Football

United eased past Swansea 3-1 on Sunday to end a four-match winless streak in the Premier League.

Mourinho was forced to use a make-shift defence for the trip to Liberty Stadium, with duo Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw late withdrawals, while Daley Blind was only fit enough for the bench.

Ashley Young, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo and Matteo Darmian completed the back four, and Mourinho had some words for players who deemed themselves unfit on the weekend.

The South American trident made their mark just four minutes into a clash Luis Enrique's side would eventually lose 3-1 to old rivals Real Madrid, Suarez - making his Barca debut following a four-month ban picked up for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini during the 2014 World Cup - teeing up Neymar to open the scoring at Santiago Bernabeu.

Two years later, MSN are, without a shadow of a doubt, the most potent attacking force in world football.

With the help of Opta, we pick out some of the key numbers from the past two years of MSN.

 Neymar finished third behind the superstar duo last year as Barcelona team-mate Messi collected the prestigious award for the fifth time in his career.

Ronaldo is favourite to usurp the Argentine and collect his fourth gong after firing Real Madrid to Champions League glory before serving as Portugal captain during his country's triumphant Euro 2016 campaign.

United are third in Group A, behind Fenerbahce and Feyenoord, following a tight victory for Jose Mourinho's men, with captain Wayne Rooney again left on the bench.

Ibrahimovic scored for his seventh different club in European competition, but the veteran striker thinks United found it difficult to create space against a determined Ukrainian outfit.

"It was not an easy game," Ibrahimovic told BT Sport. "We played good and created some chances but it was a difficult game.

The Bundesliga side went 1-0 up before the break via Thorgan Hazard as Barca missed a number of chances at Borussia-Park.

Arda Turan restored parity after the interval, though, before Gerard Pique netted the winner with 17 minutes left.

"We dominated the first half and created several chances," Luis Enrique said at a news conference.

"We didn't carve out as many opportunities after half-time, but overall it was a deserved win.

 Rooney's displays for United have been criticised after Jose Mourinho's men went on a three-match losing run, ended with a victory over Northampton Town.

Ranieri was full of praise for the England international ahead of the Premier League meeting between the clubs at Old Trafford on Saturday.

However, the Italian said he preferred the players he had at his disposal ahead of Rooney.

The Spaniard has been at the centre of transfer talk, having played just 32 minutes in the Premier League under Antonio Conte this season.

Fabregas was given a chance in the EFL Cup on Tuesday and netted a match-winning brace in a 4-2 victory over Leicester City.

The 29-year-old said moving away from Stamford Bridge was never a consideration.

"I never planned to leave Chelsea," Fabregas told Cadena COPE.

"Real Madrid? Maybe they called me or maybe not. But I didn't think to leave Chelsea, not even for a second."

 The full-back has called time on his playing career after 15 seasons at senior level, having been without a club since leaving Indian Super League side Atletico Kolkata in November last year.

"The moment has come to say goodbye. To put a full stop on my career as a professional footballer," he posted via his official Twitter account.

"The moment to hang up my boots and bid farewell to what has been my life since I've been able to think.

"Eight clubs, 351 official games and the odd title, but above all a million experiences that I will never be able to forget.

The superstar forward was brought off during the second half of Barca's 1-1 LaLiga draw against Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou on Wednesday.

Barca later confirmed that the 29-year-old is set to miss around three weeks of action with a groin strain, with Messi having suffered a similar injury during the last international break with Argentina.

And Bauza has hinted at an air of hypocrisy from Barca, claiming the Catalan club are guilty of overusing their star player.

 United faced scrutiny after losing three straight matches before ending the run in a 3-1 EFL Cup win at Northampton Town on Wednesday.

Skipper Rooney has faced particular scrutiny over his form, with many pundits questioning whether he remains worthy of a starting berth in Jose Mourinho's line-up with the 30-year-old scoring just once in five Premier League outings.

But England's record goal scorer is paying little attention and says that the criticism aimed at him is nothing new.