Barcelona found its scoring touch again to reach the round of 16 of the Europa League with a 4-2 win over Napoli on Thursday, while Rangers knocked out Borussia Dortmund in Glasgow.
Frenkie de Jong scored with a long-range curler and newly signed striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang netted again for Barcelona, which had been held 1-1 at home in the first leg. The Spanish giant has struggled badly in its first season since the departure of Lionel Messi and was demoted to the Europa League after failing to advance to the Champions League knockout stages for the firs time since 2004.
Dortmund is also a Champions League regular but couldn’t come back from a 4-2 home loss in the first leg as a 2-2 draw at Rangers saw the German team eliminated in one of eight playoffs between third-place finishers in the Champions League groups and Europa League group runners-up.
On a night when Europe was rocked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi scored a couple of goals to lead Atalanta into the round of 16.
Malinovskyi netted twice in a two-minute span in the second half for a 3-0 win over Olympiakos as Atalanta advanced 5-1 on aggregate.
After scoring, Malinovskyi lifted his Atalanta jersey to show a message reading “No war in Ukraine” on his undershirt.
Real Betis also advanced after a 0-0 draw with Zenit St. Petersburg that was enough for a 3-2 aggregate victory after the Russian team had a late goal overturned by VAR.
Ten-man Sevilla eliminated Dinamo Zagreb 3-2 on aggregate, Porto knocked out Lazio 4-3 on aggregate and Leipzig won 3-1 at Real Sociedad to reach the next round 5-3 on aggregate.
In the playoff matches to reach the last 16 of the inaugural Europa Conference League, Leicester advanced with a 7-2 aggregate victory over Denmark’s Randers.
The other biggest teams in the playoff round, Marseille and PSV Eindhoven, also advanced while Norwegian upstart Bodø/Glimt knocked out Scottish giant Celtic.
EUROPA LEAGUE
Barcelona jumped out to a 2-0 lead within 13 minutes as Jordi Alba finished off a counterattack after a corner kick at the other end in the eighth minute and de Jong doubled the advantage five minutes later with a sublime strike into the top right-hand corner.
Lorenzo Insigne halved the deficit from the penalty spot before Gerard Piqué restored a two-goal lead in the final minute of the first half.
Aubameyang added the fourth in the second with his fourth goal in five games since a move from Arsenal, while substitute Matteo Politano netted a late consolation goal for Napoli.
James Tavernier netted both goals for Rangers, putting the Scottish side in front from the penalty spot and then netting the equalizer after Jude Bellingham and Donyell Malen had given Dortmund a 2-1 lead.
Portuguese side Braga won a penalty shootout 3-2 against Moldovan side Sheriff a 2-0 home win made it 2-2 on aggregate.
Willi Orbán and Andrés scored to give Leipzig a 2-0 lead and Emil Forsberg added the third from the penalty spot after Real Sociedad pulled one back through Martin Zubimendi.
Lazio striker Ciro Immobile returned from injury to score the opening goal in the 19th with a low shot past goalkeeper Diogo Costa, a minute after he had a goal disallowed due to offside. But Porto forward Mehdi Taremi equalized from the spot and Matheus Uribe gave the Portuguese team a 2-1 lead at Stadio Olimpico in the 68th. Lazio substitute Danilo Cataldi’s goal in stoppage time came too late.
Mislav Oršić scored the lone goal for Dinamo from the penalty spot in Zagreb for a 1-0 victory over Sevilla.
EUROPA CONFERENCE LEAGUE
Midfielder James Maddison spearheaded Leicester’s dominant display at Randers with two second-half goals within four minutes and Harvey Barnes also scored with a curling right-foot attempt from inside the box on the way to Leicester’s 3-1 victory on the night.
After winning the first leg 3-1 in Glasgow, Bodø/Glimt dominated again at home with another 2-0 victory even though the Norwegian champions are between domestic seasons.
PSV held Maccabi Tel-Aviv 1-1 to advance 2-1 on aggregate while Marseille won 3-0 away at Qarabag to complete a 6-1 rout.
Slavia Prague earned a second straight 3-2 win over Fenerbahce, Vitesse beat Rapid Vienna 2-0 to erase a 2-1 deficit from the first leg and Partizan Belgrade advanced with a 2-1 over Sparta Prague. PAOK eliminated Danish side Midtjylland on penalties after a 2-2 aggregate score.
Barca advances in Europa League, Rangers knock out Dortmund
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Barca advances in Europa League, Rangers knock out Dortmund
Football’s return to Syrian pitches brings fanfare — and friction
RIYADH: Just 10 days after the first anniversary of Syria’s Liberation Day, and one week after the historic performance of the country’s football team at the 2025 Arab Cup — where they reached the quarterfinals — domestic football returned as the Syrian Premier League kicked off its new season.
While league football has continued intermittently since a one-year suspension in 2011, this season represents a notable shift.
For the first time since 2017, the competition features 16 teams playing a full round-robin format — a return to structural normality after years of disrupted campaigns, withdrawals and operational challenges caused by conflict and deteriorating infrastructure.
Foreign players have also returned in significant numbers. A total of 25 overseas players are registered across the 16 clubs in what is now known as the “Prime TV” Syrian Premier League, following the broadcaster’s acquisition of domestic broadcasting rights for the season.
Yet despite the sense of renewal, the league’s reset has been far from smooth. Average attendances remain well below pre-war levels, while the season itself was delayed multiple times before eventually beginning in mid-December — a schedule that is now expected to extend deep into the summer months.
Concerns over facilities and fan safety have already sparked internal tension. The anticipated Matchday Two fixture between Tishreen and Hottin — also known as the Latakia Derby — was postponed by the Syrian Football Association until further notice. No official explanation was provided, but stadium readiness and crowd safety has been at the core of football discussion in Syria.
Supporters have also voiced their frustration over the newly announced ticket prices. Entry fees increased from 5,000 Syrian pounds ($0.45) to 15,000 SYP, a threefold rise announced by the SFA and widely cited as a factor behind subdued crowds.
Infrastructure remains a pressing issue. Historic venues such as Khalid Ibn Al-Walid Stadium in the city of Homs are still not cleared to host games due to pitch conditions and safety requirements, reinforcing the sense of uneven progress — advances made, but frequently offset by new obstacles.
Operational shortcomings were evident as early as the first game of the season. In the opening fixture between Al-Shorta and Hottin, a formal warning was issued to the former by the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee due to a breach in organizational arrangements for the match, including the failure to provide ball boys, which led to a five-minute delay to kick-off.
Political sensitivities have not been easy to navigate either. Al-Karamah were fined 1,500,000 SYP after fans directed verbal abuse at Al-Wahda player Milad Hamad, due to previous political posts made on his Facebook account.
Five days later, Al-Wahda announced Hamad’s suspension from all sporting activities pending review by the relevant committee at the SFA. “This decision comes in solidarity with all our beloved Syrian fans and as a reaffirmation of our commitment to the unity of our people and our land, and to the fact that the blood of our martyrs in the Syrian Revolution has not been shed in vain,” the club said in a statement posted via their official Facebook page.
Rebuilding a sustainable football system in Syria has proven complex. The league’s return has brought moments of excitement alongside renewed tension — a reminder that restoring domestic football is not simply about restarting competition, but about addressing the structures that support it. The Syrian Football Association was contacted for comment, but did not respond.
