Sport

RIATH AL-SAMARRAI AT THE LIBERTY STADIUM: No spilt milk on the tunnel floor, just the featherless carcass of a Swan that took an almighty bludgeoning. Manchester City can play their music as loud as they want if they keep this unprecedented and absurd run of form going. This was their 15th straight win, making a top-flight record, and who will end it? Who will stand in the way of such an immense force and not get trodden into the frost? It is premature to add this vintage to the discussion of the Premier League’s all-time finest because the job is not yet done. But it will be soon enough at this rate and when it is, they will have to be prominent in the reckoning. An invincible season? Quite possibly, from the body of evidence garnered this side of Christmas.

The iconic and fiercely passionate Belgrade derby between rivals Partizan and Red Star erupted into scenes of bloody violence on Wednesday night, with police having to escort wounded fans down the touchline. The Serbian fixture has always been an infamously fiery affair, with tempers often flaring both on the pitch and in the stands. As the game played out, it was soon discovered that a number of the visiting Red Star fans had got their hands on tickets to sit in the home end, according to reports.

The Premier League served up a full dose of midweek action and with that came plenty of drama. Manchester City won a record-breaking 15th game on the spin as they thumped Swansea, with rivals Manchester United labouring to a narrow victory at home to Brighton and Chelsea taking three points from their clash with Huddersfield at the John Smith Stadium.  There are now four points between the top three and fourth, with Guardiola’s side enjoying a commanding 11 point lead. Sportsmail takes a look at the things you missed.

REAL MADRID 2-1 AL JAZIRA - PETE JENSON: Gareth Bale climbed off the bench to save Real Madrid from the humiliation of needing extra time to beat Abu Dhabi side Al Jazira in a bizarre World Club Cup semi-final. Bale scored the winner eight minutes from time to give his team victory. Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 15th goal of the season to equalize Al Jazira's shock opener. It was his sixth goal in the World Club Cup taking him past the record of five he previously held with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.

With his two-year doping ban back-dated, Tyson Fury has overcome another major obstacle as he bids to make a sensational return to boxing. It is no wonder he is in the mood for a song. The 29-year-old uploaded three videos to his Instagram on Wednesday; one of him singing along to 'Return of the Mac' by Mark Morrison while getting his hands wrapped, another of a rap aimed at Anthony Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn and a third threatening to regain a boxing license with a foreign boxing board - not the British one that said it will review his status in January. It is the second clip which shows that Fury is already back to his best - verbally, at least - with his own take on Without Me by Eminem, which he said in the caption is a 'special message to Eddie Hearn.'

HIBERNIAN 1-2 RANGERS - STEPHEN McGOWAN AT EASTER ROAD: In the cold light of day Rangers will reflect on an old footballing truth. It’s better, sometimes, to be lucky than good. Hibernian will wake on Thursday asking themselves a stark question. How, precisely, did they contrive to lose this game? A fourth straight victory for Graeme Murty and Rangers came down, in the end, to a frantic three minute spell before half-time. A period when the game, dominated for so long by the home side, turned on its head.

INTERVIEW BY KIERAN GILL: When Phil Taylor has thrown his last dart at Alexandra Palace, there will be the odd burly bloke holding back the tears. Taylor's retirement will mark the end of an era. The PDC World Championship starts in north London on Thursday night — with a sea of Hawaiian shirts and Where's Wally costumes — and it will be the 57-year-old's final fling after almost three decades of dominance and 16 world titles.

PAUL NEWMAN IN PERTH: Joe Root defended England’s coaching staff after Jimmy Anderson appeared to blame them for his poor bowling with the new ball at the start of the second Ashes Test. The England captain goes into Thursday’s make or break third Test at the WACA on the defensive after his vice-captain seemed to point the finger at backroom staff for letting Australia amass a match-winning score at Adelaide. Anderson said in his column in The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday: ‘I bowled too short in the first innings at Adelaide. We should have bowled a touch fuller. That was an oversight from the players on the field but also from the coaches who could have had an input too, which was frustrating.’

BAYERN MUNICH 1-0 COLOGNE: Robert Lewandowski scored a 60th minute winner as Bayern Munich claimed a frustratingly narrow 1-0 win over the Bundesliga's bottom club Cologne on Wednesday night. The hosts struggled to convert their ample possession into goals but Lewandowski converted a well-rehearsed move to snatch all three points. Cologne arrived at the Allianz Arena yet to win a Bundesliga fixture as they continue to head towards the winter break with just three points from 16 matches so far.

STRASBOURG 2-4 PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN: Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain reached the League Cup quarter-finals after winning 4-2 at Strasbourg on Wednesday. PSG, who have won the past four editions, was keen to prove a point after Strasbourg ended its unbeaten start to the season with a league win earlier this month. Strasbourg beat PSG 2-1 at home earlier this month in Ligue 1 but it was a different story this time.

Katie Taylor made a successful first defence of her WBA world lightweight title after a hard-fought battle with American Jessica McCaskill at York Hall. The Irishwoman has made a superb transition into the professional ranks after a glittering amateur career and now has eight wins from eight after a unanimous points decision. Taylor told Sky Sports: "It was very, very tough, probably the toughest fight of my career. I expected that, I had to be at my very best."

AFC Wimbledon have received permission to start building a new 11,000-seater ground at their spiritual home of Plough Lane.  The League One club can now begin work on the new ground, which is located just 250 yards away from the site of the old Plough Lane stadium where Wimbledon FC played.  Representatives from the club, Merton Council and GRA Acquisitions signed an agreement on Wednesday to give the new stadium the green light.

Mikel Arteta is still taking extra care to cover up the mark left on his forehead after City and United's post-match brawl at Old Trafford on Sunday. The City co-assistant was pictured wearing a woolly hat (left) on his way to the Etihad Campus on this morning, before later being snapped boarding City's plane for the 21-minute flight to Wales, to play Swansea, wearing a cap (centre and inset). Arteta was struck by a bottle in the melee at Old Trafford after City's 2-1 victory and was left with blood streaming down his face.

Rohit Sharma's third one-day international double hundred propelled India to a series-levelling 141-run victory over Sri Lanka in Mohali. India's stand-in captain brought up three figures from a relatively serene 115 balls before cutting loose. He needed only a further 36 deliveries to get to his double ton, eventually finishing on 208 not out.

INTERVIEW BY RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Staying on top of himself — it is the battle that defines the second half of his life. Three times he has been sectioned under the Mental Health Act, from 2003 to 2012, when he was twice brought in ‘kicking and screaming’ against his will.