Kyrie Irving bade Brooklyn Nets fans farewell after accompanying him in the fulfilment of a childhood "dream" of playing for the franchise before sealing a trade.

Irving requested a trade from the Nets on Friday, and just two days later he got his wish.

The Dallas Mavericks sent Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round draft pick and two second-rounders in exchange for Irving and Markieff Morris.

Comfortably the most significant trade of the NBA season, Irving's move comes less than two weeks after he was named a starter in what will be his eighth All-Star Game appearance.

Irving joined from the Boston Celtics in 2019 and was a controversial figure during his time in Brooklyn, sitting out much of the 2021-22 season because he refused to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

He had been enjoying a strong bounce-back campaign before requesting a trade, averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game.

And despite not being a universally popular figure, Irving paid tribute to Nets fans – who booed him when his face appeared on a big screen ahead of Saturday's win over the Washington Wizards – ahead of linking up with Luka Doncic at the Mavs.

Irving, who once described himself as being a "struggling Nets fan" while growing up, wrote on social media: "Thank you NetsWorld fans and supporters for the love on and off the court.

"I will forever be grateful I got to live out my dream I had as a kid with y'all. It will always be love from me and my family."

He added: "Pouring Libations for all of the ancestors and the universe. Thank you for the guidance and assistance along the journey. I honor you and I love you. Blessings."

Irving missed the game against the Wizards due to calf soreness, which ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski says has since subsided.

Pending a medical, the Mavericks are preparing for Irving to make his debut for the franchise on Wednesday when they travel to take on the Los Angeles Clippers.

The 28-26 Mavs are sixth in the Western Conference, while the Nets (32-20) are fourth in the East.

Doc Rivers was frustrated by the Philadelphia 76ers' second unit after his side gave up a big lead against the New York Knicks.

The Sixers went down 108-97 in New York on Sunday, despite taking a 21-point lead in the first quarter.

Philadelphia's advantage was cut to just two by halftime, and although they restored a three-point cushion heading into the final quarter, they could not hold out.

Having seen his team surrender a 21-point lead for the second game in a week, coach Rivers bemoaned the play of those he had to call on from the bench.

"I thought our second unit came in and struggled," Rivers told reporters.

"This is the second time that has happened. The same thing happened in Orlando.

"Both times, we were scoring too easy. The second group comes in and thinks this is an offensive game and they didn't see the reason the first group got the lead was because of defense."

Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris and James Harden started and each posted double-doubles for the 76ers, yet Tyrese Maxey was the only substitute to get into double figures for points (12).

In contrast, the Knicks bench accounted for 37 points, with Evan Fournier putting up 17 of them.

Rivers did, however, insist it was "not just a bench loss".

"We've been good at that. Just because one half doesn't work, you don't vacate the unit," he said.

"That's what guys do who lose a lot. So they didn't play well, though honestly, I didn't think that's why we lost the game.

"I hate that the numbers look like it was the bench: it was everybody. This was a team loss and I made that clear.

"We'll sit and look and we'll see minus-24 and plus-34s, our stars were in some of that too when Fournier was making those shots, and so I just thought it was a team loss. I thought it was more mental and emotional than just playing basketball.

"I thought we were just not strong. Mentally, I thought they were the mentally tougher team and they deserve to win."

Embiid, who led the game with 31 points, 14 rebounds and three assists, added: "It's never easy.

"A 20-point lead in the NBA, that's nothing. Any team can come back and that's what they did tonight."

Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown is concerned that his side's strong start has them playing complacently after getting crushed 136-104 by the undermanned New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.

The Pelicans, who were without Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, were 1-10 in their previous 11 games heading into Sunday, but they made light work of a Kings side who were also missing De'Aaron Fox.

It was Sacramento's fourth loss from their past six games, and while they still sit third in the West, the tightly bunched nature of the conference has them in a precarious position.

At 29-23 the Kings are one game ahead of the fourth-placed Los Angeles Clippers (30-26), but are also only three games ahead of the 10th-seeded Utah Jazz (27-27).

A losing streak now could see the Kings plummet in the standings, and with the potential to break 16-season playoff drought, coach Brown wants to see his team figure things out quickly.

"We’ve had a pretty good year so far and we've experienced a lot of highs," he said. "Now we've hit a little adversity.

"I don't know if we're all-in like we talked about at the beginning of the year, and how we've been, because things are flowing and we're winning and in third-place or whatever.

"I'm going to watch and see how we all handle this. It's tough to go through, but it's a great thing for this team to experience. 

"Because if we expect to make the playoffs – and we do expect to advance in the playoffs – we'll have to deal with adversity... and, right now, I don't think we're doing a great job with it."

For the Pelicans, who are now on a two-game winning streak following a dismal 10-game losing streak, second-year wing Trey Murphy III was the key as he scored a season-high 30 points on nine-of-11 shooting, hitting six-of-eight from deep.

The 22-year-old came into the contest having made just 11-of-31 three-point attempts in his past five games, but he said he knew things would balance out if he kept firing.

"Just got to keep shooting, no matter if you're hitting or not," he said. "Eventually, your percentage is going to get to where it's supposed to be. So, I'm just glad my teammates found me and I was able knock down shots."

He added: "B.I. [Ingram] was out, so somebody had to be B.I. – I decided to tap into my B.I. skill-set."

The Dallas Mavericks are preparing for Kyrie Irving to make his debut for the franchise on Wednesday when they travel to take on the Los Angeles Clippers.

Irving requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, and just two days later the controversial superstar got his wish as the Mavericks sent away Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round draft pick and two second-rounders in exchange for Irving and Markieff Morris.

It is easily the biggest trade of the NBA season so far, and it comes less than two weeks after Irving was named a starter in what will be his eighth All-Star Game appearance.

After sitting out most of the 2021-22 season in protest to New York City's vaccination mandate, Irving had been in the midst of a strong bounce back campaign, averaging 27.1 points, 5.3 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting 48.6 per cent from the field, 37.4 per cent from deep and 88.3 per cent from the free throw line.

He had played in 40 of the Nets' first 51 games this season, before also missing their 52nd with what was labelled "calf soreness" the day after he demanded the trade from Brooklyn, when it was also reported he was willing to sit out until a trade was made.

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, that calf soreness has subsided and, pending a physical on Monday, he is expected to suit up in Mavericks colours for the first time on Wednesday.

The Athletic's Shams Charania states the Clippers were one of three other teams serious about trading for Irving – along with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns – and the Clippers will face him the game after they return from their road trip, which wraps up Monday against the now Irving-less Nets.

There are no more scheduled meetings between the Nets and Mavericks for the rest of the campaign, with Dallas having already swept the season series 2-0.

The NBA banned a number of acquaintances of Memphis Grizzlies All-Star Ja Morant from attending the team's home games following a postgame incident that occurred last week. 

According to a report from The Athletic, members of Morant’s group reportedly confronted representatives of the Indiana Pacers' travelling party following the Grizzlies' 112-100 win over Indiana in Memphis on January 29.

The report states that a red laser coming from an SUV that was believed to be carrying Morant was pointed towards Pacers players and coaches as they made their way to the team bus, and witnesses told NBA investigators they feared the laser was attached to a gun.

A league spokesman said a resulting investigation found no evidence of any weapons present, but confirmed to The Athletic that multiple people have been prohibited from attending Grizzlies’ home games following the probe.

"NBA security and league investigators conducted an investigation interviewing numerous eyewitnesses and reviewing video surveillance following allegations made by the Indiana Pacers organisation regarding a postgame incident on January 29," the league said in a statement.

"While we substantiated that a postgame situation arose that was confrontational, based on interviews and other evidence gathered, we could not corroborate that any individual threatened others with a weapon.

"Certain individuals involved in the postgame situation and a related matter during the game that night have been subsequently banned from attending games in the arena. If additional information becomes available related to the postgame situation, the league office will conduct a further review."

Morant, who was named to his second straight All-Star Game earlier this week, tweeted Sunday that his brother was barred from FedEx Forum for a year as a result of the investigation. The standout point guard received no league discipline.

"Did a investigation [and] seen they were cappin,” Morant tweeted. "Still let a article come out to paint this negative image on me and my fam, and banned my brother from home games for a year. Unbelievable."

Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins told reporters prior to Sunday's game against Toronto that the team cooperated fully with the NBA's investigation, though he did not comment on any specific details of the situation.

"That was addressed internally. We're aware of the investigation of the NBA," he said. "They did a full investigation, we were fully compliant with it and I think they came out with a statement saying nothing was corroborated or found.

"That’s what I know and that’s all I’m going to comment on."

The New York Knicks stormed home with a 32-18 final period to defeat the visiting Philadelphia 76ers 108-97 on Sunday,

The Knicks were on the second night of a back-to-back, coming off a disappointing overtime loss at home against the Los Angeles Clippers, but they steadied the ship to avoid a fourth loss from their past five.

Point guard Jalen Brunson finished with 21 points on six-of-16 shooting with seven assists and five rebounds, while All-Star team-mate Julius Randle posted 24 points (eight-of-19), nine rebounds and seven assists.

They were solid, but inefficient, shooting a combined 40 per cent from the field while both finished with a plus/minus figure in the negatives.

What won the game for the Knicks was their production off the bench. Evan Fournier scored a season-high 17 points (six-of-11), Deuce McBride added 14 points (three-of-eight), and the pair combined to shoot eight-of-14 from long range, while both posting a plus/minus of plus 28 or better.

Backup center Isaiah Hartenstein was similarly impactful, snatching an equal season-high 14 rebounds in his fourth consecutive appearance with at least 10 boards.

MVP candidate Joel Embiid was respectable for the 76ers, finishing six-of-16 from the field, but he still produced 31 points and 14 rebounds after shooting 18-of-19 from the free throw line.

With the win, the Knicks improved their record to 29-26, and they now sit just a half-game back from the six seed in the Eastern Conference.

Balanced Raptors overcome Morant-less Grizzlies

With Ja Morant out injured, the Memphis Grizzlies were unable to protect their lead down the stretch, going down 106-103 at home against the Toronto Raptors.

The Grizzlies led by 15 points late in the third quarter, before the Raptors closed the show on a 40-22 run.

Seven of the eight Raptors to play finished with between 10 and 19 points, with Pascal Siakam's 19 points on seven-of-17 shooting leading the scoring, while Scottie Barnes was a menace defensively as he had two steals and two blocks to go with his 16 points and seven rebounds.

Desmond Bane (26 points and four steals) and Jaren Jackson Jr (18 points and four blocks) were the bright spots for the Grizzlies, who at 32-21 are now four-and-a-half games behind the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets.

Cavs starters light up the Pacers

The Cleveland Cavaliers' starting-five shot a blistering 58.7 per cent from the field as they blew out the Indiana Pacers 122-103 on the road.

Donovan Mitchell had 19 points on six-of-18 shooting, but he was the only Cleveland starter to hit less than half his shots as Darius Garland (eight-of-13), Evan Mobley (seven-of-12), Jarrett Allen (nine-of-11) and Isaac Okoro (seven-of-nine) combined to shoot 68.8 per cent.

Newly extended Pacers center Myles Turner had strong production in the losing effort, finishing with 27 points (nine-of-18), 10 rebounds and three blocks.

Justin Rose will resume play on Monday with a two-stroke lead after the final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was halted due to darkness.

It was anticipated that players would not be able to finish their rounds on Sunday after Saturday's play was also called off early, as wind at the Monterey Peninsula Country Club course would not allow balls to sit still on the green.

Players came out early to finish their third round, before teeing off for their final 18 holes around noon.

Rose's third round was his best of the week, taking advantage of the easier Monterey Peninsula course to post a six-under 65 to begin his last round at 12 under.

He kept his momentum going at Pebble Beach Golf Links – the six-time U.S. Open venue which also hosts the final round – as he followed an eagle on the sixth with a birdie on the seventh, reaching the end of his front nine three under, and 15 under overall.

That is when he had to pack up for the day, leading by two strokes over Denny McCarthy (through 15 holes), Brendon Todd (through 12) and Peter Malnati (through nine).

One further back – and three off the lead – are the American trio of Beau Hossler (through 12), Keith Mitchell (through 10) and Brandon Wu (through 10), as well as Canada's Taylor Pendrith, who was one of the early starters and finished with an eight-under 64 for the day's best round.

Patrick Mahomes revealed as no surprise that he wanted to retain star wide receiver Tyreek Hill for this season, but he trusted the plan of Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach.

Hill, 28, was drafted by the Chiefs as a fifth-rounder in 2015, and he is likely on track to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame after becoming one of the most devastating offensive weapons in league history.

He made the Pro Bowl every year from 2016-2022, and this season earned his fourth First Team All-Pro selection after setting career-highs with 119 receptions and 1710 yards with the Miami Dolphins.

Veach said there were warning signs early in free agency that Hill would demand a record-breaking contract for a receiver, and he had to make the painful decision to prioritise the defensive side of the ball instead.

"It became obvious as free agency started, given the way wide receiver contracts were going up, that it was going to be tough to do both [extend Hill and address the defense]," he said. 

The Chiefs knew some tough calls were on the horizon after Mahomes signed his NFL-record 10-year, $450million deal, as his salary jumped from $8m in 2021 to $35m this season.

Hill ended up signing a four-year, $120m deal – and in a salary-capped league, something had to give.

"Everyone knew what the next two or three years would look like and how many players we'd have to potentially cut and how difficult things would be,'' he said. "We would have had a lot of expensive players.

"It's hard to be successful in this league year after year. It's hard to win games year after year. There are going to be moments where we have to step out there and do something uncomfortable. 

"No one wanted to lose Tyreek – he's a great player. But if you're going to do something, trust the process and trust how you do things and don't be afraid to commit to change a year sooner when you have more ability to potentially make those changes work better.''

Veach said his willingness to make such a franchise-defining call is attributed to his belief that the franchise can not waste any seasons with Mahomes at the helm.

"When you have Pat Mahomes, we're wired to go after it every year,'' he said.

Mahomes himself said it was no secret that he wanted to re-sign Hill and keep the band together after winning the Super Bowl in 2020, but he understood all the moving pieces.

"I wanted to keep him, for sure,'' he said. "They had a plan for it, though. 

"They told me the plan and we were going to get these draft picks. We were going to go out there and bring in some free agent receivers, and I think they executed on that.

"We know that to keep having success in this league we have to keep evolving, keep getting better. I always want to be successful this year, but at the same time, I'm here for the long haul. 

"If we're going to have a long time here, I want to have a chance to win Super Bowls every single year.''

The Chiefs' other offensive star, Travis Kelce, said he had concerns after the Hill trade, including how effective the Chiefs might be on offense and what it all might mean for him.

"Yes, that was a question,'' he said. "But once I saw how hard guys were working, paying attention to details, how Pat keeps progressing as a quarterback... Right now, we're in a good routine that we just keep getting better. 

"You could feel that from the day we started from May until now."

Mahomes is in his fifth year as a starter, and after another spectacular season he is the favourite to add a second MVP to his resume, as well as a fourth All-Pro selection, while he prepares for a chance at his second championship.

The NFC emerged victorious to secure the first edition of the NFL's new Pro Bowl Games, defeating the AFC 35-33 in the final flag football contest.

In a new format, the NFL decided to scrap the traditional Pro Bowl game as the injury risk of a real football game led to a mediocre product in recent years, with players only going at half-speed.

Instead, they replaced it with a series of mini-games – including dodgeball, and a best catch contest utilising a trampoline – spread over multiple days.

The two teams competed in four events on Thursday, with the NFC only securing victory in the dodgeball event. For the AFC, Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer's 320-yard bomb won the long drive competition, Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr guided them to victory in the precision passing, and the team combined to win the three-event lightning round.

That gave the AFC the lead heading into Sunday's finale, although the NFC trimmed into the margin when Detroit Lions receiver Amon Ra St. Brown won the best catch contest.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith delivered the winning touchdown pass to Dallas Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb with 12 seconds remaining to take the first of the three flag football games for the NFC, before the AFC won the next to force a decider.

In the second, Bills receiver Stefon Diggs caught the game-winning touchdown, but not before he accidentally threw an earlier interception to his brother, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was the hero in the final game, throwing passing touchdowns to team-mate Justin Jefferson as well as San Francisco 49ers pair George Kittle and Kyle Juszczyk to secure the victory.

NFC players received $84,000 each for taking part and coming away with the win, while AFC players earned $42,000.

The NFC emerged victorious to secure the first edition of the NFL's new Pro Bowl Games, defeating the AFC 35-33 in the final flag football contest.

In a new format, the NFL decided to scrap the traditional Pro Bowl game as the injury risk of a real football game led to a mediocre product in recent years, with players only going at half-speed.

Instead, they replaced it with a series of mini-games – including dodgeball, and a best catch contest utilising a trampoline – spread over multiple days.

The two teams competed in four events on Thursday, with the NFC only securing victory in the dodgeball event. For the AFC, Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer's 320-yard bomb won the long drive competition, Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr guided them to victory in the precision passing, and the team combined to win the three-event lightning round.

That gave the AFC the lead heading into Sunday's finale, although the NFC trimmed into the margin when Detroit Lions receiver Amon Ra St. Brown won the best catch contest.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith delivered the winning touchdown pass to Dallas Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb with 12 seconds remaining to take the first of the three flag football games for the NFC, before the AFC won the next to force a decider.

In the second, Bills receiver Stefon Diggs caught the game-winning touchdown, but not before he accidentally threw an earlier interception to his brother, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was the hero in the final game, throwing passing touchdowns to team-mate Justin Jefferson as well as San Francisco 49ers pair George Kittle and Kyle Juszczyk to secure the victory.

NFC players received $84,000 each for taking part and coming away with the win, while AFC players earned $42,000.

Milan boss Stefano Pioli defended his decision to start with Rafael Leao on the bench after his struggling team went down 1-0 to Inter in Sunday's derby.

Last season's champions sit sixth in Serie A after 21 games, in danger of failing to qualify for next season's Champions League unless they buck up their ideas.

They have lost four games in a row, with losses to Inter in the Supercoppa and Serie A sandwiching a 4-0 drubbing by Lazio and a 5-2 mauling at home by Sassuolo.

It was league duty on Sunday, and Leao was only a substitute, despite being a two-goal hero in September when Milan took the derby spoils 3-2 to keep pace with early bolters Napoli.

While Napoli have kept up their early frantic pace, and now sit 13 points clear of second-placed Inter, Milan have lost all momentum.

Pioli began against Inter with former Liverpool fringe man Divock Origi alongside Olivier Giroud in attack, abandoning the partnership early in the second half when the ineffective Origi was hauled off and Leao made his entrance.

The skilful Portuguese forward almost teed up an equaliser for Giroud, but the French striker's control was awful and the chance was lost, but that moment of fast-paced dribbling excellence highlighted Leao's threat.

"He has enormous potential," said Pioli, "but I chose to play with two centre-forwards who are closer vertically to put Inter's defence in difficulty, even if we didn't succeed.

"I trust a lot in Leao, even if he didn't start from the beginning. The choices I made are the best for what I saw during the week, for what the preparation for the match was and for the positions I wanted to fill."

With the benefit of hindsight, Pioli said he would "do it again" when asked about Leao's omission.

In all, Milan have not won for seven games, and they face Torino on Friday before a Champions League tussle with Tottenham the following Tuesday.

Tottenham's former Inter boss Antonio Conte may be licking his lips at that prospect, with Milan's defending leaving plenty to be desired in recent weeks.

Lautaro Martinez headed in Hakan Calhanoglu's corner for the only goal of the derby, and Pioli accepted his players were found lacking.

"Unfortunately we found ourselves unprepared once again on a dead ball," he said. "Up to that moment, we were working well as a team. We did better in the second half."

Pioli knows the drastic slide in form has left many Milan supporters agog, and he said: "The fans have every right to criticise, the last few performances haven't been up to par."

Yet Pioli still has the support of the dressing room, according to midfielder Rade Krunic.

Krunic told DAZN: "If you lose such an important match there are few positive things. The only thing to take away is the reaction in the second half, where we did better than in the first half.

"We seemed to be doing better in training than today. We believe in Pioli."

Steve Borthwick claims the England team he inherited from Eddie Jones "weren’t good at anything" but says he has seen progress despite defeat to Scotland.

The former Leicester Tigers boss saw his side lose the first game of his tenure in their Six Nations opener, as they were beaten 29-23 at Twickenham.

In a World Cup year, it marked another damning result for England's prospects, with their dismal run during 2022 contributing to the exit of long-term boss Jones.

But now Borthwick, who worked as the Australian's assistant before leaving for Leicester, has given a withering appraisal of the squad left behind by him amid the Scotland post-mortem.

"I've been frank from day one in saying there's a lot of work to do," he told the Guardian. "When I looked at the team in the autumn, when I measured the team and got all the data for the team, we weren't good at anything.

"It was as frank as that. My job is to make sure we get some improvements next week. I have asked the players to play a new way.

"One thing I have got to do here is get the players to believe in themselves, and get the players to bring their strengths to the pitch.

"[I have to] get them to play to the best of themselves, which I don't think we have seen them do for a while. I think you saw an improvement in that regard."

England held a 20-12 lead at one point in London, before a collapse allowed Scotland to sweep to a historic victory against their rivals.

Having brought respected assistant Kevin Sinfield from Leicester to oversee defence, the soft nature of his side's concessions is a sticking point for Borthwick.

With that in mind, however, he felt the team showed spirit to their concessions, adding: "I'd seen a habit with the team of conceding points early and not being able to respond to it.

"We conceded points [against Scotland] and the biggest thing I was looking at was the response. I thought the response was magnificent."

Xavi praised his Barcelona players for remaining patient in their 3-0 victory over Sevilla as the LaLiga leaders moved eight points clear of Real Madrid.

Barca dominated Sunday's contest at Camp Nou before eventually finding the breakthrough via full-back Jordi Alba in the 58th minute.

Gavi added a second 12 minutes later and Raphinha, who assisted that goal, added his name to the scoresheet as Barca made it 10 wins in a row this year.

Sevilla focused almost entirely on defending, managing only three shots in total to Barca's 16, and Xavi is delighted his side were able to break down the visitors.

"This was a day to dare," he told DAZN. "We talked about it at half-time. It's always difficult to attack when the opponent has 11 players behind the ball.

"But we did it very well and I'm very satisfied with this result."

Barca took full advantage of Real Madrid's surprise 1-0 loss at Real Mallorca earlier in the day to extend their lead at the summit as they close in on a first title in four seasons.

"We've gone many games unbeaten and it's important we win like we did today," Xavi said. "Against a low block, we created many chances – that is a big positive.

"Things are working out for us. We're eight points ahead of Madrid, but there is still a lot of the season left."

With a goal and an assist against Sevilla, Raphinha has been involved in more goals (eight – four goals and four assists) than any other LaLiga player in all competitions in 2023.

Xavi hailed the Brazil international's performance and also reserved special praise for Alba, who himself scored and assisted in a single LaLiga game for the fourth time.

"I was already satisfied with Raphinha's performances," Xavi said. "He is good in high-pressure scenarios and has been giving us decisive assists. He's an extraordinary player.

"As for Jordi, he gives us a lot in attack and showed that again today. We knew there would be an opportunity to take advantage of some space that was left."

Alba was recalled to the starting line-up having been made to settle for substitute appearances of late and took full advantage of his opportunity to impress.

"I take advantage of the minutes when I play; when I don't, I dedicate myself to encouraging the youngsters so they know what it means to play for this club," Alba said.

"We are having a very good season, playing well, pressing well and getting our rivals to give us chances. 

"There are eight points on Madrid and, although there is a lot of the league season left, it is a very good distance to have."

Barca's 53 points after 20 LaLiga matches has only been matched or bettered on five previous occasions, including themselves four times.

The only blemish for Xavi's side was captain Sergio Busquets limping off early following a challenge with Youssef En-Nesyri.

Busquets is reported to have sprained his right ankle and is facing two-to-three weeks out, potentially ruling him out of Barca's Europa League tie with Manchester United.

"Hopefully it's nothing serious," Xavi said. "First we'll do tests and then we'll know more."