Lead:
Liverpool progressed past Chelsea in the English League Cup fourth round on Wednesday, winning 6-5 on penalty kicks following a 1-1 draw at Anfield. Cody Gakpo equalized for Liverpool in the 44th minute after Chelsea had taken the lead in the first half.
Top Stories:
Real Madrid defeats Barcelona 2-1 in El Clasico — Manager Jose Mourinho's tactical discipline and collective commitment silenced pre-match doubts about the squad's depth. The win restored confidence in the team's defensive structure and individual execution under pressure.Cristiano Ronaldo's 2008 Ballon d'Or version ranked best in history — The Portuguese forward responded on Instagram by liking three posts celebrating the achievement, which ranked his peak season ahead of all other iterations of the award in a public vote conducted by France Football magazine.Inter Milan extends winning streak to four consecutive victories — The defending champion defeated Venezia 2-0 on Wednesday through own goals from Matias Moreno and Radan Halhal in the 80th and 82nd minutes respectively, maintaining the Serie A lead ahead of the upcoming Milan derby.Bayern Munich reaches German Cup round of 16 with 6-1 rout — Harry Kane was honored before the match at Allianz Arena in front of 75,000 supporters less than 48 hours after winning the Ballon d'Or; Michael Olise provided two assists in Bayern's dominant performance over Magdeburg.Barcelona fined 602 euros over Julian Alvarez contact — The Spanish Football Federation imposed the penalty after Atletico Madrid filed a complaint accusing Barcelona of communicating with the Argentine forward during a contractually protected period while he remained bound to Atletico.Egyptian table tennis coach suspended after video of young athlete slap surfaces — The Egyptian Table Tennis Federation struck Mohamed Momtaz from its records and banned him from all activity related to the sport following an incident at the Sheffield-based World Hope Week tournament involving player Zina Farouk.What to Watch:
Al-Ahly visits Modern Sport on Thursday in Egyptian Premier Division matchday eight, seeking to recover from a 3-3 draw and restore winning form against a top competitor.African Champions League group stage matches continue with Al-Wehda (UAE) maintaining first place in Group One with nine points after defeating Al-Khalidiya (Bahrain) 2-1 on Wednesday; Al-Kuwait defeated Nasaf (Uzbekistan) 1-0 in the same group.