Liga Prvakov

A 4-2 victory over 1. FSV Mainz 05 ensured Bayer 04 Leverkusen reclaimed the Bundesliga lead after FC Bayern München had taken the ascendancy on Friday night by beating TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.

FC Zenit St. Petersburg have added to their squad ahead of the 2010 Premier-Liga season with the signing of former striker Aleksandr Kerzhakov on a four-year deal from FC Dinamo Moskva.

Ciro Ferrara is sure Michele Paolucci will be "extremely motivated" after the 23-year-old striker completed a return to Juventus, joining the Bianconeri from AC Siena on loan until the end of the season.

Koen Daerden has followed in his father's footsteps by signing for R. Standard de Liège, the midfielder moving from fellow UEFA Europa League hopefuls Club Brugge KV for an undisclosed fee.

Goran Pandev scored his first goal since rejoining FC Internazionale Milano as the Nerazzurri recovered from two goals down to draw 2-2 with AS Bari in an eventful game which featured three penalties.

R. Standard de Liège and RSC Anderlecht declared a truce earlier this season after a bruising meeting, and friendly relations will be examined on Sunday when the Belgian Eerste Klasse resumes.

FC Barcelona are out to restore order, two German teams eye a lift and Sporting Clube de Portugal and Olympique de Marseille pursue fading dreams. uefa.com takes its pick of the weekend action.

Jaroslav Plašil has become an important part of an FC Girondins de Bordeaux side riding the crest of a wave at home and in Europe – you can ask him questions in this latest uefa.com readers' Q&A.

Slovenia completed their pre-finals friendly programme with a draw and a win against 2007 qualifiers Romania while Belgium held Asian champions Iran 4-4 with two late goals before losing the second game 5-0.

UC Sampdoria have signed 33-year-old goalkeeper Marco Storari on loan from AC Milan until the end of the season as cover for the injured Luca Castellazzi.

Slovenia is looking forward to the FIFA World Cup in South Africa but next week the nation's attention will switch to Hungary where coach Andrej Dobovičnik is determined to lead them past the group stage.

Fortuna Hjørring have been awarded a 3-0 default win after successfully protesting that Olympique Lyonnais fielded two ineligible players during the clubs' match in France on 12 November.

UEFA is lending its support to the annual Match Against Poverty, taking place in Lisbon on 25 January, which provides an ideal platform for the United Nations Development Programme.

Manchester United FC forward Dimitar Berbatov has been crowned Bulgarian Player of the Year for a record sixth time, surpassing the mark established by 1994 Ballon d'Or winner Hristo Stoichkov.

Milan Baroš's involvement in Galatasaray AŞ's round of 32 tie with Club Atlético de Madrid is in doubt after the striker underwent a second operation on the broken foot he suffered on 25 October.

Fernando Torres will miss Liverpool FC's tie against FC Unirea Urziceni after being ruled out for six weeks while Steven Gerrard is sidelined for a fortnight and Yossi Benayoun out for up to a month.

James Milner earned Aston Villa FC a 1-0 win at Blackburn Rovers FC in the first leg of their English League Cup semi-final, on a night when ACF Fiorentina and S.S. Lazio advanced in the Coppa Italia.

Defender Lucas Neill has cut short his Everton career after less than four months at Goodison Park, joining fellow UEFA Europa League contenders Galatasaray AŞ on a one-and-a-half year deal.

Czech Republic midfielder Libor Sionko has terminated his contract at Denmark's FC København after conceding: "I have had extreme difficulty making it into the starting lineup in the past six months."

Belarus could not have asked for a tougher draw on their finals debut, matched with holders Spain and Portugal, but coach Valeri Dosko promised his injury-hit squad would "give a good account of ourselves".