrid, on April 25, 2025. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP)
“The outage is preventing the use of electronic line calling systems and also left a spider cam dangling over the court inside Monolo Santana Stadium,” the ATP said on its website.
Tournament organisers said on social media they were “working to restore” power “as quickly as possible”, without giving a timetable.
Before the cut hit, American Gauff beat Belinda Bencic of Switzerland 6-4, 6-2 in the last 16.
Teenager Andreeva also progressed as she saw of Ukrainian Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-1, 6-4.
When play resumes in Madrid, Stefanos Tsitsipas will take on Lorenzo Musetti and fifth seed Jack Draper is due to play Matteo Berrettini.
