Top 5 Performances from Around World Football This Weekend

It must be safe to say it now; football is back!

With a number of the world's top domestic leagues kicking off over the weekend, including Spain and England, and others already underway, there was an overriding sense of relief that all the waiting is over and we can now switch our attention from transfer talk to football talk.

Here are five of the most memorable performances from the weekend's matches.

Let us know below the line who you would add to the list.

Mignolet Doing His Homework

Sure, there may have been better overall goalkeeping displays in the opening weekend of the English Premier League, with Asmir Begovic particularly outstanding down the other end for Stoke City, but Simon Mignolet's debut for Liverpool will be talked about for years to come.

After a somewhat nervous start to his Anfield career, the Belgian keeper was presented with the chance to become an instant Liverpool hero when Stoke were awarded an 89th-minute penalty and the opportunity to tie the game.

Jonathan Waters stepped up to the spot. Mignolet bounced up and down on his line, battering the underside of the crossbar with his gloved hands. Waters shot low and left. Mignolet dived right and blocked the attempt then leaped to his feet to deny Kenwyne Jones' follow-up shot, sending the Anfield crowd into raptures, becoming the first Liverpool goalkeeper ever to save a penalty on debut and securing a precious three points for the Reds.

Liverpool coach Brendan Rogers praised the £9 million summer signing for his preparedness, as reported on Goal.com:

"

He made three terrific saves. When you get the penalty against you at the end you get a sinking feeling.

But he did his homework - he knows where all the penalty takers are going, he made a good first save and then obviously the second action to get up and make the double save was impressive.

"

Scocco's Smash and Grab

The hottest striker in Argentine domestic football for the past two seasons, Ignacio Scocco made the move to Internacional of Brazil during the transfer window, and he has continued where he left off for Newell's Old Boys.

Scocco's new club was trailing 1-0 to Botafogo until the Argentine flipped the game on its head in under a minute.

First, he curled in a searing low shot from a free kick to equalize; then, just 47 seconds later, he put his team in front with a neat finish after beating the offside trap.

The match ended in a 3-3 draw, but not before Scocco had showed Inter fans why he is so highly rated in his homeland.

Robin van Persie Does His Thing

This won't come as news to anybody, but Robin van Persie is good at football.

If Manchester United fans were concerned about their team's ability to hit the ground running this season following the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, the Dutchman's striking master class against Swansea must have come as the sweetest form of reassurance that things are going to be all right.

Van Persie scored twice in United's 4-1 win, and if his first goal was the result of his superb poaching instincts, the second featured skills that few players in the world could match.

Receiving the ball deep, van Persie attacked the goal like a shark honing in on a victim which it knows has no chance of surviving its naturally superior weaponry. 

As Swansea defenders backed off in terror, the former Arsenal forward sliced inside and out before lashing a vicious shot into the top left corner of the net.

No side with van Persie in its starting 11 can be anything but a title contender.

Tata Reignites Tiki-Taka

Barcelona's 7-0 demolition of Levante was a statement of intent.

Though the Catalans cruised to victory in La Liga last season, their embarrassing exit from the Champions League at the hands of a brutal Bayern Munich had many pundits proclaiming the end of an era.

Early signs are good, though, that Tata Martino has revitalized the squad and, consequently, breathed new life into tiki-taka.

Though Lionel Messi was his usual brilliant self, the fact that all the engine parts around him, especially Cesc Fabregas, Pedro, Dani Alves and Xavi, hummed with precision means Tata Martino deserves credit for his preseason preparation.

Stephan Lichtsteiner Rips Apart Former Club Lazio

Juventus have made some high-profile signings during the summer transfer window, but it was their established right-back, Stephan Lichtsteiner, who shone brightest in their 4-0 hammering of Lazio in the Supercoppa Italiana on Sunday.

The galloping Swiss can always be counted on to put in a solid shift, but against his former side, he was also Juve's most consistent attacking threat.

The Grasshoppers product set up the champions' first two goals, scored by Paul Pogba and Giorgio Chiellini, before storming into the Lazio area and finding the net himself with a delightful finish.

Lichtsteiner pumped his fist in the air when he was subbed off with seven minutes remaining.

He knew that he had crushed it.