Edin Dzeko has scored six goals in his first seven Inter league appearances, matching Ronaldo's haul from the 1997-98 season, and the striker is brimming with confidence after his fine start.

The 35-year-old came off the bench in the second half of the Nerazzurri's 2-1 Serie A away victory over Sassuolo on Saturday.

Inter were trailing, but Dzeko equalised less than a minute after his introduction and then earned the penalty that Lautaro Martinez converted to win the game.

Dzeko joined Inter in August to replace star striker Romelu Lukaku, who left to join Chelsea, but has more than made up for the Belgian's absence so far.

"Six goals after seven games, I know Ronaldo was the last to do it," Dzeko said after the game. "Inter signed me for this, I know what I can still give and they know it too."

Asked if Inter had already forgotten Lukaku, he added: "We look ahead, we are doing well, I don't think about the past. Let's continue like this."

The veteran forward praised the spirit of his new team to battle back.

Inter have now avoided defeat after going into the break behind in three consecutive Serie A games for the first time in their history.

But Dzeko admitted that the Nerazzurri made things hard for themselves.

"Surely we showed [character] again," Dzeko said. "But we always take the most difficult road by conceding goals.

"You can't always play well, in the end the result is what counts. We were also a little tired."

Inter boss Simone Inzaghi echoed his striker's comments, admitting that fatigue played its part in his side's slow start and praising the impact of Dzeko and his fellow substitutes in turning the game around.

"Sassuolo did better than us in the first half," Inzaghi said. "In the second half, even before the changes, I saw a different team.

"Playing every three days, I need to give the team a boost, because I saw so many players tired. After the seventh game in 20 days with little training, I knew [the substitutes] would help me and they were decisive.

"I knew Dzeko as an opponent, I was struck by his availability and how he trains, he never backs down. 

"I'm happy with how the team can suffer. We always stay in the game because I found a group with a great spirit. The last two games were technically not as good as the others but now we will try to recover."

Gerard Pique accepts Barcelona were second best in their defeat to Atletico Madrid and says his side could have played for three hours and still would not have scored a goal.

The Catalan giants fell to a second straight defeat in all competitions – and their first in LaLiga since May – as they went down 2-0 to a Luis Suarez-inspired Atletico on Saturday.

Barca had two shots on target over the 90 minutes at Wanda Metropolitano, only one of which seriously troubled Jan Oblak as he kept out Philippe Coutinho's attempt.

Memphis Depay, who has had the joint-most shots on target of any player in LaLiga this term (13, level with Real Madrid's Karim Benzema), struggled up top as he fired over from his only effort.

Atletico were clinical at the other end by comparison, scoring from two of their six shots as Suarez set up Thomas Lemar for the opener and calmly tucked in a second before half-time.

Barca have now shipped five goals without response in their past two games, and Pique, who played a full part in the losses to Benfica and Atleti, recognises his side have multiple issues to work on.

"We started well, but they scored two similar goals from very little," he told Movistar. "It is difficult for us. We are suffering and there are several problems.

"People already know the issues. Even a blind man can see what we lack. But we will recover from this.

"It is not something we have experienced before, but the dressing room is good. We're not getting involved in anything else."

Pique was referring to the ongoing speculation over head coach Ronald Koeman's future, with the Dutchman's status uncertain after 14 months in charge, although he this week received a public vote of confidence from Joan Laporta.

Barca have won just one of their past six matches in all competitions and are ninth in LaLiga having played seven games, five points adrift of leaders Real Madrid.

Asked if he expects Koeman to leave before his side's next game at home to Valencia in two weeks' time, Pique said: "The players don't get involved in that.

"We just listen to what the coach tells us. There is little we can do. That's down to the president and the coach."

Barcelona lack many things right now: a top level coach, a Champions League wage budget, Lionel Messi, of course. But a nose for narrative? That has never been in question.

Luis Suarez's apologetic celebrations at the Wanda Metropolitano on Saturday, as Ronald Koeman checked the charge on his mobile phone, represented merely the latest desperate development for those of a Blaugrana persuasion – all too predictable, all too preventable.

For so long Suarez, who made one and scored one for Atletico Madrid in this 2-0 victory, had been in the Barca ranks, an unwitting spectator for a stretch of their spectacular collapse from European football's shining example to its great crisis club.

Barca at least had rather less say in the departure that kickstarted this decline than in Suarez's.

The beginning of the end, it seemed, came on the night of one of their greatest wins, a stunning 6-1 success against Paris Saint-Germain orchestrated by Neymar. In overturning a hefty first-leg deficit but allowing the Brazil superstar to step out from Messi's shadow, Barca's joy emboldened his desire to be the main man in his own team – the other team, to be precise.

Of course, Neymar left, and Barca, rather than rallying from behind, twice in the next two seasons built big European leads of their own – at home to Roma and Liverpool – only to remarkably let both bring about return-leg remontadas.

The Blaugrana, seemingly without a thought for their finances, responded to the Liverpool reverse with their third nine-figure signing in three years, as Antoine Griezmann followed Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele to Camp Nou and followed both in underwhelming.

By the time their next Champions League campaign concluded in typically farcical fashion, all three were on the bench – Griezmann and Dembele for Barca, Coutinho for opponents Bayern Munich. On came Coutinho, still on loan from Barca, to score twice in 15 minutes against his parent club. Since returning to Catalonia, he has scored three times in 1,041 minutes, missing their best chance on Saturday.

Bayern's 8-2 win prompted Quique Setien's sacking and Koeman's appointment, which surprisingly then spelled the end for Suarez. "The coach did not count on me," the striker said as he joined Atletico. "I expected it, it had already been said before he told me."

From an eight-goal humiliation, a club of Barca's size should only be able to head in one direction, back on the ascent. But Suarez's departure deepened the damage. An unsettled Messi allowed his contract to run down and, in a manner that only Barca could manage, had to leave even once he changed his mind.

Four years of bad decisions led Barca to this point and Suarez, starting in the Atleti attack, was never likely to be one for sympathy. With neither a coherent plan nor an individual of era-defining talent to fall back on, Koeman's side were ill-equipped to deal with a man he had deemed surplus to requirements.

Twice Atleti pulled the Barca back line apart, Koeman phoning in from the stands due to a touchline ban but mirroring the gesticulations of Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Memphis Depay as the visitors failed to get close to Suarez.

A drop of the shoulder from Joao Felix for the first brought him inside from the left to find his strike partner, whose first-time pass around the corner set Thomas Lemar clear to finish high into the net.

The same trio combined for number two, Lemar playing a patient one-two with Joao Felix down the same left flank and then lofting an inch-perfect pass over last defender Pique for Suarez to control, compose himself and steer past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

"The opponent in front of us is special, but my work must be dedicated 100 per cent to Atletico," Suarez told Movistar afterwards – the Atleti goal never truly troubled as they earned a third straight LaLiga clean sheet against Barca for the first time ever.

By full-time, Suarez had been able to remove the wide grin from his face long enough to console his former team-mates, having moments earlier been hopping with glee on the Atleti bench.

He was replaced with 18 minutes remaining but surely would have added to his tally had he stayed on the pitch. Instead, Atleti's final big opportunity fell to Griezmann, back on the bench in a big Barcelona game, this time playing the Coutinho role for the opposition. Rather than ruthlessly finish like either of the ex-Liverpool men when faced with the chance to punish the club he used to call home, Griezmann went for a pass, which he comically misplaced. With a future obligation in his loan switch meaning he will not return to Camp Nou like Coutinho, the France international need not have been so generous.

Despite sharing more than seven years between these two teams, Griezmann has somehow never scored in this fixture – featuring in every edition in that time – and never won LaLiga. Atleti had gone 20 without a win against Barca before last season's meeting, in which Griezmann started for the Catalans.

An underwhelming start to his second Atleti career saw him dropped for this game, setting the stage for Joao Felix to excel, contesting 10 duels, winning four fouls and playing a key role in both goals. Griezmann is an expensive substitute; Barca's €97million salary cap could not even fit him in the first team.

Nor, it seems, can they afford to sack Koeman, out of his depth but determined to stick around. His future, Joan Laporta said, was safe regardless of this result.

Surely only that financial factor will prevent Suarez from seeing off the coach that ended his Barca stay. Scoring against the 31st of 31 LaLiga opponents, the forward gave it a good go, at least.

Reigning champion Jannik Sinner is through to the Sofia Open final following a straight-sets victory over Filip Krajinovic on Saturday.

The top seed is targeting his third ATP title of the season, having already triumphed in Melbourne and Washington.

And the Italian is yet to drop a set in the Bulgarian capital as he boosted his bid to reach next month’s ATP Finals with a 6-3 7-5 success.

Breaks were exchanged in the opening set before Sinner edged his nose in front, while he recovered from 5-2 down in the second by reeling off five successive games to prevail.

"It was a very tough match against [Krajinovic]," Sinner said. "We practise at times together, so we know each other's games a little.

"There was a chance to go to a tie-break, which I luckily avoided. I am happy to be in the final here again."

His opponent in the final will be second seed Gael Monfils, who also advanced in straight sets after defeating Marcos Giron 7-5 6-0.

Though 4-2 down in the opening set, the world number 20 won 11 of the next 12 games against the American, who was appearing in his first tour-level semi-final having defeated Alex de Minaur along the way.

The Frenchman's progression means he has now reached at least one ATP final in each of the last 17 years; a tally only eclipsed by Rafael Nadal (18).

"I am very happy as I was very solid - it was a very physical match with lots of long rallies," said Monfils, who also reached the semi-finals in Metz last week.

"I felt in his rhythm he was crushing the ball, so I wanted to change the speed a little and come to the net a little and step in. I think that was key for me."

Luis Suarez scored one and assisted another to earn Atletico Madrid a 2-0 win over Barcelona that heaps even more pressure on Blaugrana boss Ronald Koeman.

The Dutchman's job has been repeatedly called into question following a poor run of form, with the result at Wanda Metropolitano making it one win in Barca's last six games.

Barca could have lifted some of the weight off Koeman's shoulders on Saturday, but Suarez set up Thomas Lemar for the opener and then fired in a second to put Atleti in control at half-time.

That is how the scoreline stayed as Diego Simeone's men inflicted a first league defeat of the season on their opponents to move level on points with Real Madrid at the summit.

Koeman was watching from the stands as he serves the second of a two-game touchline ban and saw his side fall behind to a well-worked Atleti goal with 23 minutes played.

Suarez was picked out by Joao Felix and then played a first-time pass into the path of Lemar for the France international to thump past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Former Barca man Suarez curled wide with only Ter Stegen to beat soon after, but he made amends by picking his spot when played in by Lemar at the end of a swift counter.

Philippe Coutinho, having earlier volleyed narrowly wide, wasted a glorious chance to pull one back when failing to get the better of Jan Oblak with an hour on the clock.

Joao Felix and Barca substitute Ansu Fati exchanged shots on target at either end in latter stages but no further goals arrived in the Spanish capital, potentially bringing down the curtain on Koeman's short-lived tenure.

Inter came back from behind to beat Sassuolo 2-1 thanks to second-half goals from Edin Dzeko and Lautaro Martinez at the Mapei Stadium on Saturday.

Domenico Berardi put his side in front from the penalty spot in the first half after Jeremie Boga was tripped by Milan Skriniar.

However, Dzeko equalised with a second-half header just a minute after being brought on, before winning the penalty that fellow striker Martinez converted to hand the Nerazzurri all three points.

The result lifts Inter into second place just one point behind Serie A leaders Napoli, who have a game in hand.

Nicola Barella flashed a strike past the top-right corner and Gregoire Defrel called Samir Handanovic into action inside the opening seven minutes.

It was Sassuolo who opened the scoring, as Boga was upended by Skriniar after cutting into the box from the left and Berardi emphatically dispatched the penalty, smashing into the bottom-right corner past Handanovic, who guessed the right way but could not get a touch on it.

The two goalkeepers had to be alert after the half-hour mark, with Andrea Consigli parrying Barella's powerful half-volley before Handanovic tipped Berardi's spectacular long-range effort over.

Just before the break, Stefan de Vrij's awful back-pass was pounced on by Defrel, who raced through on goal before going down as Handanovic jumped between him and the ball, but no foul was given, much to the ire of the hosts.

Inter levelled in the 58th minute, as Ivan Perisic's superb cross from deep was headed in by substitute Dzeko, who made an instant impact off the bench.

Nineteen minutes later, Dzeko was involved again as he raced onto a pass into the area and was barged over by Consigli, earning a spot-kick that Martinez coolly tucked into the bottom-right corner.

The Bosnia striker had a couple of chances to add to his tally, but had a goal chalked off for offside after a VAR check and then fired narrowly over.

Massimiliano Allegri claimed Juventus have rediscovered the desire to defend after triumphing 1-0 against local rivals Torino on Saturday.

Juve had to rely on Manuel Locatelli's late strike to secure all three points in the Derby della Mole as the Bianconeri kept their first clean sheet in 21 Serie A games.

Only in 1955 did Juve go longer without a top-flight clean sheet but that run finally ended as Allegri's side secured bragging rights with their fourth consecutive win in all competitions.

The winning streak has put an end to Juve's early-season struggles, at least temporarily, and Allegri pinpointed his team's desire to defend as a primary reason for their resurgence in form.

"After the break for international duty, we discovered the desire to defend when we needed to defend and attack when we needed to attack," Allegri told DAZN post-match.

"It would’ve been disappointing not to win a game after that performance which, after the first half against Milan, I feel was our best of the season."

Juve combined experience with youth at the back as Giorgio Chiellini, who equalled Gaetano Scirea as the player with the fourth-most Serie A appearances for the Bianconeri (377), partnered Matthijs de Ligt.

Allegri stated before the season that players such as De Ligt and Dejan Kulusevski were too young to be key figures, however, the head coach believes his younger players can learn from the experience around them.

"It’s a matter of experience," he continued.

"De Ligt is a good player, despite being 22 years old, and let’s not forget he came from a different type of football, so in Italy he needs to improve his reading of the situations and his aggression in marking.

"He's coming off good performances and can only improve. The same goes for Kulusevski, we have talented young players and are working to improve them individually.

"They have the advantage of playing with team-mates like Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci."

Ruturaj Gaikwad's magnificent maiden Twenty20 century was in vain as Rajasthan Royals boosted their Indian Premier League play-off hopes with a seven-wicket win over leaders Chennai Super Kings.

Gaikwad replaced KL Rahul as the leading run-scorer in the 2021 tournament, hitting a six off the final ball of CSK's innings to finish unbeaten on 101 off 60 balls.

The opener struck five sixes in a sensational knock, with Ravindra Jadeja scoring a rapid 32 not out in the Super Kings' 189-4 at Zayed Cricket Stadium on Saturday.

Rahul Tewatia took 3-39 but it was a tough day for the Royals bowlers, Mustafizur Rahman going for 51 off his wicket-less four overs.

A big run chase was no problem for the Royals, though, as they cruised to a what could be a vital win with 15 balls to spare in an Abu Dhabi run-fest.

Shivam Dube (64no from 42) struck a brilliant maiden IPL half-century after Yashasvi Jaiswal made 50 from just 21 balls, with Josh Hazlewood (0-54) and Sam Curran (0-55) given the treatment.

Victory for the Royals leaves them in sixth place with two games of the regular season to play, behind Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings on net run-rate.

CSK are already assured of a play-off place but are not guaranteed a top-two finish after their four-game winning run came to an end in MS Dhoni's 200th match as an IPL captain.

Gaikwad takes Royals to all parts

The Rajasthan bowlers were taken to all parts by an inspired Gaikwad, who set the tone by hitting the first ball of the match from Akash Singh for four. 

He brought up a seventh IPL half-century off 43 balls and then cut loose, taking 71 off 30 deliveries and reaching three figures by launching Mustafizur for a huge six.

Gaikwad has 19 runs more than Rahul in the battle for the orange cap, having found the rope nine times to go with his five sixes in a breathtaking innings.

Dube and Jaiswal stun CSK

It was the turn of the CSK bowlers to suffer as Jaiswal and Evin Lewis (27 off 12) made a blistering start to the run chase, putting on 77 in 5.2 overs.

Teenager Jaiswal had his half-century off only 19 balls, striking Hazlewood for two sixes in a fifth over that cost 22 runs before falling to KM Asif to leave the Super Kings on 81-2.

Dube then came to the fore in a stand of 89 with captain Sanju Samson (28), bringing up a maiden fifty from 31 deliveries in a knock that included four sixes, and debutant Glenn Phillips hit the winning run to end the Royals' run of three consecutive defeats.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic will remain sidelined for Milan's trip to Atalanta on Sunday, but head coach Stefano Pioli says the ageless striker "could play forever".

The Sweden international has featured only once for Milan since undergoing knee surgery in June and was on the scoresheet in that 2-0 win over Lazio on September 12.

Either side of a two-year spell in MLS with LA Galaxy, Ibrahimovic has not played more than 19 games in a single league campaign in European football since 2016-17 in his first of two seasons with Manchester United.

Prior to his recent injury lay-off, though, he was a key player under Pioli as he registered 25 goals in 37 Serie A games between his second debut for the club on January 6, 2020 and the end of last season.

That is a tally bettered by just five players across that period – Duvan Zapata (27), Luis Muriel (30), Romelu Lukaku (35), Ciro Immobile (37) and Cristiano Ronaldo (50).

Of those, only Muriel (64.1) and Ronaldo (89.9) boast better minutes-per-goal records than Ibrahimovic (114.5).

And with Ibrahimovic turning 40 on the day of Milan's clash with Atalanta at Gewiss Stadium, Pioli does not believe retirement is in sight for the Swede, who has pulled out of his country's upcoming fixtures.

"I don't know how many years Zlatan can still play. But from what I see, his enthusiasm and his desire to train, I could also say that he could play forever," Pioli said at a news conference on Saturday previewing the Atalanta match.

"He may not be 100 per cent for many games but his passion for this sport is incredible. Zlatan does what he likes. If I could give him a gift, I would extend his career as much as possible.

"Zlatan is not available for the game, but he is feeling better and will use the two-week break to recover."

Milan have accrued 16 points from six matches this season and will equal their best start to a Serie A campaign in the three points per win era should they beat Atalanta.

The hosts held champions Inter to a 2-2 draw last week, but they have won just one of their five home league matches against Milan since Gian Piero Gasperini took charge in 2016-17.

Though Pioli is still expecting a tough test on Sunday in an early-season test of his side's Scudetto credentials.

"They are a strong team in every way, tactically, technically and physically. I expect a determined and complete Atalanta," Pioli said.

"I watched their game against Inter and it was spectacular. We have played many games of late but the same is true of our opponents. We will just try to play our best game."

UEFA vice-president Zbigniew Boniek has blasted FIFA's proposal to hold a World Cup every two years, describing the idea as being from "the mentally ill".

The plans to have a major international tournament every year have been met with strong opposition from UEFA, with former Poland international the latest to speak up in criticism of the concept.

Boniek feels that holding tournaments so frequently would congest the football calendar in an unmanageable way.

"Where does this [biennial World Cup proposal] come from? From a home of the mentally ill: it does not exist," Boniek said.

"If you do it, there is no room for other competitions and then you can no longer do the qualifiers, so the national teams must dissolve."

Boniek was also asked about the controversial European Super League concept, which threatened the future of the Champions League.

He added: "Super League? Today it is the Champions League: if they want to make the Super League it is because they do not manage money.

"They want money to manage among themselves and not divide it. 

"Today the money that the Champions League collects is equal to or higher than that of the Super League, the only difference is that it must be divided among the whole world of football. 

"If you make a competition without sporting merit [like the Super League], I don't look at it anymore."

Manuel Locatelli came up with another precious Juventus goal to keep their winning run going in a 1-0 Derby della Mole success at Torino.

After an awful start to the season, the Bianconeri came into this game against their city rivals on the back of three victories in a row in all competitions.

Wednesday's Champions League triumph at home to holders Chelsea provided a particular highlight, but it looked as though Juve's momentum would be checked as the final match before the international break remained goalless heading into the closing stages.

Locatelli – whose first goal for the club proved decisive against Sampdoria in Juve's previous league game – came up with a winner four minutes from time, however, reward for a much-improved second half and enough to take Massimiliano Allegri's men eighth.

Roma captain Lorenzo Pellegrini has signed a new long-term contract with the Serie A club.

The Italy midfielder's future had been the subject of speculation, with his previous deal due to expire at the end of this season and reportedly including a €30million release clause.

Liverpool and Tottenham were among the clubs to be linked with the 25-year-old, who has scored six goals and provided two assists in nine appearances this season.

The Giallorossi on Saturday announced that Pellegrini has agreed a new deal to keep him in the Eternal City until June 30, 2026.

"It's impossible for me to explain this feeling, it's what I've always wanted – to cement this bond between myself and my team and my city," Pellegrini said. "You couldn't imagine a greater feeling than this.

"I feel truly honoured that the ownership, Tiago [Pinto, the general manager] and the coach [Jose Mourinho] have always considered me so important; I will try to repay that faith every day on the pitch by giving 110 per cent and doing everything I can to keep improving."

Pinto said: "From the moment I started work here, a key target was to agree a contract extension with Lorenzo. For that reason, this is a very significant day for me.

"Lorenzo is the perfect example of the core characteristics of our sporting project, not just because of his evident ability as a player but also because, being a Rome-born, Roma fan who was developed within our academy system, he shares a bond with the club that makes him a pillar of what we are building.

"No sporting project can be put in place without a clear and strong identity underpinning it."