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Aston Villa had little trouble securing a 2-0 home win against Maccabi Tel-Aviv thanks to goals from Ian Maatsen and Donyell Malen, while Nottingham Forest were held to a 0-0 draw at Sturm Graz, where Morgan Gibbs-White saw a first-half penalty saved, Reuters reported.

Maatsen gave Villa the lead in first-half stoppage time, steering the ball in from a tight angle. Malen then sealed the result from the penalty spot a minute before the hour mark after Elad Madmon had fouled Ezri Konsa.

Many pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protesters gathered outside Villa Park before the match. Local police made six arrests, according to Reuters.

Clashes between Manchester City and Liverpool have often been regarded as key battles in Premier League title races in recent seasons but Sunday's encounter may merely point to which of the two clubs is best equipped to try to chase Arsenal, Reuters reported.

By the time the weekend's big game kicks off at the Etihad Stadium (1630 GMT) Arsenal, who visit surprise package Sunderland on Saturday, could be 10 points clear of champions Liverpool and nine ahead of Pep Guardiola's City.

That likely scenario would increase the pressure on City and Liverpool, who head into the last round of fixtures before another international stoppage second and third respectively, according to Reuters. 

Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi and teammate Rodrigo De Paul, whose club is in the first round of the MLS playoffs, have been selected for their home country Argentina's friendly match against Angola next week, Reuters reported.

Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni named the forward and midfielder to the 24-player roster for the Nov. 14 friendly.

Inter Miami and Nashville FC split the first two matches of their MLS Cup playoff series, with the decisive Game 3 on Saturday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Should Inter Miami advance, the Eastern Conference semifinals would not begin until Nov. 22 or 23, according to Reuters.

Players have taken to the streets in protest after the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) and A Division clubs agreed to forgo this year’s A Division League and instead organize only a National League.

At the call of the Nepal Football Players Association, footballers staged a sit-in outside ANFA headquarters in Satdobato on Thursday. They also hung their medals on the ANFA gate, saying they were “gifting” them to ANFA in protest. The players argued that the absence of a regular league has put their careers in jeopardy and pushed Nepali football further into decline.

Earlier on Monday, ANFA secretariat officials and representatives of 14 clubs agreed to hold the A Division League under a home-and-away format only from next year. For this year, they decided to organize a National League featuring 10 teams—the top six from the A Division League held three years ago and the four semifinalists of the ANFA President’s League currently underway in Hetauda.

The National League will include defending champions Church Boys United, Machhindra Football Club, Nepal Police Club, Satdobato Youth Club, Jawalakhel Youth Club, and New Road Team (NRT). The remaining eight A Division clubs, however, will not be represented.