Inter Milan were forced to settle for second place in Champions League Group D after a 0-0 draw with leaders Real Sociedad at San Siro.
Last year’s runners-up needed a win to clinch a place among the top seeds heading into the knockout stage but could not break down their impressive Spanish opponents.
A second draw between the sides in the group stage left them locked together with 12 points, but La Real – who conceded just twice in their six matches – topped the pool on goal difference.
The draw did mean both teams kept up their impressive recent runs, with Inter having now gone 14 games without defeat.
Real Sociedad are now unbeaten in eight and have still only lost to Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in all competitions this season.
And it was the visitors who dominated possession early on but, other than a couple of promising runs from Take Kubo, they failed to seriously test the visiting defence.
Inter were happy to hit on the break and they came closest to scoring in a first half of few chances.
The lively Marcus Thuram caused problems, and his surging run created an opening for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, but his goalbound effort was brilliantly cleared by Sociedad defender Hamari Traore.
Federico Dimarco then forced a save out of visiting goalkeeper Alex Remiro just before the interval.
Davide Frattesi fired over 10 minutes into the second half after La Real did not deal with a long throw, before Juan Cuadrado drove narrowly wide.
Simone Inzaghi brought on top-scorer Lautaro Martinez, midfielder Nicolo Barella and Marko Arnautovic with 25 minutes to go as Inter chased a winner which would have clinched top spot.
But they were forced into some defending five minutes later, with former Manchester United defender Matteo Darmian blocking an effort from Arsen Zakharyan before Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer smothered Mikel Oyarzabal’s shot.
Real Sociedad thought they had a penalty with 15 minutes left when Kubo went down in the area but a VAR review led to referee Sandro Scharer overturning his decision.
Sommer had to save from Oyarzabal again to keep Inter’s hopes alive.
Inter poured forward as they looked for a late winner and they created a stoppage-time chance for Martinez. But the Argentina World Cup winner opted to go for goal himself from a tight angle instead of looking for a team-mate and and he could only lash his shot high over the crossbar.
Atletico and Sociedad reach agreement over Le Normand transfer
Atletico Madrid have "reached an agreement" with Real Sociedad over the signing of Robin Le Normand.
The Spain defender, who was part of the side that won Euro 2024, will finalise his move to Atleti "in the coming days" for a fee believed to be in the region of €34.5million.
French-born Le Normand started his career with Brest before spending eight years with Txuri-Urdin, for whom he made 221 senior appearances across all competitions, while winning the 2019-20 Copa del Rey.
The 27-year-old is fresh from international success in Germany, where he played in six of Spain's seven matches, while he also helped La Roja win the Nations League last year.
A statement on Atletico's official website read: "Atletico and Sociedad have reached an agreement for the transfer of Le Normand. The deal will be finalised in the coming days when the player returns from his holiday.
Meanwhile, Sociedad wrote on X: "We'll always remember his dedication and gratitude to the colours that have shaped him into the player he is today. Good luck."
Guardiola 'cannot imagine' Man City's Premier League success without Ederson
Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City's Premier League dominance in recent seasons would not have been possible without Ederson.
The Brazil goalkeeper's future at the Etihad Stadium is uncertain, amid speculation linking him with a move to Saudi Arabia.
Ederson has been an integral figure for City since his arrival from Benfica in 2017, with 112 clean sheets in 250 Premier League appearances under Guardiola, while recording a save percentage of 68.17.
The 30-year-old conceded just 26 goals last season as the Citizens won an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title - and their sixth since he joined the club.
Ederson's distribution has also been crucial to City's success, notably completing 942 of his 1,097 passes last term (85.87%).
"I wish from the bottom of my heart Eddie will continue with us," Guardiola said. "I would love him to stay.
"I cannot imagine our processes succeeding these last seasons without him. He is an important figure in the locker room."
Ederson could feature for City on Saturday when they continue their pre-season tour of the United States against Paulo Fonseca's Milan at the Yankee Stadium.
Ten Hag targets further transfers as Man Utd prioritise squad depth
Erik ten Hag wants more transfer activity ahead of his third season in charge of Manchester United, saying the Red Devils must work to replicate their rivals' strength in depth.
Ten Hag signed a new contract after overseeing United's FA Cup final victory over Manchester City in May, having previously been expected to depart.
Ahead of their first full season under the Jim Ratcliffe regime, United have spent an estimated £88million to acquire forward Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna and centre-back Leny Yoro from Lille.
But after United suffered more injuries causing a player to miss at least one match (45) than any other Premier League team last term, Ten Hag believes more is required.
"I want the squad as strong as possible," Ten Hag told reporters at a press conference ahead of Saturday's friendly versus Arsenal.
"We already made two very good buys, so when everyone is fit we have a team that can beat everyone.
"But also in squad depth, we have to catch up. We know that because when we had injuries, we were vulnerable, and we have to avoid this.
"First, by picking up fewer injuries. And second, our squad has to be that good in depth.
"Of course, we have the quality, but in the depth we have to catch up even more, because this will be a season that is survival of the fittest.
"We proved we can beat the best team. Not just once, we did it twice. Our challenge is to do it consistently, that's what we have to work for."
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