Surprising result out of the Champions League today: AC Milan emerged victorious over Barcelona, 2-0, and it was an earned win. Note, though that “earned” doesn’t mean “without controversy.”

Barcelona wasn’t having its best day. Midway through the second half of its Champions League matchup against Spartak Moscow, Barca found itself down 2-1. Was an upset in the making? Well… no. And to no one’s surprise, the world’s best player finished the job for the favorites.

Real Madrid and FC Barcelona are playing right now. Real’s up 2-1 in the second half, so it’s still anyone’s match, and these next 40 or so minutes should provide some pretty compelling soccer. After the jump, though, appreciate what the world’s best players have already given us.

Even if you’re often unmoved by human interest stories, the tale of 11-year-old Gabriel Muniz is pretty cool. Muniz was invited to train with FC Barcelona next month, and like many, many other young soccer players, his idol is Lionel Messi. Like very, very few other young soccer players, though, Muniz has no feet. But he makes it work, and work well. [The Big Lead]

Not the greatest week for FC Barcelona. A loss to Chelsea in Champions League action, a loss to Real Madrid over the weekend – and today, just a few minutes from avenging that Chelsea defeat at home, they… didn’t. Video of why they didn’t after the jump.

Love Cristiano Ronaldo or hate him (and it is so, so easy to hate him), the guy’s talent at putting the ball in the net is some of the best, if not the best, in the world.

Today Lionel Messi scored his 253rd goal for FC Barcelona, which makes him number one on the team’s all-time scoring list. And he scored said goal the way he has scored so many others: cool, calm, collected and downright nasty, with a beautiful chip over the goalkeepers head. Check out history after the jump.

When you think of Shakira, sports probably isn’t the first thing that crosses your mind, and on the off chance it does, it’s probably because she’s dating FC Barcelona’s Gerard Pique. The video after the jump might go a long way toward changing that.

Chivas de Guadalajara forward Marco Fabián scored a goal for the ages Wednesday night in Miami against Barcelona. See the video after the cut.

FC Barcelona is as good as it gets in team sports – a fantastic collection of talent that also plays beautifully as a team. They made Manchester United look almost nonexistent. They’re a big deal…but they still have to play by the rules.