Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti believes the current Real Madrid squad may be the best that he has ever coached.

Lucas Vazquez and Federico Valverde scored in the final 15 minutes to propel Los Blancos to a 3-1 victory over Sevilla, which opened up a six-point lead over Barcelona – who face Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

Victory at Santiago Bernabeu was Madrid's ninth in 10 LaLiga matches this season, with Ancelotti's side yet to taste defeat across all competitions – only being held twice overall, against Osasuna and Shakhtar Donetsk.

The valiant late surge left Ancelotti, who has won the Champions League in two separate stints with the club, to declare that the current crop of players may well be the best he has ever overseen in his career.

"I don't know if it's the most reliable of my career, but it's a team I like coaching," he said in the post-match press conference.

"It's a team that doesn't give me problems, that is respectful. And as a quality, it's one of the best I've ever had, if not the best."

Victory against Sevilla came alongside a shuffling of the deck as Ancelotti balanced Madrid's frantic schedule ahead of the World Cup in Qatar next month and he praised the performance of those that were brought in.

"These are resources that we have on the bench. The squad is healthy when those who play less enter the field and do very well," he added.

"We have to endure this stretch of the season, we need to continue suffering and win games."

Valverde picked up a knock in the game while Karim Benzema was not part of the matchday squad after a niggle in training, though the Italian coach was not concerned by either issue.

"Karim is very important for us and he will be more important in the second leg of the season. We're not worried, because it's a very small thing," he said.

"Valverde has a blow to the leg, it bothers him a little, we have to see him. I don't know if he's going to be able to recover. Benzema, I think will be back on Sunday."

Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz enjoyed his "adventure" in qualifying for the United States Grand Prix, though he feels Red Bull are still favourites for Sunday's race.

The Spaniard secured the second pole of his Formula One season after a blistering final lap in Q3 in Austin, climbing over teammate Charles Leclerc, who will serve a 10-place grid penalty and will therefore start 12th in Sunday's race.

Sainz has the advantage on the front row, where eight of the last nine winners have started, but feels Max Verstappen, who will start alongside him, is favourite for the race.

"It was fun, a lot of fun. It was very tricky with the wind, it's so gusty, it's a bit of an adventure with these cars, you don't know how much wind to expect but I managed to put together a good lap without mistakes," he said on the grid after the session.

"It was a long time coming after a few qualifying sessions in the dry but not quite getting there.

"I think Red Bull are still favourites, they have the better race pace. They normally get us in the race, Max does a great job, Red Bull has a very good car, but we're going to do everything we can to stay ahead tomorrow and win the race, which would be an amazing way to start these next four races."

Sainz's teammate Leclerc had hoped to secure a 10th pole of the season, though he would not have started from the front due to the engine penalty, but was pleased for his colleague.

"It is difficult with the wind obviously from lap to lap but overall I did my best," he said.

"The last lap wasn't the best and Carlos did a better job today and deserves to be on pole.

"I will be starting a bit further back because for the penalty but the plan is to come back to the front as quickly as possible."

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 1:34.356
2. Charles Leclerc* (Ferrari) +0.065
3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.092
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.289
5. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.591
6. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.632
7. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.242
8. Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.334
9. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +1.520
10. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) +1.963

* Received a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding quota of power unit elements and will start from 12th

Milan head coach Stefano Pioli conceded Charles De Ketelaere "has to do more", as the Belgian's slow start to life at San Siro continued.

The 21-year-old was a marquee addition in the pre-season transfer window, penning a five-year deal after the Serie A champions splashed a reported €36million to secure his services from Club Brugge.

Expectations were high after 14 goals and nine assists in Belgium's top flight last season, but he is yet to make such an impact in Milan, contributing just a single assist in his first 10 Serie A appearances.

Pioli has made it clear he is expecting more from the Belgian, who is likely to represent his nation at the World Cup.

"De Ketelaere has the quality to make an impact in our offensive play. He has to do more, he knows that too," Pioli told Gazzetta dello Sport.

"He still needs time, but the will of the boy counts. If you play in a top club, like Milan, you absolutely have to accept this competition and you have to do every day better than your teammate to convince the coach."

In further comments made to DAZN after Saturday's 4-1 win over Monza, Pioli expressed his understanding that it is still early days, adding: "Charles has only been here for a few months. I had intended to only play him for 15 minutes this evening, but we had to rush it because of that injury [to Braham Diaz].

"He has the quality, he just needs to believe in himself to really bring that potential out. He’s an intelligent lad, he knows how good he is, but it is a process and will require some time with good and not so good performances to get there."

The co-owner of Red Bull, Dietrich Mateschitz, has died at the age of 78.

The Austrian businessman co-founded the energy drink company in the mid-1980s, and played a key role in the creation of its Formula One team two decades later.

His death was confirmed on Saturday prior to qualifying for the United States Grand Prix, and F1 paid tribute to his "unforgettable contribution.”

A big fan of extreme sports, after founding the Red Bull brand in 1987 he eventually used its success to move into such as surfing, mountain biking and winter sports.

Red Bull also entered the world of football, purchasing teams in Salzburg, Leipzig and New York among others.

Mateschitz's legacy will be most closely associated with motorsport, though, and the success of the Red Bull F1 team.

He came into the sport working with Sauber in the 1990s, before purchasing the Jaguar team prior to rebranding it as Red Bull ahead of the 2005 season.

The team has since achieved 79 pole positions, 89 race wins, six drivers' titles and four constructors' titles.

President and CEO of F1, Stefano Domenicali, said of Mateschitz: "I am deeply saddened by the news that Dietrich Mateschitz, a hugely respected and much-loved member of the Formula One family has passed away.

"He was an incredible visionary entrepreneur and a man who helped to transform our sport and created the Red Bull brand that is known all around the world.

"I will miss him greatly, as will the whole community in Formula One, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and the Red Bull and AlphaTauri teams at this very sad time."

Dallin Watene-Zelezniak scored four tries as New Zealand hammered Jamaica 68-6 to reach the quarter-finals of the Rugby League World Cup.

The rampant Kiwis scored 11 tries in a ruthless display in Hull on Saturday to ensure they will advance from Group C, while Ben Jones-Bishop made history by scoring the Reggae Warriors' first ever World Cup try.

Watene-Zelezniak had a hat-trick in the opening 19 minutes as World Cup debutants Jamaica were outclassed, the winger capitalising on slack defending.

Peta Hiku also touched down on the right 10 minutes in, with Marata Niukore slipping through to add the Kiwis' fifth try before debutant Sebastian Kris and Jeremy Marshall-King got in the act to give them a 34-0 half-time lead, Kieran Foran only able to convert three of the seven first-half scores.

Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Briton Nikora and Marshall-King added further tries as New Zealand continued to dominate.

Clinical wing Watene-Zelezniak touched down again and took his tally to 20 points with a couple of conversions before Brandon Smith helped himself to a double.

There was a special moment in the closing stages, when the experienced Jones-Bishop pounced on a loose ball to score in the 300th game of his career, putting his name in the history books.

Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi has declared he was "never worried" about Lautaro Martinez, after his return to goalscoring form.

The Argentina striker endured a five-match scoreless streak in Serie A before he was on target against Salernitana in midweek, having also found the back of the net in a 3-3 Champions League draw with Barcelona.

He claimed a double to make it four goals in three games and contributed an assist in Inter's dramatic 4-3 victory at Fiorentina on Saturday.

Martinez was the catalyst for Nicolo Barella's opening goal, then weaved his way through the defence to double his side's lead and showing composure from the spot to put Inter 3-2 up in the second half after the Viola had got back on level terms.

Luka Jovic's late strike then looked to have earned the Fiorentina a point, but Henrikh Mkhitaryan's fortune goal five minutes into time added on settled a classic contest.

Martinez's brace took his tally in Serie A this season to six, putting him joint-top in the scoring charts, and Inzaghi said he never had any concerns about the 25-year-old's lack of goals.

"I was not worried about Toro even when he was not scoring, because he always does what he has to do in training and in the game, beyond the goals," he told Gazzetta dello Sport.

The Inter boss also backed Joaquin Correa, who saw his struggles continue with his display in Florence, adding: "Correa was well placed tonight at the service of the team and well positioned with Lautaro.

"He was used to always playing, he must be good at carving out the right moments. He can only grow and will improve a lot."

Inter are also set to be boosted by the return of key players from injury, with Romelu Lukaku, Marcelo Brozovic and Roberto Gagliardini set to be back in contention.

"We can't wait. I have never had them in these games. Lukaku, Brozovic and Gagliardini will return. We need it," Inzaghi said after seeing his side move back above Juventus into seventh place.

Matteo Berrettini is set to tackle Davis Cup team-mate Lorenzo Musetti in an all-Italian Napoli Cup final on Sunday after defying advice to pull out with a foot injury.

Former Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini beat American Mackenzie McDonald 3-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 at the hard court event, while Musetti came through 6-3 6-4 against Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic.

Providing Berrettini is healthy to participate in the final, the tournament looks set to deliver a crowd-pleasing trophy match, but it was touch and go whether the Rome native would get through the McDonald match.

"I don't even know how I did it," Berrettini said. "I wasn't feeling very good. I asked for the physio because my foot was hurting. It happened so many times in my career that I had to fight through so many things, not just thinking about the tennis ball."

He added, quoted by the ATP: "I didn't want to retire. My team told me, 'I think you should stop'. But I tried and I found a way."

Berrettini and Musetti have never gone head-to-head before. Berrettini has won two titles this year, both on grass, in Stuttgart and at London's Queen's Club, while 20-year-old Musetti scooped his maiden ATP title on clay in Hamburg.

At the European Open in Antwerp, Sunday's final will see American Sebastian Korda tackle Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, in a battle of two in-form players.

Korda was runner-up last week in Gijon, while Auger-Aliassime took the title in Florence, adding to his Rotterdam triumph from February.

Korda wrestled his way past a recently resurgent Dominic Thiem, scraping a 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory, before Auger-Aliassime was given a mighty battle by veteran Frenchman Richard Gasquet, winning through in two tight sets, 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-3) his margin.

Like Berrettini and Auger-Aliassime, Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas has a third title of the year in his sights this weekend.

Tsitsipas swept through to the final of the Stockholm Open with a 6-2 6-2 win over Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori, setting up a clash with 19-year-old Danish player Holger Rune.

For Rune, there was no such straightforward path into the final as Alex de Minaur pushed him all the way, with the Australian eventually edged out 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 7-5 after two hours and 50 minutes.

Carlo Ancelotti's late substitutions paid off as Real Madrid secured a 3-1 LaLiga win over Sevilla on Saturday.

It had initially been a tale of two former Tottenham players as Luka Modric gave Madrid a quick lead on a wet night at the Santiago Bernabeu, before Erik Lamela equalised early in the second half.

Ancelotti's changes made all the difference though, as Lucas Vazquez restored the champions’ advantage just after coming on, with fellow substitute Marco Asensio involved in the build-up, before he also laid on an assist for Federico Valverde to seal victory.

The champions showed they could cope without Karim Benzema, who paraded his Ballon d’Or trophy on the pitch but was only a spectator due to muscular fatigue, as they moved six points clear of Barcelona at the top of the table.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored a freak last-gasp goal to snatch a 4-3 victory for Inter over Fiorentina in a Serie A thriller at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

A frantic first half saw Inter race into a two-goal lead with only 15 minutes on the clock, Nicolo Barella opening the scoring and Martinez doubling the lead, but Arthur Cabral's penalty gave the Viola hope.

Jonathan Ikone curled home an equaliser on the hour mark before Martinez doubled his tally from the penalty spot, but Luka Jovic appeared to have snatched a point with time running out.

The drama was not over, however, as substitute Lorenzo Venuti saw his attempted clearance hit Mkhitaryan on the shin and bobble into the net in one stunning final twist.

Manchester United scrambled a draw at Chelsea without Cristiano Ronaldo as Casemiro's late heroics saved the day for Erik ten Hag.

That was the climax to a four-game Premier League programme on Saturday, and it was one that saw Liverpool slip up at their bogey ground, Manchester City go past 600 Premier League goals in the Pep Guardiola era, and Everton finally find some scoring form at Goodison Park.

City have closed the gap on leaders Arsenal to one point, ahead of the Gunners' trip to Southampton on Sunday.

Here, Stats Perform picks out the best facts from the day's Premier League action.

Chelsea 1-1 Manchester United: Casemiro saves the day for Red Devils

Jorginho's 87th-minute penalty looked set to be the winner, but Casemiro had other ideas, heading home to earn a point for United in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

Only Arsenal (12) and Chelsea (9) have had more different Brazilians score a Premier League goal for them than United, after Casemiro became the eighth on their list. The goal, time at 93:28, was United's latest equaliser in a league game since Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored at the death in April 2017 against Everton (93:41).

Jorginho has now scored 19 of his 22 penalties in the Premier League for Chelsea, with only Frank Lampard having netted more spot-kicks for the Blues in the competition (41).

Setting aside the late drama, the outcome should come as little surprise. No Premier League fixture has been drawn as often as Chelsea against United (26 draws). Seven of the past nine such meetings have finished level now, including each of the past five.

Chelsea are now winless in their past 10 Premier League games against United (D7 L3) – only against Blackburn Rovers (12 games between 1992 and 1998) and Arsenal (19 between 1995 and 2005) have they ever had a longer winless run in the competition.

Raheem Sterling lasted 79 minutes before being replaced. He has now faced United 24 times in all competitions in his professional career, more than any other opponent, but has never scored past them, despite attempting 38 shots across those games (15 on target).

Nottingham Forest 1-0 Liverpool: Klopp rattled by City Ground slip-up

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp picked fault with his team's finishing after this painful defeat, pointing to misses by Roberto Firmino and Virgil van Dijk, but this was just the latest in a line of disappointments in Nottingham for the Anfield giants.

Liverpool have never won in six Premier League away games against Forest (D3 L3), making the City Ground the only stadium where the Reds have played more than once in the competition and never won.

Taking in results from the pre-Premier League era, Liverpool have failed to win on any of their past 13 league trips to Forest (D7 L6).

This was their first visit on league duty since 1999, with a once-fierce rivalry having been on hold during Forest's time outside the top flight. The outcome gave Forest a first home success in the competition over Liverpool since a 1-0 victory in March 1996.

Liverpool have cause for concern: they have failed to win any of their first five away games in a Premier League season for the first time since 2006-07 under Rafael Benitez, and they have three league defeats in 2022-23 already, one more than in the whole of the 2021-22 campaign.

Match-winner Taiwo Awoniyi became the first Forest player to score in each of his first three Premier League starts at the City Ground, lifting Steve Cooper's team off the foot of the table.

Manchester City 3-1 Brighton and Hove Albion: Haaland matches Aguero, De Bruyne goes level with Silva

Erling Haaland has gone off hat-tricks, but doubles will do fine for now. With two goals against Brighton, he became the first City player to score in seven consecutive home games in all competitions since Sergio Aguero in February 2018. The Norwegian has 15 goals in those seven matches. His second goal was City's 600th in the Premier League since Guardiola took charge for the 2016-17 season.

Kevin De Bruyne was no bystander in this victory, putting the seal on the success with a fine second-half strike after Leandro Trossard closed the gap. De Bruyne has been directly involved in 153 Premier League goals for City (59 goals, 94 assists), with Saturday's effort putting him level with David Silva's goal involvements tally for the club (60 goals, 93 assists) and behind only Aguero (231 – 184 goals, 47 assists).

City have won 10 consecutive Premier League games at the Etihad Stadium, including all six this season. This is the fifth time they have begun a Premier League campaign by winning their opening six home matches (also 2007-08, 2011-12, 2013-14 and 2018-19).

While City thrive, Brighton are fading. Roberto De Zerbi has become the fourth manager/head coach to fail to win any of his first five league games with the club, after Barry Lloyd (first 12), Don Welsh (first 8) and George Curtis (first 5).

The Seagulls remain winless away to City in all 13 league visits in their history (D2 L11), losing their last nine.

Everton 3-0 Crystal Palace: Toffees end slide, pass goals milestone

After consecutive losses to Manchester United, Tottenham and Newcastle United, Everton got back on track thanks to goals from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anthony Gordon and substitute Dwight McNeil.

Calvert-Lewin's opener was Everton's 1,500th goal in the Premier League, making the Toffees the seventh side to reach that total and the first since Manchester City in January 2021.

It was raining goals by recent Everton standards, with Frank Lampard's team having only managed three goals in total across their five previous Premier League games this season.

Graham Potter accepted Manchester United deserved their late equaliser in Saturday's 1-1 draw as Chelsea did not do enough to take all three points.

Casemiro's 94th-minute header – United's latest equaliser in the Premier League since Zlatan Ibrahimovic struck against Everton in April 2017 – cancelled out Jorginho's 87th-minute penalty at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea were second best for most of the first half, but Potter's decision to bring on Mateo Kovacic for Marc Cucurella and switch to a back four before the break helped stem the flow.

While fourth-placed Chelsea did improve and finished with an expected goals (xG) value of 1.07, compared to 0.85 for United, Potter did not feel hard done after a draw that kept his side a point ahead of the Red Devils.

"I can't stand here and say we deserved to win. The two teams had a go and a point is about right," the Blues head coach told BBC Sport. "It wasn't from a lack of trying – the boys gave everything. 

"When you score as late as you do there's a feeling you've dropped points but over the course of the game a point is about right.

"There are lots of positives in terms of the amount of effort the boys put into the game. United were better than us for the first 30 minutes and we had to respond and I felt we did.

"When we scored, because of how hard fought it has been it is hard to control things going into the box. We have to accept the point and dust ourselves down to go again."

Chelsea have now played out five successive stalemates with United in what is the most drawn fixture in Premier League history (26 in total).

Kepa Arrizabalaga fell just short of keeping a sixth straight clean sheet, and what would have been a fourth in a row in the league for Chelsea for the first time since March 2021.

The Spain international got a hand to Casemiro's header but the ball came back off the frame of the goal and landed over the goal-line.

"Kepa was a bit unlucky but it's only just gone in and the first goal we have conceded in a while. We have to take the positives," Potter added. 

"I thought we could've attacked a bit better at times. We had chances, they had chances, so a point is about right."

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag could not provide any positive updates on the injury suffered by Raphael Varane in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Chelsea.

Varane had impressed at Stamford Bridge but was forced off in the second half after overextending himself while trying to cut out a pass to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

The France international clearly looked distressed as he left the pitch, pulling his jersey up above his eyes as if trying to hide tears.

Any serious injury suffered by Varane at this point would put the defender's World Cup participation in doubt at the very least, and probably rule him out entirely.

Ten Hag acknowledged Varane's initial reaction may have provided an indication of the severity, but it was too early to be sure.

Asked if there was an update on Varane's condition, Ten Hag told Sky Sports: "Nothing, actually.

"I know he's injured otherwise he'd not be coming off, but we have to wait 24 hours for the diagnosis and then we'll know more."

When pressed for more information regarding Varane's emotional reaction, Ten Hag added: "It's not possible [to know the extent of the injury].

"He feels [emotional], and that gives a certain perspective, but we don't know. You have to wait a minimum of 24 hours, maybe even more when it's that injury."

Cristiano Ronaldo missed the game after he was dropped as a consequence of refusing to come on as a substitute against Tottenham on Wednesday.

United were somewhat wasteful in the first half, with Marcus Rashford and Antony missing a presentable chance each, and Ten Hag acknowledged the Red Devils missed having Ronaldo as an option, with their late equaliser coming via a Casemiro header.

"As always, he can score a goal," Ten Hag said. "He's valuable for us and we need him, it's clear, and I think you see it also in this game. He can finish off, it's obvious."

But Ten Hag would not say any more on the subject of Ronaldo when asked if he was confident of resolving the matter to everyone's satisfaction, instead preferring to concentrate on Saturday's performance.

"I think I've said enough about the situation," the Dutchman said. "Let's focus on the game. It was a good game from my team and I have to really compliment my team for this.

"If you can deliver this after four games in 10 days, if you then dictate this first half and in the second half you are well organised and then fight back, I think that has to be the focus."

Julian Nagelsmann insisted Bayern Munich have not changed anything about their approach in recent weeks – they have just started being more ruthless in front of goal.

Bayern strolled to a 2-0 win at Hoffenheim on Saturday thanks to first-half goals from Jamal Musiala and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting.

The defending Bundesliga champions moved to within a point of surprise leaders Union Berlin, who travel to bottom side Bochum on Sunday.

Bayern's need to catch up to Union is a result of a slow start to the campaign that saw Nagelsmann's side go four games without a victory at one point, though they have won three of their last four since, with the dramatic 2-2 draw at Borussia Dortmund the only discrepancy.

The loss of Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona at the end of last season and the lack of a like-for-like replacement led to concerns Bayern would need to adapt to a new way of playing.

Following the win at his former club Hoffenheim, Nagelsmann said nothing much has changed, his players are just finishing their chances with more regularity.

"I think we already had plenty of good games beforehand, we just didn't use our chances," he said at a post-match press conference. "There were games like against Stuttgart [2-2 home draw] where we should have been up three or four nil but ended up drawing. Similar against Dortmund as well.

"In general we didn't change too much, neither did the players, they were already working hard... As I've said already, the players want to improve as well and have a very high expectation of themselves.

"We didn't train differently, maybe a little more analysis, and then just [started] winning. At Bayern, you always need to win, then everything is great."

The Bayern head coach also had positive news regarding Leroy Sane, who sustained a muscle injury in last week's win against Freiburg, suggesting the Germany international will be back in training ahead of the World Cup next month.

"It's difficult to predict [how long he will be out for] but the fact he's already back on his feet is great," he said. "We don't really have much experience with him [in recovering from this type of injury] because he has not really had muscle problems... It's not the biggest of injuries.

"He could be back in two-and-a-half or three weeks, and he can certainly be fit and in a good rhythm prior to the World Cup."