Michael Olise's spectacular stoppage-time free-kick ended Manchester United's nine-match winning run as Crystal Palace held them to a 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park.

United looked destined to go second in the Premier League thanks to Bruno Fernandes' first-half opener but ultimately paid the price for their apparent decision to sit on the narrow lead.

Although it was United who survived the game's first scare when Palace hit the crossbar in the 40th minute, they were deserved leaders as Bruno Fernandes netted on the stroke of half-time.

But they committed far fewer bodies to attack in the second period and Olise made them pay, denying United the chance to enter the top two for the first time since September 2021.

Atletico Madrid were far from their best but progressed to the Copa del Rey quarter-finals after Marcos Llorente scored one and assisted another in a 2-0 victory at Levante.

Diego Simeone's side have won just one of their last six LaLiga games and their recent struggles were evident despite victory over second-tier Levante on Wednesday.

Atletico's first shot on target in the 54th minute through Morata opened the scoring after Llorente's cross before the midfielder sealed progression with a calm stoppage-time finish.

The LaLiga side await the identity of their next opponents in Friday's last-eight draw as they aim for a first Copa del Rey crown since 2013.

Alex Munoz finished into an empty net when Jan Oblak fumbled after 25 minutes, yet the goalkeeper's blushes were spared as a free-kick was awarded for Mohamed Bouldini's heavy aerial challenge.

Bouldini arrowed a fizzing left-footed effort narrowly over soon after as an underwhelming Atletico failed to impose themselves on a first half devoid of quality.

However, a touch of class after the restart brought the opener as Antoine Griezmann danced through the middle before finding Marcos Llorente, who rolled across for Morata to finish into the bottom-left corner.

Oblak intervened at a crucial moment when Bouldini appeared positioned to net an equaliser, before a sweeping counter-attack at the other end ensured victory for Atletico.

Griezmann orchestrated the break from inside his own half before Nahuel Molina played in Llorente, who slotted a right-footed finish past Joan Femenias.

What does it mean? Atleti's silverware hopes rely on Copa del Rey

Out of Europe after finishing bottom of Champions League Group B and 13 points adrift of LaLiga leaders Barcelona, Atletico's quest for silverware relies solely on the Copa del Rey.

Simeone's side are yet to face a top-flight side in this competition, although they have battled past Almazan, Arenteiro, Real Oviedo and Levante with relative ease.

However, with Real Madrid and Barcelona – who face Ceuta and Villarreal respectively on Thursday – still in the competition, Atletico will have to improve to lift their first Copa del Rey in 10 years.

De Paul controls the game

Atletico were not especially impressive but maintained control with the help of Rodrigo De Paul.

The Argentina midfielder, appearing in his first game since lifting the World Cup in Qatar, enjoyed the most touches (97) and most successful passes (70) of any player while winning all of his five duels.

Livewire Bouldini blunted

Bouldini was a constant livewire up top as he acted as a nuisance for Atletico's centre-back partnership of Mario Hermoso and Stefan Savic.

The Levante forward attempted four shots and contested a remarkable 21 duels – both marks the most of any player – though his hard-working ethic did not make up for his or Levante's lack of quality in front of goal.

What's next?

Atletico return to LaLiga action at home to Real Valladolid on Saturday.

Inter retained their Supercoppa Italiana crown with a convincing 3-0 victory over fierce rivals Milan at King Fahd International Stadium on Wednesday.

Simone Inzaghi's side have been in far better form than Milan since the World Cup break and that showed in Riyadh as they raced into a two-goal lead inside 21 minutes.

Federico Dimarco finished off a flowing team move and Edin Dzeko, who played a pivotal role in that opener, added a second to put Inter in command.

Last season's Coppa Italia winners Inter added a third in the 77th minute through Lautaro Martinez to seal a seventh Supercoppa triumph, drawing them level with Milan's tally.

Dzeko played a delightful first-time pass into the feet of Nicolo Barella, who in turn squared to Milan-born Dimarco for a simple finish for Inter's 10th-minute opener.

That goal was allowed to stand following a VAR check, with semi-automatic offside technology being used for the first time in Italian football ahead of its roll-out in Serie A.

Inter added a second through a well-taken Dzeko goal after the striker collected the ball down the left, skipped inside Sandro Tonali and swept a shot past Ciprian Tatarusanu.

Not since Roma against Inter in 2006 had a team struck twice inside the opening 25 minutes of a Supercoppa Italiana match, and Milan could not find a route back into the game.

After sitting back for most of the second half, Inter added some gloss to the scoreline when Fikayo Tomori failed to clear a long ball and Martinez finished with the outside of his boot.

Arsenal have confirmed they are investigating two incidents of anti-Semitism that were reported to the club around the north London derby.

Premier League leaders Arsenal beat rivals Tottenham 2-0 in Sunday's match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

But the Gunners announced on Wednesday an intention to get to the bottom of a pair of instances of anti-Semitic comments and chants from Arsenal fans.

"We have been made aware of two disturbing incidents over the weekend involving anti-Semitism, which are now under investigation," a statement read.

"There was an incident at the north London derby on Sunday involving Arsenal supporters in which one of our fans overheard grossly offensive anti-Semitic statements made by another Arsenal fan.

"On the same afternoon, we were appalled to hear of an incident at The Cally pub in Islington, involving other anti-Semitic chants.

"We recognise the impact this behaviour has on our many Jewish supporters and others and condemn the use of language of this nature, which has no place in our game or society. 

"Arsenal must be a safe and welcoming environment for everyone, and we want to be clear that any kind of discriminatory abuse is not welcome at our club. 

"We will not stand for this kind of behaviour and will take strong action against any supporters who we establish are responsible for such acts.

"Anyone identified will receive a lengthy club ban and their details will be passed to the police to commence legal proceedings."

Juraj Slafkovsky's rookie season appears to be over after the Montreal Canadiens announced the number one overall pick in the 2022 draft will miss three months due to a lower-body injury sustained in Sunday's game at the New York Rangers.

The 18-year-old Slovakian forward has four goals and six assists in 39 games this season for the Canadiens, who are in 15th place in the 16-team Eastern Conference and are unlikely to make the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Prior to getting injured, Slafkovsky was mired in a 15-game point drought and had not scored a goal in 21 straight contests.

"We believe his development will happen in stages," Montreal general manager Kent Hughes said on Wednesday. "It's not, 'hey, we've got 10 things [for you to do]; go figure them out'.

"Because I think when you do that, [the player] is on the ice thinking and not reacting. And I think sometimes this year we've seen him think on the ice and other times we've seen him react.

"But we're not worried about the production side of it. We're really worried about seeing the areas that we want him to improve on.

"Do we see progress in those areas? Because we know, or we certainly believe, that long term, if he makes [certain] changes to his game, it's going to allow him to adapt to the North American style and be the most successful player he can be.

"He's going to be a different style hockey player than another guy."

Referees will explain to crowds and TV audiences the reasoning behind VAR decisions during a 12-month trial across FIFA tournaments, starting with February's Club World Cup.

The Morocco-hosted event will see officials communicate their decisions to audiences for the first time in football.

While conversations with the VAR officials will not be heard by the public, referees are to be provided with a microphone that links them to the in-stadium public address system and broadcasters.

The International Football Association Board (IFAB), the sport's lawmakers, announced the trial on Wednesday following recommendations made by its advisory panels in October.

With the trial set for 12 months from February 1, the initiative could also be implemented for the Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand later this year.

But IFAB rejected the chance to begin experimenting with temporary concussion substitutes, confirming "no consensus was reached".

The measure, IFAB said, will remain "under active review", though the board "indefinitely extended the trial with permanent concussion substitutions".

Regarding the existing Laws of the Game, IFAB also moved to confirm recent guidelines published on "deliberate play" in offside situations.

Several high-profile incidents – such as Mohamed Salah's FA Cup goal against Wolves last week – led to that publication, and IFAB affirmed that "a player who is clearly in an offside position should not become 'onside' on all occasions when an opponent moves and touches the ball".

Salernitana have confirmed the rehiring of Davide Nicola as head coach just two days after sacking him, with president Danilo Iervolino saying "you never know how much you will miss someone".

The Serie A side dismissed Nicola on Monday after a heavy 8-2 loss to Atalanta the previous day that leaves them a lowly 16th, albeit still nine points clear of the relegation zone.

But Nicola, who worked wonders to keep Salernitana in the Italian top flight last season, revealed on Wednesday he had got his job back following an emotional plea to Iervolino.

That news was confirmed at a press conference later in the day in which Iervolino explained the club's decision to reappoint Nicola, despite having already reportedly held talks with the likes of Rafael Benitez and Roberto D'Aversa.

"I felt compelled to change things after the Atalanta defeat. In that instance, you can only do one thing: review the project and change the coach," Iervolino told reporters.

"Despite what has been written, we found many other interested coaches. There are many coaches, hundreds across the globe, who have offered themselves to Salernitana.

"But [Nicola] and I communicated through [sporting director Morgan] De Sanctis, who spoke highly of him. Nicola wanted to get straight back to work. He admitted to his mistakes and how much he loves this city.

"If you don't lose someone, you never know how much you will miss them. His words struck me. I would have missed him. I thought about it a lot, knowing we had replacements, but this was for the good of Salernitana.

"Now he has another chance with us. With this commitment, he can carry the team forward and make sure we don't again suffer the type of discomfort like on Sunday afternoon [against Atalanta]."

Salernitana have taken just two points from their past six games and host league leaders Napoli in their next match on Saturday, before facing Lecce and Juventus.

"The good news is that after the game with Juventus, we ought to have a slightly calmer fixture list," Iervolino added. "But I still hope to get points over the next three games, too. 

"Our absolute minimum target is to remain in Serie A; the second is to play good football and get the best out of young players and at the same time climb the table."

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed Kevin De Bruyne is in contention for Thursday's match against Tottenham after dealing with a "personal issue".

Belgium international De Bruyne did not take part in training with the rest of his City team-mates on Tuesday, with his absence initially thought to be down to an injury problem.

The 31-year-old was therefore considered a major doubt to face Spurs, but Guardiola dismissed those fears on the eve of the Premier League meeting.

"He had a personal issue and could not train [on Tuesday], but today he is back," Guardiola said at Wednesday's pre-match press conference.

Asked if De Bruyne is available for Tottenham's visit to the Etihad Stadium, Guardiola replied: "Yes, yes."

De Bruyne has assisted 15 goals this season – 10 more than next-best Bernardo Silva – and has created more than double the number of chances of any team-mate (80).

In a further boost for City, Guardiola also revealed centre-backs Ruben Dias and John Stones have recovered from injury lay-offs and could play a part against Tottenham.

Dias has not played since sustaining a hamstring injury with Portugal at the World Cup, while Stones has missed City's past two matches.

"They are back. They have trained really well in the last two sessions, both of them. They are in contention," Guardiola said.

"We are going to train this afternoon and see the way we have to play and who is going to play."

City have lost four of their past five Premier League games against Tottenham, which is as many as they had in their previous 19 against them.

Indeed, Guardiola has lost six of his 15 meetings with Spurs – only against Chelsea (eight), Liverpool (eight) and Manchester United (seven) has he lost more often in his managerial career.

The reigning English champions have lost back-to-back matches in all competitions and trail Premier League leaders Arsenal by eight points.

Salernitana have rehired Davide Nicola as head coach just two days after sacking him following an emotional plea to the club's president, he claims.

The Serie A club dismissed Nicola on Monday in the wake of a crushing 8-2 defeat to Atalanta a day earlier.

Nicola kept Salernitana in the top flight last term, though they have struggled again this campaign despite reportedly investing around €40million in pre-season, with the loss in Bergamo leaving them 16th in the table.

However, just two days after the club confirmed Nicola's dismissal in a press release, the coach claims he is back in the hot seat after pleading to president Danilo Iervolino.

"I'll tell you the truth. Yesterday I received a call from president Iervolino," Nicola wrote on social media. "With his methods, which are always amiable and kind, [Iervolino] explained the reasons for his decision, which he took with bitterness but was supposed to mark our discontinuity after the very bad match in Bergamo against Atalanta.

"I immediately held my hands up, assuming all the responsibilities for an inadequate performance and the consequential heavy defeat, because I believe in this club, as well as in the men who make it up, just as I believe in the great support behind it.

"I strongly urged the president to reconsider the decision, knowing that I was pulling on the heartstrings of a human soul that has a deep sensitivity to understand, and who strongly wants to build a different kind of football. I love Salerno and I blindly believe in this project.

"It is he [the president] who strongly believes that when men all pull in the same direction, they are capable of extraordinary things, and I have already seen many extraordinary things done by him.

"I thank the president for having called me. This is the demonstration that new football is a football of passion and heart, and for this I want to repay his trust with all my strength and with all the passion I have.

"With the sports management led by Morgan De Sanctis, whom I thank for the mediation without which this operation would not have been possible, weeks of very hard work and continuous discussion await us to achieve our goals.

"Now let's start again together, ALL of us, and tell another extraordinary football story, giving back to the Granata fans the same passion and the same sense of belonging that they show us unconditionally. This is Salerno, this is Salernitana: much more than a football team."

Despite Nicola's passionate letter and claim of being reinstated, Salernitana have not posted any official confirmation of his return on social media nor their website.

Julian Nagelsmann is anxious to see Bayern Munich's pursuit of Yann Sommer reach a conclusion as the Bundesliga champions prepare to return to action at RB Leipzig on Friday.

Bayern have been strongly linked with Borussia Monchengladbach goalkeeper Sommer since Manuel Neuer broke his leg during a skiing trip last month.

With Sven Ulreich the only other senior goalkeeper in Bayern's squad and Alexander Nubel reportedly reluctant to return from a loan spell at Monaco, Nagelsmann said the club has "a duty" to sign another shot-stopper last week.

Bayern chief executive Oliver Kahn has revealed discussions are ongoing regarding a move for Sommer, and Nagelsmann is eager for the transfer saga to reach a resolution. 

"I've been a coach long enough to know it's never easy. There are always more than two parties that need to be satisfied," Nagelsmann said at Wednesday's pre-match press conference.

"We need a decision to happen. I'd like to change the transfer window so it doesn't affect the ongoing matches as much.

"It's normal that at some point you want to have a certain amount of peace and quiet in this position.

"Integrating a new goalkeeper is not rocket science. This usually takes about 15 minutes, it works quickly. It depends on the goalkeeper, generally the behaviour is very similar."

With Sommer having 272 Bundesliga appearances to his name, some have suggested his arrival could mark the end of Neuer's time as Bayern's number one, but Nagelsmann remains focused on the immediate need for reinforcements.

"It's more a matter for the people further up," Nagelsmann said. "I might have some things to say on that, but my business is day-to-day business, winning games.

"I assume that Manuel Neuer, a great goalkeeper, will come back in the summer. We're looking forward to a player of his quality returning."

Meanwhile, Nagelsmann is yet to decide whether Thomas Muller will see off competition from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting to start as Bayern's striker against Leipzig, saying he is comfortable using the 33-year-old in a variety of positions.

"Thomas had an injury where he couldn't play as much in the first part of the season. Thomas is an extremely important player for me, I'm always exchanging with him," Nagelsmann said.

"He's aware that Choupo-Moting is doing very well, but he's also intelligent enough to know that he is world-class in several positions.

"It's important that all the players are in top condition and that we see that on Friday. The same goes for Thomas, he's very flexible. He likes to play in attacking midfield but can play in different areas, so he's going to be important for Bayern going forward. 

"I've already decided on six positions out of 11. I won't reveal whether Choupo-Moting is among the six. I'll sleep on it for two more nights."

Pep Guardiola quipped he has "never been relaxed" as his Manchester City side attempt to chase down Premier League leaders Arsenal.

City lost 2-1 in the Manchester derby on Saturday, paving the way for Arsenal to take an eight-point lead at the summit of the table following the Gunners' win over Tottenham.

Spurs are next up for City, who will be in third by the time Thursday's match at the Etihad Stadium takes place, should Manchester United beat Crystal Palace.

Asked if being the chaser, rather than the leader, meant City could be more relaxed, Guardiola, who celebrated his 52nd birthday on Wednesday, scoffed at the suggestion.

"Relaxed? I have never been relaxed, even if eight points in front," he said. "Before and during a game, I've never been relaxed."

Indeed, Guardiola explained he would rather be the team looking to preserve an advantage in the table than the one having to close ground.

"It's better, you can drop points and still be [ahead]. When you are behind you cannot drop points," City's manager added.

"The pressure is the next game. We're not able to think about big expectations, just win the next game. At the end the competition will dictate. If [Arsenal] are in front, they deserve it.

"Many games to play, it's how we come back. The next game is the only important thing. Win the next game, after we will see what happens.

"We have been in this position many times in the past, many times. It's not the first time we are there."

Guardiola said after the derby defeat that City must find a way to get Erling Haaland, who has netted 21 times in the league this season, more involved in their all-round play.

He refuted the idea that City are struggling to fully adapt to Haaland, however.

"We have played really good with him, so it's not about that," he said. "To create more chances, we have to provide more to him and the other strikers.

"Our fluidity has not been as good as usual. You have to be better to create chances, to open up the defensive lines. We've struggled in the last two games."

City have lost four of their last five Premier League games against Tottenham (W1), as many as they had in their previous 19 against them (W12 D3), while they have also failed to win either of their last two top-flight matches at home, losing to Brentford and drawing against struggling Everton.

Guardiola has been boosted by the return of John Stones and Ruben Dias, with the defenders available for selection.

City were on the end of a contentious decision in Saturday's loss at Old Trafford, with Bruno Fernandes' equaliser allowed to stand despite Marcus Rashford having been in an offside position and seemingly interfering with play.

Guardiola has already put it behind him, however, saying: "It's always in the past, it's not going to change anything now.

"The focus is on Tottenham, that was my message to the team two minutes after [the United game].

"We have to improve our game, control what we can control. This is what big teams have to do. It's [in] the past."

Real Madrid are "at the beginning of a new cycle", according to Carlo Ancelotti, who is confident Los Blancos' young players can step up to halt their difficult run of post-World Cup form. 

Madrid were heavily criticised for their performance in Sunday's Supercopa de Espana final defeat against Barcelona, with young midfielders Gavi and Pedri impressing in a deserved 3-1 win for the Blaugrana.

Excluding penalty shoot-outs, the European champions have only won two of their five games since the World Cup, only overcoming fourth-tier Cacereno in the Copa del Rey and struggling Real Valladolid in LaLiga.

With some of Madrid's experienced players – including midfielders Toni Kroos and Luka Modric – attracting criticism in recent weeks, Ancelotti says his side are undergoing a transition.

"It is a young team. Everyone talks about Modric, Kroos or [Karim] Benzema, but there were already youngsters and there are more who have arrived this year," Ancelotti said in a press conference ahead of Thursday's Copa del Rey tie against Villarreal. 

"I think we are at the beginning of a cycle. It is a moment of transition from one fantastic era to another. 

"There are some players who have made history at this club and others who are starting their careers. The day Luka, Karim and Toni stop playing, there are others who will take command."

Madrid failed to contain a young Barcelona team in the latest edition of El Clasico, but Ancelotti does not believe Los Blancos are trailing their rivals when it comes to player development.

"I think Madrid takes great care of the academy and we have a lot of youngsters who are progressing a lot," he said. "I'm sure some of them will be key players in the coming years.

"There are some periods in which you do not have those players, and others in which you can rely on them. But I think this generation is going to be very, very good."

Thursday's trip to the Estadio de la Ceramica sees Madrid reunited with a Villarreal team which beat them 2-1 in LaLiga less than two weeks ago, but Ancelotti is determined to use the last-16 tie to turn their form around. 

"It's an opportunity to get out of this difficult moment," Ancelotti said. "The sooner we get out of this rut, the better. It's a difficult game but we consider it a great opportunity.

"It was clear it would be difficult to find our level after the World Cup, but also injuries have reduced us a lot. The injuries to [Aurelien] Tchouameni and [David] Alaba have upset us a lot. 

"We have to hold on and get through this section of the season. Last year, during January we were not very good. But we got out of that difficult dynamic and we're going to do the same this season.

"We must not lose confidence. I have a lot of depth in this squad, with fantastic players. We have to trust them and we are sure that we are going to get better."

Emma Raducanu hopes to face Coco Gauff again with a little more practice under her belt.

Raducanu lost 6-3 7-6 (7-4) to the 18-year-old American on Wednesday, as her Australian Open hopes were dashed.

The 2021 US Open champion failed to take two set points to restore parity at Rod Laver Arena, and ultimately paid the price when Gauff won the tie-break.

Raducanu suffered an ankle injury while in action at the Auckland Open earlier in January, and battled through the pain barrier to play in Melbourne.

"What I had to [do] to be in the draw is a massive effort and achievement," Raducanu said.

"I would say all the chips were against us, and the chances of me playing this tournament were very, very low.

"So I had extremely limited practice time, I think I can say that now I'm not competing anymore.

"It was obviously going to be a push to get me on the court. I think 13 days ago if you would have said 'Hey, you're going to be in the draw and win a round', it would have been a massive effort for sure.

"Saying that, I still think I didn't necessarily play my best [against Gauff]. Although the second set I had chances, I felt like I could have done better myself. But props to her. She's a great, great opponent and great athlete."

It was the first meeting between Raducanu and Gauff, who is ranked 70 places higher than the 20-year-old by the WTA.

Raducanu has slipped down to 77 in the world rankings but is confident she will give Gauff a sterner test the next time they go head-to-head.

"I'd really like to play her again. Maybe with more than five hours of practice under my belt," Raducanu said.

"Yes, she's a great opponent. I think that we're going to be playing each other many times in the future as we're both young and coming. We're going to be the next generation."

Raducanu is now looking forward to building up her fitness and form over the first half of the season.

"I'm just looking forward to putting in the work, and I feel I'm putting in a good system in place," she added.

"I'm feeling good and confident that in six months' time I know it's not going to be the finished product, but hopefully I would have made strides."