Europe

Most Liverpool fans were either bracing themselves or saying "whatever it's just a friendly" over and over when the Reds took on Barcelona at Wembley on Saturday. When the 90 minutes were up, though, fans were left with a 4-0 scoreline in favor of the scousers and the kind of performance that blows season expectations way out of proportion.

So let's do that.

We'll start with Sadio Mane, who for my money was the best player on a field that had Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi on it. Mane scored Liverpool's first goal, in the 15th minute.

Franck Ribery is not far removed from a time when he was considered one of the three best players in the world. Injuries have plagued the Frenchman recently, but that hasn't stopped Ribery from getting that money. Here, we explain Franck Ribery's net worth and salary.

The Boleyn Ground, the former home of West Ham United, was one of the greatest stadiums in all of English football. Located in raucous Upton Park, East London, the ground was a constant source of sound and fury for visiting opposition. This year, West Ham will move into the Olympic Stadium in nearby Stratford.

Having called the Boleyn home since 1904, many supporters were worried about the ramifications of moving to the larger, less-soulful Olympic Stadium.

Wayne Rooney's testimonial match was played Wednesday, and it was emotional for all involved. Everton, his first Premier League team, and Manchester United, likely his last, fought to a 0-0 draw that brought to mind Rooney's recent form. 

This was truly a game indicative of Rooney now who people think should maybe play in midfield or maybe stay in the dressing room and fold towels or something and not younger Rooney, who ran around on the field and did stuff. Here's a blow-by-blow account of the action. 

(falls asleep in front of the TV)

The injury that forced Cristiano Ronaldo to withdraw from the Euro 2016 final may cause him to miss Real Madrids opening La Liga match against Real Sociedad. With the game coming on the 21st of August, Ronaldo is a major doubt for Los Blancos.

Ronaldo has been given an extended break following his exertions in France, but the forward would’ve been unable to train with Real even if he’d wanted to. Ronaldo sprained his left knee in the final against France, and there’s no confirmed date for his return.

Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez provided a fantastic assist for Bayer Leverkusen’s opening goal in their 3-1 friendly victory over Italian club Fiorentina. Chicharito has been the subject of intense transfer speculation over the last week, the Mexican striker adding fuel to the flames by admitting that he could still move on from Leverkusen this transfer window.

Mexico and Germany got the Olympics off to a hot start with a 2-2 draw that made for a game that was both well-played and exciting.

One of Mexico's over-23 players, Oribe Peralta, opened the scoring.

Jurgen Klopp is one of the greatest personalities in the world of soccer, and a lucky group of American youngsters had the chance to sit face to face with the Liverpool manager and get some of their burning questions answered. 

The first and arguably most important question of the event was: “Who is your favorite footballer of all time?” 

Barcelona have been linked with just about every half-decent striker in Europe this transfer window: Nolito, Mario Mandzukic, Carlos Bacca, Mario Gomez, Kevin Gameiro and Luciano Vietto have all been run through the rumor mill. They've also looked to the other side of the pond, being linked with Andre-Pierre Gignac, Gabriel Jesus and Luan Vieira.

Tattoos used to be cool. Then Mark Clattenburg went and got some. The English referee oversaw both the 2016 Champions League final and the Euro 2016 final, and he now has the tattoos to prove it.

Please tell me these are henna tattoos. They're not? Goodness.