Liverpool have begun their search for a new manager, but whoever comes in must grapple with many of the issues that caused problems for the sacked Brendan Rodgers.

After a moribund conclusion to the previous campaign, the writing was on the wall for Rodgers and Liverpool's fortunes were not deemed to have improved sufficiently for owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) to stand by their man.

Real Madrid boss Rafael Benitez dismissed claims his side had paid for an overly defensive approach as Luciano Vietto's late equalizer handed Atletico Madrid a 1-1 draw in the capital derby on Sunday.

Benitez's men went in front early on through Karim Benzema, but attempted to sit on their lead and were caught out seven minutes from time when Vietto bundled home his first goal for Atletico from close range.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic became the leading goalscorer in Paris Saint-Germain history on Sunday as the reigning Ligue 1 champions extended their lead at the top following a 2-1 victory over arch-rivals Marseille.

Michy Batshuayi nodded in the opener after 30 minutes at the Parc des Princes to give Marseille the lead but Ibrahimovic tucked away a pair of penalties in the space of three minutes just before the break.

Goals from Josip Ilicic, Borja Valero and Joan Verdu secured a 3-0 win over Atalanta on Sunday as Fiorentina maintained their purple patch to go two points clear of Inter Milan at the top of Serie A.

On the day stuttering champions Juventus finally ended their quest for a first home win at the fourth attempt, Fiorentina showed their 4-1 humiliation of early season pacesetters Inter Milan last week was no flash in the pan.

Arsenal produced a scintillating start to overwhelm in-form Manchester United 3-0 in the Premier League on Sunday and give embattled manager Arsene Wenger something to smile about.

Wenger was pilloried in the British press after Tuesday's 3-2 home defeat by Olympiakos left his side struggling to avoid a group-stage exit in the Champions League, but five days on he presided over a win that equaled his best league result against United.

China's men beat the Philippines 78-67 in the FIBA Asia Championship final before an ecstatic 7,000-strong capacity home crowd in Changsha late on Saturday to secure a place at the 2016 Olympics.

With Guo Ailun (19 points, 6 rebounds), ex-NBA player Yi Jianlian (11 points, 15 rebounds) and the giant 2.17-meter (7ft 1in) 19-year-old Zhou Qi (16 points, 7 rebounds) controlling the match, Gong Luming's team completed their 11th straight victory of an unbeaten tournament.

Lucas Matthysse will be much the shorter man when he steps into the ring against Viktor Postol but what he lacks in size he hopes to make up for in punching power.

Although Matthysse is one of boxing's most feared punchers, the 33-year-old from Argentina has never held a major world title.

England may be smarting on the rugby field but they have gone on the attack in the psychological battle before their crunch World Cup match against Australia on Saturday.

Former manager Clive Woodward said Australia are "not the brightest" while former star Danny Cipriani added that no Australian would get in the England team.

After the final Gland Slam of the year in Flushing Meadows, there is a migration to Asia as part of the Women's Tennis Association's Asian swing, but the tight end of season schedule may be a bridge too far for some players.

The line up for the last tournaments of the year has been hit by withdrawals as the players zip across the vast continent between Japan, China and Singapore with barely a break.

Top FIFA sponsors joined forces to demand Sepp Blatter's immediate resignation on Friday, dealing a fresh blow to the scandal-tainted world football chief even as he vowed to cling to power.

In separate statements issued one week after criminal proceedings were launched against Blatter in Switzerland, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Visa and Budweiser all called on the 79-year-old to step down.