Spanish supernova Barcelona defeated Manchester City 1-0 yesterday to advance to the UEFA Champions League Quarterfinals 3-1 on aggregate. The match was a thrilling affair with end-to-end action and both sides had ample opportunities to put the ball in the back of the net, but only Ivan Rakitic succeeded on the night, which was enough to send Barcelona through.

Well it looks like Luis Suarez and Neymar are getting along just fine. Like brothers, we would say. After all, don’t brothers punch and kick and scream at each other all the time? And hey, here’s Neymar doing one of those three things to Suarez. So that makes them, like, third-brothers,  so they surely qualify as friends, who most definitely get along. 

We all know that Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the biggest stars in the world, but he's yet to become an icon like David Beckham.

Beckham didn't become an icon until he came to the America. Here, he parlayed his superstar status to mega-star when he decided to play in the MLS.

When Beckham signed with the LA Galaxy, it opened doors for him that may not have been open had he not come to this country.

Here are just a few reasons why Ronaldo should come play soccer in the US:

The exposure.

Your mind plays tricks on you. You might think that Lionel Messi is the best at everything in the world, that he has the best ball control, the best passing, the best finishing instinct, and the best shooting range. We can’t really fault you too much because most of the time you’d be right; Messi is incredibly good at a lot of things. But a young man named Cristiano Ronaldo has a little something to say about who’s the best at a certain little thing called shooting. 

Xavi has every right to go down in history as the greatest midfielder ever to play the game. A player never known for his athleticism, he relied on his passing range, vision, and intelligence - and in doing so won 7 La Liga titles, 2 Copa del Reys, 3 Champions Leagues, 2 European Championships, and a World Cup. He, Iniesta, and Messi were the holy trinity that guided Barcelona through the shadow of the valley of anti-football on their way to pure enlightenment. 

Real Madrid’s recruiting strategy has maintained a “new is always better than old” outlook. Tradition lives on for Real Madrid in the institution of the club, not in its players. Once a better player becomes available, Real will sign them and replace the obsolete player. There isn’t any room for nostalgia, for loyalty. For Real Madrid it’s simple: to play for us, you have to be the best in the world. 

We don't doubt for a moment that the wise and learned readers of The18 have long known not to trust 98% of what politicians say during a presidential campaign. And it seems that premise can be applied to La Liga, too.

You might recall that Barcelona are currently serving a transfer ban that sees them unable to sign any player until January 2016. And yet, rumor has it, this summer the Catalans will sign Paul Pogba from Juventus. Let that sink in: Paul Pogba, this summer.

No pressure, Chicharito.

You are playing at one of the top 3 clubs in the world, struggling to make it onto the field. You just need to do you, focus on your game and getting better. That’s it. No team is depending on you. It’s not like you have the hopes of an entire nation riding on your shoulders. 

“Chicharito has the mission in Real Madrid of making all Mexicans look good. I hope they give him time to demonstrate his quality.”

Well, there that is.  

The seemingly never ending saga of “Will Messi or won't Messi leave?” has just gotten a fresh wave of fuel to keep burning.

We care because, of course, this is Lionel Messi for crying out loud. If he goes to another team, it will be a shock to the global soccer landscape.

Just as much as we care, however, we hate all of this gossip because it inevitably ends up being the grown up, multi-million dollar equivalent of "he said, she said." Except, maybe in this instance, it's "he said, this other guy said, and then a bunch of other guys said it again."