Bayern know a win would put pressure on rivals Borussia Dortmund, who are two points behind and play Werder Bremen later that evening.

Sergio Aguero’s priceless 63rd-minute goal against Burnley on Sunday was not the first time hi-tech equipment has played a hand in Manchester City’s season.

Gerard Pique’s focus as his team took a valuable 1-0 advantage in Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg at Manchester United was particularly impressive, given the many potential distractions inside the Barcelona defender’s head.

The new stadium which boldly stands only a few feet away from the site of the old White Hart Lane resembles a spaceship which has landed, for some reason, halfway down the Tottenham High Road.

It’s been another rough week for Pat. Or Tom. Or Ger. Whatever you want to call him, you know him well anyway.

For such a brilliant football team it is amazing how many boring football matches Manchester City are involved in

It wasn’t as exhilarating as many of this season’s remarkable last 16 ties and it certainly didn’t have the quality of football that’s been on show over the last fortnight; but Liverpool’s wonderful victory in Munich, inspired by two-goal Sadio Mane, has nevertheless put down a marker that is hugely significant.

Hey, remember in the old days when the catastrophists were warning that VAR would be the Y2K of football, not just ruining the game as a spectacle but worse — far, far worse — doing away with all those ‘talking points’ so beloved of pundits, whether in a studio or on a bar stool?

Tonight’s match at Anfield is round two in a three-way Champions League clash that should tell us a lot about the relative strengths of English and German football, or at least the Premier League and the Bundesliga.

Leon Goretzka put an injury scare firmly behind him to score his first goal for Bayern Munich as the defending Bundesliga champions enjoyed a comfortable 3-0 win at Stuttgart.

Manchester United face a reunion with Cristiano Ronaldo after being pitted against Juventus in the Champions League group stage.

Last week, the head of Fifa’s referee committee, Pierluigi Collina claimed that 99.3% of “match-changing” decisions have been, thanks to the newly introduced Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, called correctly at the World Cup.

Ten-man Hamburg were relegated from the Bundesliga for the first time today, sparking angry fan demonstrations.

There are updates for Man City, United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool fans here.

Sven Ulreich saved Chadrac Akolo's 95th-minute penalty as Bayern Munich ground out a hard-fought 1-0 win at Stuttgart.

They made the Borussia Dortmund Twitter account regret one particularly premature tweet, too.

What's being said online and in the papers.

Having made the breakthrough, the first woman referee in any of Europe’s top soccer leagues is asking how long it will take for other countries to follow Germany’s example.

Jurgen Klopp and “best friend” David Wagner will occupy opposing dugouts at Anfield this afternoon, but only one would be on the bench when they first met at Mainz 26 years ago.

Hertha Berlin players took a knee in solidarity with American sports stars ahead of their Bundesliga game against Schalke on Saturday.

Dani Ceballos fired a LaLiga debut double to ease pressure on boss Zinedine Zidane as Real Madrid edged out Alaves 2-1.

Manchester United return to the Champions League fray tomorrow with their aura of invincibility ever so slightly dented.

Arsenal will face a traditionally tough trip to Stoke this evening but in Sead Kolasinac, manager Arsene Wenger believes he has the perfect man to deal with the situation.

Serbia have recalled Torino attacker Adem Ljajic to their squad for the upcoming World Cup qualification double-header against Moldova and Ireland.

The signing of Bosnian Sead Kolasinac suggests Arsene Wenger has eventually accepted one can’t always pick a lock with a hair clip, says Simon Collings.

Arsenal defeated Chelsea on penalties in the Premier League curtain raiser but what did the result tell us? 

Alexandre Lacazette believes he has all the attributes needed to help fire Arsenal to the Premier League title next season after completing his dream move.

WHAT THE PAPERS SAY

Germany eased into the Confederations Cup final following a comfortable 4-1 victory over Mexico in Sochi.

Australia 2

Joachim Low's much-changed Germany opened their Confederations Cup campaign with a 3-2 victory over Australia in Sochi.

There is optimism that Jon Walters will be able to resume training tomorrow after a rest day for the Irish squad today.

Striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar has returned to a Ajax for a second spell after signing a one-year deal, the Eredivisie club have announced.

Ajax, creators of their own legend, were largely authors of their own downfall in Stockholm last night, writes Liam Mackey.

There are men with a foot in both camps for tonight’s Europa League final. Daley Blind is one, another is Wesley Sneijder.

Cork City goalkeepers Mark McNulty and Alan Smith are literally lending a helping hand to the Irish cause.

Hamburg beat Wolfsburg 2-1 in dramatic fashion to secure their Bundesliga status and plunge the Wolves into a relegation play-off.

Arsene Wenger insists Arsenal will not break the bank to keep Alexis Sanchez at the Emirates Stadium.

Mauricio Pochettino believes Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli deserved to be on the shortlist for the men’s Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year award.

The football world was quick to express solidarity with Borussia Dortmund after a number of explosions around their team bus caused the Champions League clash with Monaco to be postponed.

Pep Guardiola has challenged in-form Manchester City duo Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling to get even better.

Sunderland 0 Manchester City 2: Sunderland were game, but the harsh truth is that they were woefully lacking in just about every department. Try as they might, the most stern test faced by Manchester City arrived in the aftermath of the final whistle.

Jose Mourinho has described Manchester United's Europa League pairing with FC Rostov as "a bad draw in every aspect".