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DOMINIC KING AT THE ESTADIO DRAGAO: By the final whistle, the four sides of the stadium were chanting his name and waving their flags and the memory of VAR had been banished. The first Nations League semi-final threatened to be overshadowed by the spectre of UEFA's robotic referees but in the most dramatic circumstances, Cristiano Ronaldo made the story about the joy of football with a hat-trick that be his best yet. The narrative to the opening Nations League semi-final should have been solely about the man in Red with the number seven on his back and magic in his boots but, instead, an incident in the 57th minute made it remarkable for the wrong reasons.

SHEKHAR BHATIA IN PORTO: England fans launched bottles at riot police in Porto this evening before the officers chased them down with shields and batons. Up to 20,000 rowdy England fans descended on the city ahead of Thursday night's match against Holland in Guimaraes. Hordes of boisterous supporters taking advantage of budget airfares and cheap booze have spent two nights in Porto singing anti-German and anti-IRA songs, forcing some bars to close down. But thousands of tickets have been sold online by UEFA to un-monitored fans and one police officer here said: 'This could be like 500 or more stag parties coming together at the same time.'

INTERVIEW BY IAN HERBERT: Catalan daily paper El Periodico's verdict on Barcelona's women's team a few months back was as follows: 'Black week. Barcelona throw away the league and cup in five days.' And for Toni Duggan, who always carries a weight of expectation, the verdict was particularly bruising. Her player rating in last month's Champions League final defeat by Lyon was one out of five in El Mundo Deportivo. This is not what English players are accustomed to back at home, where the inclination to celebrate the growth of the women's game can preclude a negative critique at times. 

It has been revealed that Sugar Ray Leonard nearly lost all of his teeth in his first fight against Roberto Duran - and that he considered retirement as a result. Duran, known as one of the greatest boxers of all time, held world championships in four weight classes during his five decade long career and met Leonard in the ring for the first time in June 1980. Leonard lost his WBC Welterweight Championship after a unanimous decision in favour of Duran in what is considered to be one of the best encounters in boxing history.

MATT BARLOW: Tottenham will tell Real Madrid they expect a fee in excess of £100m for Christian Eriksen. Eriksen, on international duty with Denmark, has one year left on his contract and has confirmed his desire to leave. 'I feel that I am at a stage of my career where I would like to try something new,' the 27-year-old told the Danish newspaper, Ekstra Bladet.

Wilfried Zaha has opened up on the disgusting racial abuse he suffers during most Premier League matches, claiming he is regularly called 'a monkey or n*****'. The Crystal Palace star's revelations come after a season in which racial abuse was prevalent in England's top-flight, at international level and in the EFL, with players being targeted in stadiums and on social media. Zaha took to Twitter in April to share a message he received from a Newcastle fan calling him a 'diving monkey'. The former Manchester United winger also revealed that he has received death threats online.

It was a fall-out that ripped the Real Madrid dressing room apart and ushered in the end of an iconic era for Los Blancos' most favoured son. But it appears Jose Mourinho and Iker Casillas (top right) may well have buried the hatchet after they joined several other Real Madrid legends for a selfie. They joined (left to right) Predrag Mijatovc, Michel Salgado, Roberto Carlos, Kaka and Fernando Hierro for a photograph on Wednesday. It is the first time the two have appeared so comfortable in each other's presence since their spectacular falling out in 2013. Mourinho famously dropped the former Los Blancos captain, amid rumours of a dressing split. Mourinho left the club in 2013 and the episode set the stage for Casillas' exit two years later.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is riding high on Liverpool's victory over Spurs 2-0 on Saturday night. And Little Mix's Perrie Edwards was clearly ensuring her beau was celebrating in style as they were seen living it up on a yacht just days later - during which the superstar couple were getting up close and personal.  The 25-year-old songstress was looking incredible in a sexy yellow bikini as she frolicked with the sportsman hot on the heels of Liverpool's victory against Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League Final. 

A Hillsborough survivor was able to see the Champions League trophy thanks to James Milner. The midfielder asked Liverpool's bus to stop outside his house following the parade held to celebrate their win over Tottenham. Around 750,000 people turned out to celebrate the Reds' sixth European Cup and the bus was heading back to the club's Melwood base when Milner ordered it to stop.

Liverpool supporter Simon Wilson has finally arrived back at Anfield after driving 1,290 miles to watch his side beat Tottenham in the Champions League final in Madrid. The YouTuber opted to make the journey in a £40 Skoda Favourite GLXi with three friends after flights to Spain reached up to £800.  Wilson arrived in time to watch Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi score in both halves to seal a sixth European Cup, but admitted there were several difficulties along the way. 

NATHAN SALT AT ROLAND GARROS: An ominous black cloud hangs over the grounds at Roland Garros as spectators muddle through ticket machines and bag searches at various entrances. A dedicated team in 'the weather room' are busy working, planning and plotting what needs to be done should rain stop play. Down in the bowels of Eurosport's production facility - one of at least a dozen companies with spots for the second slam of the year - discussions are well underway as to what will fill their coverage.

Deontay Wilder (bottom left) has slammed Eddie Hearn (bottom right) and accused him of forcing Anthony Joshua (top left) into a rematch with Andy Ruiz Jnr (top right). Ruiz pulled off one of the greatest shocks in boxing history on Saturday night, beating the favourite Joshua at Madison Square Garden to capture his heavyweight titles. There was a rematch clause written into the contract for the first fight and Hearn exercised it on Tuesday, with Joshua and Ruiz to meet again in November or December.