Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane praised his much-changed side after they coasted to a 7-1 Copa del Rey victory over Cultural Leonesa.
Zidane left most of his big-hitters in Madrid but it made no difference as the third-tier leaders were taken apart.
Marco Asensio, Alvaro Morata, Nacho Fernandez and Mariano were all on target – the first two bagging braces – with home defender Gianni Zuiverloon also putting through his own net.
Zidane said: “We took the game seriously and the difference is normal.
“So it was important to start well and we did that as planned… I am happy with the game in general.”
FA inquiry into West Ham violence
England’s FA has announced an inquiry into the violence that marred Wednesday night’s League Cup tie between West Ham United and Chelsea at London Stadium.
In scenes that were a throwback to the hooliganism that blighted English football at the end of the last century, bottles and coins were thrown, seats ripped up and stewards struggled to control rival fans seeking to confront each other.
There was also violence outside the stadium where riot police intervened as supporters clashed on their way back to the London Underground.
More woes for debt-laden Dnipro
Dnipro FC have been hit by a six-point deduction in the Ukrainian Premier League for failing to clear their debts with former coach Juande Ramos and his assistants, officials said.
The penalty means Dnipro dropped one place to 11th in the league standings, and now have only four points.
Dnipro FC have struggled with mounting debts since being beaten 3-2 by Sevilla in the 2015 Europa League final and were subsequently banned from European competition for one season by UEFA for breaching financial regulations.
Malmo sweep to Swedish title
Malmo FF swept to their third Swedish title in four years by thrashing already-relegated Falkenberg 3-0 late Wednesday as nearest rivals IFK Norrkoping slumped to a 2-1 defeat away to Elfsborg.
Thousands of Malmo fans travelled 175 kilometres up the coast to witness the victory which puts their side on 63 points with two games remaining.
They are seven points ahead of 2015 champions Norrkoping, who needed at least a point to keep their title hopes alive.
The title is Malmo’s 19th since the club was founded in 1910, one more than bitter rivals IFK Gothenburg.
Florenzi suffers torn knee ligament
Roma midfielder Alessandro Florenzi is likely to be sidelined for several months after his club said yesterday that he had torn a ligament in his left knee.
Roma, second in Serie A, said in a statement that the 25-year-old had ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament during the second half of Wednesday’s 3-1 Serie A win at Sassuolo.
The Italy international will undergo surgery, the club said.
Florenzi has won 24 caps for Italy and started in four of their five games at Euro 2016 where they reached the quarter-finals.
Mourinho charged with misconduct
Jose Mourinho has been charged with misconduct in the wake of his comments about referee Anthony Taylor before Manchester United’s goalless draw with Liverpool last week.
United manager Mourinho said it would be “difficult” for Taylor, who is from the Greater Manchester area, to have “a very good performance” after being put in charge of the league game between two fierce rivals.
The FA had earlier asked Mourinho to explain comments he made about the match referee. FA rules prohibit managers and players from making comments about officials which could be viewed as intimidatory or influential before games.
Outsiders set for DFB-Pokal QFs
There will be at least two lower-league sides in the quarter-finals of the DFB-Pokal after the draw for the last 16 set up some intriguing all-Bundesliga encounters.
Lowest-ranked team Astoria Walldorf from the fourth division, who eliminated Darmstadt on Wednesday, will host second-division Arminia Bielefeld, while third-division Sportfreunde Lotte’s reward for beating Bayer Leverkusen is a home game against 1860 Munich.
The winners of the last two editions will meet in Munich with holders Bayern welcoming Wolfsburg to the Allianz Arena, while last season’s beaten finalists Borussia Dortmund host the team they beat in the semi-finals last season, Hertha Berlin.
The fixtures will take place on February 7/8.