Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid 3-1 to climb up to second in La Liga, and are now -- aided by Barcelona's 0-0 draw at Athletic Bilbao -- just six points off the top. Juventus beat Sassuolo 3-0 -- Cristiano Ronaldo with a goal and an assist -- to go nine points clear of second-placed Napoli. Manchester United continued on their merry way with a 3-0 win at Fulham to climb into the top 4 for the first time since the opening day of the Premier League season, while Liverpool eased the pressure threatening...

Manchester City dismantled Arsenal 3-1 to put the pressure on Liverpool while Manchester United continued their run under new management with a squeaky 1-0 win over Leicester City. In Turin, Cristiano Ronaldo's brace wasn't enough as Juventus squandered a two-goal lead to draw 3-3 with Parma, and across the Mediterranean, a Lionel Messi brace found Barcelona coming back from 0-2 down to draw 2-2 against Valencia. Oh, and Lyon stunned PSG 2-1 at home, leaving Juventus as the only unbeaten side in...

Liverpool maintained their 4-point cushion at the top of the Premier League with a thrilling 4-3 win over Crystal Palace. Wolverhampton Wanderers edged out Leicester City by the same margin. Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-0 -- and made Maurizio Sarri go full Jose Mourinho. Manchester United strolled to another win, 2-1 over Brighton and Hove Albion. Barcelona beat Leganes 3-1 to maintain a five-point gap at the top of La Liga. Real Madrid beat Sevilla 2-0 to climb over them and into third... they...

Lionel Messi hit another milestone as Barcelona swatted Eibar aside 3-0 to maintain their five-point lead atop La Liga. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer passed his first 'real' tactical test with a tough 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur. Arsenal stumbled at West Ham, losing 1-0 while Liverpool saw off Brighton by the same score with a performance that screamed substance over style.

Here are the best of the numbers from this week's football action.

400

Lionel Messi is now the first player to score 400 goals in...

Liverpool ended the year with a 5-1 thrashing of Arsenal, while Manchester United continued their impressive start under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, brushing aside Bournemouth 4-1. Over in Italy, Juventus entered the winter after a VAR-controversy fueled 2-1 win over Sampdoria thanks to a brace from... who else, Cristiano Ronaldo. 

Here, then, are the best of the numbers from the last bit of footballing action in 2018.

6

Roberto Firmino's hat trick is the sixth in fixtures between Liverpool and Arsenal...

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer brought smiles back to Manchester United, while Manchester City suffered a shock defeat this weekend. Elsewhere, Lionel Messi did Lionel Messi things (again) as Real Madrid went on to win the Club World Cup. 

It's been an eventful weekend in football, and here are the best numbers from it:

2

Since 2010, there have only been two instances in which a player from Europe's Top 5 Leagues has at least 15 goals and 10 assists through 17 match days. On both occasions, it's...