Erling Haaland doesn't often miss penalties.

Erling Haaland doesn't often hit straight at the goalkeeper when one-on-one.

And Erling Haaland doesn't pass up a third invitation to score.

Having sliced over the crossbar from 12 yards in the first half of Manchester City's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Bayern Munich, and then shot straight at Yann Sommer in the 55th minute, Haaland might have been forgiven for thinking it was not going to be his night on Wednesday.

Yet even when Haaland does, indeed, miss, he still must score. It's as predictable as day turning to night. Death, taxes and Haaland scoring goals. 

It's just what he does, and he did it again – for a 48th time this season – 57 minutes into a thrilling game at Allianz Arena to fully ensure City would not let their 3-0 aggregate lead from the first leg slip.

For much of the first half, Thomas Tuchel's Bayern had run City's defence ragged. Leroy Sane seemed like a man possessed against his former club, but could not find the finishing touch.

Previous incarnations of Pep Guardiola's team might not have had the physicality up top to exploit such a stretched game, but they do now.

Haaland enjoyed, and won, a personal tussle with Dayot Upamecano all game. The Norway international was fist pumping when, in the 18th minute – just after Sane had fired wide at the other end – referee Clement Turpin was brandishing a red card Upamecano's way, with Bayern's centre-back having dragged City's number nine to the ground just outside the box.

A delayed offside flag spared Upamecano, though his luck ran out when, 10 minutes before half-time, Ilkay Gundogan's shot struck his outstretched arm.

Yet again, Upamecano's blushes were spared. Haaland skied his spot-kick, missing a penalty for the first time in his last 16 attempts in all club competitions, since doing so for Borussia Dortmund against Union Berlin in April 2021.

Bayern went into half-time with the scores level, down but not out. They had, in fairness, been the better side; 10 shots to City's four and an open play xG of 0.91 to their visitors' 0.09.

The end-to-end, thrill-a-minute football continued after the break. Kingsley Coman, teed up by Sane, tested Ederson, before the magnificent Jack Grealish slipped in Haaland at the end of a rapid City counter. Sommer, though, was up to the task.

Ederson could only watch as Coman flashed a low cross-shot across the face of goal soon after, but Bayern could only play with fire for so long.

Fifteen seconds later, City were celebrating. Kevin De Bruyne had released Haaland who, after sitting Upamecano down on the turf, slammed home. About time.

Haaland has scored 13 Champions League knockout-stage goals in only 10 such appearances. It was his 12th goal in the competition for City, matching the single-season record for a player of an English cub, level with Ruud van Nistelrooy in the 2002-03 campaign. He is averaging a goal every 66 minutes across all competitions.

Bayern benefitted from a soft handball decision of their own when Sadio Mane's effort deflected up and hit Manuel Akanji's arm. Joshua Kimmich lashed his penalty down the middle, but it was a mere consolation in the grand scheme of a tie that finished 4-1 to City on aggregate.

A Mane miss from close range and Tuchel receiving his marching orders to the stand for dissent capped off the Bavarians' Champions League exit.

Tuchel was brought in to ensure domestic success and progress in Europe. Six games into his tenure, Bayern lead the Bundesliga only on goal difference, while it is City who will face holders Real Madrid in the last four.

That's a rematch of last season's semi-finals, when City dominated in the first leg only to capitulate late on in the second. 

Having been denied by Tuchel in Porto two years ago, City – the third English team to have qualified for the Champions League semi-finals in three successive seasons – have put one ghost to rest already. Now, it's time for another, and with Haaland on board and firing, it could just be their time.

Erling Haaland scored his 48th goal of the season after missing a penalty as Manchester City drew 1-1 at Bayern Munich to cruise into the semi-finals of the Champions League.

Haaland was on target in a f3-0 first-leg victory that put City in control of the quarter-final and he struck again to open the scoring at Allianz Arena on Wednesday.

The prolific striker had missed a spot-kick for the first time in two years in the first half, but he silenced the Bayern faithful after the break.

Joshua Kimmich ended City's 10-match winning run by converting a harshly awarded penalty before Thomas Tuchel was sent off as Pep Guardiola, a former Bayern boss, saw his side seal a 4-1 aggregate win and a last-four tie against holders Real Madrid.

Kingsley Coman was a huge threat down the right as Bayern started with a great tempo and Leroy Sane should have put them in front when he fired wide after racing clear.

There was drama when Dayot Upamecano was shown a red card by referee Clement Turpin for a professional foul on Haaland, but the defender was given a reprieve as the Norway striker was offside.

Upamecano breathed another sigh of relief when Haaland put his spot-kick over the crossbar nine minutes before half-time after the Bayern centre-back was harshly penalised for handball.

The Bavarian giants continued to look dangerous, but City produced a devastating counter-attack to take the lead on the night after Ederson denied Coman from a tight angle.

Kevin De Bruyne was the provider, slipping in Haaland to clinically drill beyond Yann Sommer with his left foot after Upamecano slipped 12 minutes into the second half.

Sadio Mane replaced Sane, the pair who were involved in an altercation after the first leg, before Mathys Tel had a goal ruled out for offside.

Kimmich converted from 12 yards out after Manuel Akanji was unfortunate to have been penalised for handball seven minutes from time, with Tuchel then seeing red for his touchline antics as Bayern crashed out.

A Milan derby awaits in the Champions League semi-finals after Inter made it past Benfica with a 3-3 draw on Wednesday, sealing a 5-3 aggregate victory.

Following Milan's passage to the final four after they eliminated Napoli on Tuesday, Inter just had to see out their quarter-final second leg against the Lisbon side having taken a 2-0 lead into the clash at San Siro.

As he did in the first leg, Nicolo Barella gave Inter the lead with an excellent finish, before Fredrik Aursnes equalised for the visitors with a powerful header before half-time.

Lautaro Martinez put Inter back in front, before substitute Joaquin Correa added another with a fine effort, though late goals from Antonio Silva and Petar Musa meant Roger Schmidt's men at least ended their recent losing run.

Barella put the hosts in front in the 14th minute when the determined midfielder battled his way into the Benfica box after a one-two with Martinez, before cutting onto his left foot and finishing splendidly into the top left corner.

Martinez had a goal ruled out in the 33rd minute after his header at the far post squirmed under Odisseas Vlachodimos, with the Benfica goalkeeper relieved to see a foul given against the Argentine for a push on Gilberto.

From nowhere though, Benfica were level in the game after Rafa Silva's perfect cross from the right allowed Aursnes to send a bullet header past Andre Onana seven minutes before the break.

Inter effectively ended their opponent's hopes when they scored a second in the 65th minute. Federico Dimarco played a one-two on the left with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, before crossing for Martinez to finish into the roof of the net

Correa scored a third for Inter just two minutes after coming off the bench as he cut inside from the left and bent an effort in off the far post.

Antonio Silva headed in for the visitors from an inswinging Alex Grimaldo free-kick before Musa swept in a loose ball to equalise, but the Nerazzurri confirmed they will face their city rivals in the semi-finals.

Erik ten Hag has few concerns about Manchester United defensively and is instead focused on improving their attack as his side head to Sevilla on Thursday.

United have been without a number of key men at the back, including Lisandro Martinez, who will miss the remainder of the season.

Martinez sustained a broken metatarsal in last week's 2-2 draw at home to Sevilla in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final.

Own goals from Tyrell Malacia and Harry Maguire saw United improbably throw away a two-goal lead at Old Trafford, yet Ten Hag is not worried about a repeat.

He is looking to see United make progress in front of goal after a succession of wasteful performances. They have underperformed their xG in seven consecutive Premier League games, falling short by 1.5 in each of their past two outings.

"Our organisation all over the pitch is quite good. We need to do better attacking," Ten Hag explained, adding: "I am confident that we can score goals tomorrow."

The return of Marcus Rashford would aid Ten Hag's cause, with the forward "available" after travelling with the team but set to be the subject of a matchday decision on his fitness.

Impressing at the other end of the pitch, meanwhile, is David de Gea, despite a difficult start to life under Ten Hag.

The goalkeeper's limited ability playing out with his feet caused problems in the early weeks of the season and appeared to indicate he was ill-suited to the manager's tactics.

But De Gea has remained United's number one and leads the Golden Glove race with 14 Premier League clean sheets.

"Stopping goals, that is the main job for a goalkeeper," Ten Hag said.

"Everyone has their own particular style. Nowadays, in possession, it has become more and more important at top levels.

"But at the end of the day it is about stopping goals, shots, crosses, one-on-ones. I think David is a complete goalkeeper."

Massimiliano Allegri wants his Juventus team to show "personality" as they look to defend their first-leg lead away at Sporting CP in the Europa League.

The Bianconeri claimed a 1-0 victory at the Allianz Stadium last week thanks to a Federico Gatti strike as they bid to lift the Europa League for a fourth time, a win that would move them up to second in the all-time rankings behind Sevilla's six.

However, they still have to get past a Sporting side who have already dumped out Premier League leaders Arsenal and are unbeaten in their last six at home in all competitions.

Allegri knows his side will have to show a strong mentality to preserve their slender advantage at the Estadio Jose Alvalade on Thursday, telling Sky Sport Italia: "You need to have personality, speed and calmness.

"The match is long and will give us difficulties, they are an excellent team in terms of organisation.

"The goal is important and not simple, Sporting eliminated Arsenal. We don't think about the first leg but that is a challenge."

Juve will now find out just before their match in Portugal kicks off whether their 15-point deduction in Serie A for financial breaches will stand after the results of the finding were pushed back from Wednesday to Thursday,

Allegri, though, is keen for his players to focus on the big game ahead of them, saying: "We knew that today was an important day, both in terms of the ruling and his outcome, but above all to better prepare for tomorrow's match.

"Once we know about the ruling, we put it aside and we'll think about the match."

While Allegri revealed Federico Chiesa was a doubt for the game, he had positive news on Adrien Rabiot and Wojciech Szczesny, explaining: "Szczesny is fine, he's fine. Rabiot is available, he's done all the training."

Juve suffered a 1-0 league defeat at Sassuolo on Sunday with midfielder Nicolo Fagioli, who was at fault for the winning goal after his poor clearance, left in tears on the bench after being ruthlessly substituted off by Allegri following the mistake.

Full-back Alex Sandro showed solidarity for his 22-year-old team-mate ahead of the Sporting clash, telling reporters: "It's good to cry sometimes. We have to respect Fagioli's and everyone's reaction after victories and defeats.

"Fagioli is young, but he already has experience. He is not the future, but the present of Juve."

Barcelona "can make moves" to sign Lionel Messi, but LaLiga will not alter its regulations to help, even if Javier Tebas is keen to see the superstar forward back in Spain.

Messi, widely considered to be one of the greatest players of all time, left Barca on a free transfer two years ago after financial restrictions prevented the club from giving him a new contract.

There has since been consistent talk of Messi returning from Paris Saint-Germain, with his initial contract in France up at the end of the season.

But Barca's financial situation still has not improved to the extent they could immediately bring their great number 10 back into the fold.

Indeed, LaLiga chief Tebas told the Blaugrana last month they would have to recoup a significant sum in transfer fees and wage cuts before making any signing.

That remains the case, with the league determined not to ease its rules, but Tebas sees a path to Barca signing Messi again.

"As of today, no [Barcelona cannot sign Messi], but there is a lot of time left," Tebas said on Wednesday. "We are waiting for their viability plan [for next season].

"I hope they can make the necessary moves to make space for Messi to come in, but of course we are not going to change any rules for Messi to sign.

"Barca can make moves; they sell players. That's what we hope happens because I am a fan of Messi and I would like Messi to play in our league.

"But we won't change any rules. It is complicated, but I think they have the capacity to do it."

Messi's PSG deal included an option for a further year, while he has also been heavily linked with a move to Inter Miami in MLS.

Pascal Gross has signed an extension to his deal at Brighton and Hove Albion, meaning Seagulls fans can expect their team to keep creating plenty of chances.

The 31-year-old has been at Brighton since arriving from Ingolstadt in 2017, contributing 23 goals and 33 assists in 184 Premier League games for the club.

Since Gross came to England's top-flight in Brighton's first season after promotion from the Championship, only Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne (535) has created more chances than his 388, ahead of Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (381) and Mohamed Salah (361).

Brighton announced on Wednesday that the German midfielder has extended his stay at the Amex Stadium until 2025.

Real Betis legend and former Spain winger Joaquin will retire at the end of the season.

The 41-year-old announced on Wednesday he will call time on a career of incredible longevity when Betis' campaign comes to an end.

Captain Joaquin made his Betis debut 23 years ago and returned to the LaLiga club in 2015 following spells with Valencia, Malaga and Fiorentina.

Only the great Andoni Zubizarreta has made more LaLiga appearances than Joaquin's incredible 615, with the ex-Spain goalkeeper playing 622 times in the Spanish top flight.

Betis have nine games remaining this season, so Joaquin could take that record, although he has started only once this term.

He won the Copa del Rey for a second time with Betis last April and lifted the same trophy during his time with Valencia in 2008.

Joaquin won 51 caps for his country, playing in two World Cups and one European Championship.

He said in a video posted on social media by Betis: "Life is a constant evolution, the secret is to have the ability to adapt to changes, face each day as a challenge and always put a little bit of art into everything.

"The road is full of emotions, names and moments keep resonating in my head. Oh, that magical night at the end of April in which I was able to fulfil a dream!

"Time flies so fast. Nothing is forever they say, but they are wrong. Don't you know art? It is inspiration, emotion and transformation. For 23 years I have tried to make football an art and to be remembered from generation to generation.

"From the classic to the contemporary. Now all that remains is to hang up my boots, my art. A window into eternity."

Milan have renewed Olivier Giroud's contract, with the France international reportedly agreeing to stay at the club until the end of next season.

Giroud joined Milan from Chelsea in 2021, and has scored 27 goals across 76 appearances.

The 36-year-old has netted 13 times this season, having played as Milan's first-choice striker in the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has managed only four appearances this season following a long injury lay-off.

Giroud helped Milan progress to the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2007 when he scored their opener in Tuesday's clash with Serie A leaders Napoli.

Victor Osimhen scored late on for Napoli, but Milan held firm to progress with a 2-1 aggregate victory.

Milan, who are fourth in Serie A, will face either Benfica or city rivals Inter in the last four.

Tottenham and Brighton and Hove Albion have each been fined £100,000 for the touchline clash during their Premier League encounter earlier this month.

The incident occurred in the 58th minute of Spurs' 2-1 win over the Seagulls, which saw both bosses – Cristian Stellini and Roberto De Zerbi – sent to the stands.

Tempers had become flared during a game in which Brighton saw two goals and a penalty claim denied after VAR checks, before going on to lose to their hosts.

When asked about the incident after the game on April 8, Spurs interim head coach Stellini told Sky Sports: "I don't like to be involved when there is a fight or something too aggressive. I'm quiet and focused on the game.

"I try to do my job. I want to speak only about my team and the game, not what happened between us and them on the bench."

Fellow Italian De Zerbi responded to BBC Sport: "I am used to always respecting everyone and I want the same towards me."

The FA charged both clubs for the "mass confrontation" and confirmed the fines on Wednesday, saying: "Both clubs admitted they failed to ensure that their benches conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and did not behave in a way which is improper during the 58th minute."

Toni Kroos is "on the right track" to sign a new deal with Real Madrid.

The former Germany midfielder is only under contract with Los Blancos until the end of the season and had stated that he could retire this year.

Kroos joined Madrid from Bayern Munich in 2014 and has played a big part in their success during his long spell at the club.

The 33-year-old suggested he is set to extend his stay in the Spanish capital.

He told reporters: "Everything is on the right track, but I also respect what the club wants: how and when it communicates. 

"There is a good relationship that I have with the club over the years and this issue has already been discussed for a while."

Kroos added: "There is absolute trust on both sides. The club knew from the beginning that I was not going to do anything stupid. 

"Theoretically, I could have signed for another team from January 1, but we didn't even start with this nonsense. There is a lot of trust there. I will most likely stay that way for a while."

Kroos produced a typically influential display in a 2-0 win in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final at Chelsea on Wednesday, with the holders securing a 4-0 aggregate victory.

On Wednesday, Spanish publication AS reported that Kroos' team-mate Karim Benzema had agreed an extension to his contract at Madrid.

Manchester United have welcomed Marcus Rashford back into the fold for their trip to Sevilla in the Europa League.

Rashford, who has scored 28 goals this season, suffered a groin issue in United's 2-0 win over Everton at Old Trafford on April 8.

The England international subsequently missed last week's 2-2 draw with Sevilla in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final tie, as well as United's 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday.

However, Rashford has travelled to Spain for Thursday's second leg at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, with Luke Shaw also returning from injury after not featuring since April 2.

Bruno Fernandes is not available to Erik ten Hag due to suspension, though.

Scott McTominay is also out.

Thiago Silva has warned things could get worse before they get better for Chelsea unless the club "stop and put a strategy in place".

Chelsea lost 2-0 to Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday to exit the Champions League 4-0 on aggregate at the quarter-final stage.

The Blues also fell short in both domestic cup competitions and are 11th in the Premier League, despite spending more than £600million on new players over the past year.

That has coincided with the Todd Boehly-led consortium taking over from Roman Abramovich, with the new backers having nothing to show for their investment so far.

The owners have already sacked Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter, with Frank Lampard brought back as caretaker manager, but Silva hopes lessons will be learned.

"I think the first step has been made, an incorrect step, but it has been made," he told TNT Sports following Chelsea's European exit. 

"We can't be blaming the managers if we don't take responsibility. It's a hard period for the club, with a lot of indecision.

"Change of ownership, new players arriving – we had to increase the size of the changing room because it didn't fit the size of the squad.

"A positive point is that there are amazing players in the squad, but on the other hand, there are always players that are going to be unhappy."

Chelsea have made 17 signings over the past two transfer windows – both loan and permanent arrivals – leaving a number of players struggling for any meaningful action.

"There is always going to be someone upset because not everyone can play," Silva said. "The manager can only pick 11 from a squad of 30-something – that's tough.

"Some can't make the squad. We signed eight in January, so we need to stop and put a strategy in place, otherwise next season we could make the same mistakes."

Chelsea are winless in seven matches, losing five of those, including all four since Lampard was brought in as Potter's temporary successor.

Veteran centre-back Silva, who is nearing the end of his third season with Chelsea, accepts it is down to him and his team-mates to step up.

"Everybody talks too much about replacing managers. I think we, as players, must also take responsibility," he said.

"We have had three managers this season, plus a fourth with Bruno [Saltor] where we failed to win. We have lost today, and with Lampard, we have failed to win. 

"Everybody is talking about the manager, but we must look at what has been done wrong and try to change."

Chelsea have seven Premier League games remaining, starting with the visit of London rivals Brentford next Wednesday.

Reported Manchester United target Jeremie Frimpong is similar to Trent Alexander-Arnold in the way he "bravely" attacks but "forgets that he needs to defend".

That is according to Dimitar Berbatov, who played for both United and Frimpong's current club Bayer Leverkusen.

Reports this week have suggested United manager Erik ten Hag is particularly keen on the right-back, having this season rotated between using Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka in that role.

Frimpong has scored eight goals in the Bundesliga this season, the most of any defender across Europe's top five leagues, while only Raphael Guerreiro can match his 14 goal involvements.

Dalot has a goal and two assists in the Premier League, while Wan-Bissaka has not contributed to a single goal.

Frimpong also ranks first among defenders for touches in the opposition box (118) and second for chances created from open play (41).

In the latter category, he is joined in the top 10 by Liverpool's Alexander Arnold (35), and Berbatov sees similarities between the two – at both ends of the pitch.

"He is someone who reminds me of Trent Alexander Arnold, because he is primarily an attacking full-back and sometimes he forgets that he needs to defend as well," Berbatov, speaking on behalf of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, told Stats Perform.

"But the way he's playing, bravely going up the pitch, attacking, running, assisting and scoring goals, it's a joy for me to watch, to be honest.

"Yes, I say it in the form of a joke, but he needs to work a bit more on his defensive part of the game.

"But he's very young, he has a bright future in my mind, and I think some of the big clubs will come up to him, for sure."

Alexander-Arnold has been widely criticised for his defensive work, with that scrutiny increasing in a difficult season for Liverpool.

However, he played a hybrid midfield role on Monday against Leeds United and provided two assists in a 6-1 win.

Meanwhile, Frimpong has played every game for a Leverkusen side who have conceded 41 goals in the Bundesliga, the joint-most in the top half of the table.

Dimitar Berbatov and Ben Foster featured in Enterprise Rent-A-Car’s 2022/23 UEFA Europa League campaign content, Mission Masterclass’. You can view episode one in full https://youtu.be/XTCqaMGIvyI

Marcus Rashford and three other Manchester United first-team players returned to training on Wednesday in a major boost for their Europa League quarter-final second-leg trip to Sevilla.

Rashford suffered a groin injury in United's 2-0 win over Everton on April 8 and was subsequently ruled out for "a few games".

Although not deemed a serious injury, Rashford's form this season has seen his importance to United increase exponentially, with his 28 goals across all competitions already comfortably his best season.

Therefore his absence was a frustrating blow to United and manager Erik ten Hag, but there appears to be a chance he could feature at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Thursday.

In the first of two games Rashford missed, United remarkably surrendered a 2-0 lead at home to Sevilla, with a couple of freak own goals late on allowing Jose Luis Mendilibar's side to rescue a 2-2 draw that never looked plausible such was the hosts' dominance.

Luke Shaw, Marcel Sabitzer and Tyrell Malacia – the scorer of one of those own goals against Sevilla – were also back on the training pitch on Wednesday.

Shaw has not played since sustaining an unspecified injury during the 1-0 win over Brentford on April 5.

His return would be particularly welcome following the news of Lisandro Martinez being ruled out for the rest of the season with a metatarsal injury, as Shaw has regularly filled in at centre-back this season.

Sabitzer's issue was also not made known to the media after his late withdrawal from the starting XI to face Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

The Austrian scored both of United's goals in the first leg against Sevilla, though he may find it difficult to get back into the side on Thursday given the high standard exhibited by his replacement Christian Eriksen in the 2-0 victory at the City Ground.