⚽ Catch Al Ahly in the Club World Cup tonight: Al Ahly will be starting their campaign in the Club World Cup in Morocco by facing off against Oceania champions, New Zealand’s Auckland City in the first round tonight at 9 pm. Al Ahly will be joining the international competition for its eighth time this year and is looking to make it past the third place title secured in three prior contests. Tonight’s victor qualifies for the cup’s second round where they’ll meet US champions Seattle Sounders on February 4 for a chance to qualify for the semi-finals. You can check out the match on Saudi Arabia’s SSC channels or through Morocco’s Arryadia.

WATCH THIS SPACE- FIFA is going to roll out a change in “how referees communicate VAR related decisions,” the organization said yesterday. The change, which will be rolled out on a trial basis, will see referees actually communicating with fans in the stadium and watching at home to explain the rationale behind these decisions.

Over in the Spanish League: Barcelona looks to widen its five point lead against rivals Real Madrid when it faces off against host Real Betis tonight at 10 pm.

The second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest also kicks off at 10 pm. Keep in mind, United clinched a comfortable victory against Nottingham during an away game in their first leg with a three goal margin.

And over in the Ligue 1: Montpellier are up against Paris Saint-Germain at 10 pm.

Coppa Italia quarter finals: Fiorentina face Torino at 7pm and Roma face Cremonese at 10pm.

DFB Cup: Mainz face Bayern Munich at 9:45 and RB Leipzig play Hoffenheim at 7pm.

The Premier League returns on Friday — and the January transfer window just closed last night: There’s been a flurry of activity in the transfer market, particularly Chelsea, which is taking advantage of the lifting of the transfer freeze that was imposed until former Russian owner Roman Abramovic sold the club last summer. Among the other biggest changes: Mykhailo Mudryk moved from Shakhtar Donetsk for GBP 88.5 mn, Enzo Fernandez signed on for GBP 106.8 mn — a new record high at the Premier League — and Benoit Badiashile (formerly at Monaco) signed on for GBP 35 mn.

Elsewhere in the Premier League: At Arsenal, Leandro Trossard moved from Brighton for GBP 27 mn, Jakub Kiwior moved from Spezia for GBP 20 mn, and Jorginho — who was formerly at Chelsea — signed on for GBP 12 mn. Liverpool also signed Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven for GBP 45 mn, while Manchester United has brought on Jack Butland from Crystal Palace, Wout Weghorst from Burnley, and Marcel Sabitzer from Bayern Munich (all on loan). Leeds signed Max Wober from Red Bull Salzburg for GBP 11 mn and Georginio Rutter from Hoffenheim for GBP 35.5 mn, while Man City now has Maximo Perrone from Velez Sarsfield for GBP 8 mn.

In the Bundesliga: Dutch defender Daley Blind has joined Bayern Munich on a six-month contract (until the end of the season), joining Yann Sommer — who is transferring from Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Also: Dejan Lovren is returning to Lyon — where he had previously played from 2010 until 2013 — in Ligue 1, while La Liga saw Dutch international Memphis Depay joining Atletico Madrid.