Liverpool have continued their pre-season spending spree by signing Brazilian international goalkeeper Alexander Doni from Roma on Friday.
Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets is free to play in the Champions League final against Manchester United after UEFA dismissed an allegation of racism by Real Madrid.
Thoughts on the weekend's action in the Barclays Premier League:
Manchester United's hopes of winning a treble this season ended on Saturday with a 1-0 defeat to arch-rivals Manchester City in the semifinals of the English FA Cup at Wembley Stadium.
Chelsea have closed the gap on leaders Manchester United at the top of the English Premier League after a John Terry header and a Frank Lampard double gave them a comfortable 3-1 win at Blackpool on Monday.
Lyon scored a late equalizer against Real Madrid to deny Karim Benzema a victorious return to his old club on Tuesday, while Chelsea moved towards a place in the Champions League quarterfinals with victory at Copenhagen.
West Bromwich Albion missed out on moving up to fourth place in the English Premier League, after having two men sent off in a narrow 2-1 defeat at fellow-new boys Blackpool.
Liverpool's dramatic week ended in disappointment as Everton claimed a 2-0 victory in the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park on Sunday to leave their rivals second from bottom of the Premier League table.
Liverpool's Spain striker Fernando Torres may miss the struggling English Premier League club's derby clash with city rivals Everton later this month after suffering another injury setback.
Roy Hodgson always was likely to face two problems at Liverpool: that his football was too boring for the fans, and that his training was too boring for the players. A certain stodginess leading to long-term grumbling was perhaps to be expected, but what nobody predicted was that Liverpool would be as bad as it has been so far this season, and that there would be immediate outrage.
Dimitar Berbatov scored a stunning hat-trick as Manchester United recovered from throwing away a two-goal lead to defeat Liverpool 3-2 in a thrilling English Premier League game at Old Trafford.
The North West seaside town of Blackpool was once the No.1 holiday destination for working-class British families. In the 1960s it would attract 17 million of them a year, until cheap, all-inclusive holidays to Spain cut their business in half. They called it "The Las Vegas Of The North" because of its bright lights and reputation for bawdy thrills.
VBS: Blackpool was once a popular destination for British families, but all-inclusive trips to Spain impacted business.
Were you to track Theo Walcott's handling by the British press since 2006, when Arsene Wenger took him to Arsenal and Sven-Goran Eriksson took him to the World Cup, the chart would peak and trough like an EKG. The 21-year-old has been hailed as a prodigy, maligned as Sven's ludicrous plaything, had the nation's hopes heaped upon his shoulders after that breathtaking hat trick against Croatia in 2008, and been bemoaned for his failure to carry the weight.
Arsene Wenger has admitted he rejected several offers from other clubs before committing his future to Arsenal.
Snow and freezing temperatures hit large parts of Britain Wednesday, forcing airports and railway lines to close down, and forecasters warned that more bad weather was on the way.
English FA officials have asked a footballer to explain a scoring celebration in which he appeared to send a message of support for a former teammate jailed over a fatal drunken-driving crash.
Alberto Contador maintained his dominance of the Tour of Spain on Sunday by winning his second successive mountain stage to stretch his overall lead over Astana teammate Levi Leipheimer.
As the northern hemisphere slides inexorably towards autumn, Europeans, with their fading sun tans, are getting back to work or school suffering the "post holiday blues."
Tottenham Hotspur want the Premier League to fall in line with other major European leagues and allow seven substitutes to be on the bench and available to participate.
Tottenham Hotspur gave Juande Ramos a winning start to his managerial career at White Hart Lane as they beat second-flight Blackpool 2-0 in the fourth round of the English League Cup.
Uruguayan Gus Poyet has been given the go-ahead by Leeds United to join Tottenham as an assistant to new manager Juande Ramos after the clubs agreed an undisclosed compensation package.
Tottenham Hotspur's disastrous Premier League season continued a familiar pattern as new manager Juande Ramos saw them squander a lead yet again to slip to a 2-1 home defeat to fast-rising Blackburn Rovers.
Juande Ramos was confirmed as head coach of Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday night in a deal lasting until the end of the 2010-11 season.
No love will be lost between Bolton Wanderers and Arsenal when they meet for a Valentine's Day FA Cup replay at the Reebok Stadium on Wednesday.
The northern England city of Manchester is the surprise choice as the site for Europe's first Las Vegas-style supercasino, it was announced Tuesday.
Bat Boy, phat girls, and 8 other things we recommend this week:
Manchester United are applying to the British government for a licence to build a 'super casino' on land close to their Old Trafford stadium.
Favorite Hedgehunter, trained in Ireland by Willie Mullins and ridden by Ruby Walsh, won the Grand National at Aintree on Saturday.
Non-league Exeter will bank nearly a million pounds from their FA Cup exploits against Manchester United after it was announced the replay will be screened live.
Want to know what your music-obsessed loved ones want from Santa?
A 100-year-old British man has walked free from court after slitting his wife's throat in what the judge said appeared to be an "act of love."
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