La Liga

Ancelotti says Mbappe 'aware' he must play better after Madrid defeat

Carlo Ancelotti is convinced Kylin Mbapp will find a way out of the rut that has included two big penalty misses since his highly-anticipated move to Real Madrid, the Italian coach said Friday. Mbapp had spot kicks saved in losses at Liverpool and, most recently, Athletic Bilbao this week. After the 2-1 defeat in Bilbao, the France star said on social media that he took full responsibility for another disappointing performance. He is aware of what is going on. His post after the Athletic game is one of a player who knows how he is playing and that he can play better, Ancelotti said a day before Madrid visits Girona in La Liga. There are players who are unaware they are not playing up to their potential, but he is aware that he can do more, and he is going to do all he can to improve as soon as possible. Mbapp's arrival as a free agent this summer created huge expectations that arguably the world's top talent would quickly reach new heights, with an experienced side coming off a dou

Raphina help Barcelona break La Liga slump with 5-1 victory over Mallorca

Barcelona got back to winning in the Spanish league in style, routing Mallorca 5-1 with a pair of goals by Raphinha. Ferran Torres, Frenkie de Jong and Pau Vctor also scored for Barcelona, which hadn't won in three consecutive league games to allow Real Madrid to inch closer at the top of the standings. Madrid is now four points back although it has two games in hand. Torres, who got to start in place of league-leading scorer Robert Lewandowski, opened the scoring in the 12th minute after Mallorca defenders failed to clear an easy ball from inside the area. One defender tried to kick it away but it ended ricocheting off a teammate to give Ferran an easy shot on goal. The hosts equalized with Vedat Muriqi in a breakaway just before halftime in what was Mallorca's only shot on target, but Raphinha put Barcelona back in front by converting a 56th-minute penalty kick. He added to the lead in the 74th after a nice assist by Lamine Yamal. Raphinha now has 11 goals in 16 league games thi

Real Madrid, La Liga condemn racist insults against Yamal in 'El Clasico'

Real Madrid and the Spanish league on Sunday condemned racist insults against Lamine Yamal during Saturday's Clasico, and Madrid said it was working to identify those who abused the Barcelona forward. Madrid said it has opened an investigation in order to locate and identify the perpetrators of these deplorable and despicable insults so that the appropriate disciplinary and judicial measures can be taken. The league said it was going to formally denounce the intolerable racist insults and gestures against Barcelona players at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. The league said it strongly condemns these events and remains firm in its commitment to eradicate any type of racist behaviour and hatred inside and outside stadiums. There is no place for this scourge in sport. The reaction came after videos on social media showed the alleged insults against Yamal after he scored Barcelona's third goal in its 4-0 rout of Madrid. The 17-year-old celebrated in a corner in front of Madrid fans and

FIFA teams up with Spanish league for Barcelona-Atletico match in Miami

The Spanish league is trying to get approval to play a match between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in Miami in December. The league said its partner in the US, Relevent Sports, is working with FIFA to make sure the league is cleared to host the match outside of Spain. The league first tried to play a regular season match in the United States about five years ago, but its plans at the time were scrapped after opposition by Spain's soccer federation and the players' union. Staging the match abroad is part of the league's goal of promoting soccer and its brand in other countries. It has been expanding internationally for some time, hoping to close the gap on the powerful English Premier League. Critics say playing abroad would create unfair competition in the league.

Thibaut Courtois to miss El Cassico against Barcelona due to leg injury

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is expected to miss Saturday's Clasico against Barcelona after sustaining a muscle injury in Tuesday's Champions League match. Courtois has "an adductor injury in his left leg," the team said Wednesday. The Belgium goalkeeper had been nursing an abductor injury recently. He missed most of last season with an ACL injury. Rodrygo is also expected to miss the Clasico, coach Carlo Ancelotti said Tuesday after the forward was substituted in the 85th minute of Madrid's 5-2 victory over Borussia Dortmund. Madrid trails Barcelona by three points in La Liga standings.

Lewandowski's record-making brace help Barcelona beat Sevilla 5-1

Robert Lewandowski scored two more goals to extend his league-leading tally to 12 and Barcelona routed Sevilla 5-1 to open a three-point gap on Real Madrid ahead of next weekend's "clasico." Pedri and Pablo Torre also scored Sunday for the Catalan club, which restored its lead of La Liga a day after second-place Madrid won 2-1 at Celta Vigo. Barcelona midfielder Gavi came off the bench to replace Pedri in the 83rd minute, making his return to action nearly a year after a serious knee injury. I had been dreaming about this moment for several months, Gavi said. It's tough to watch from the outside. I have to enjoy every moment. I feel very lucky to be here today. Barcelona will play Madrid on Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Both teams have Champions League matches midweek Madrid hosts Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday and Barcelona hosts Bayern Munich on Wednesday. This was an important win considering the matches that we have ahead, Pedri said. We had to leave with a good ..

Modric surpasses Ferenc Puskas to become the oldest player for Real Madrid

Luka Modric became the oldest player in Real Madrid's history while also delivering the game-winning assist in a 2-1 victory at Celta Vigo in La Liga on Saturday. At 39 years, 40 days old, the former Ballon d'Or winner surpassed the milestone held by Ferenc Puskas since 1966 by four days. Modric went on as a second-half substitute after Celta pulled level. The Croatia midfielder immediately made an impact when he threaded a through-ball forward for Vincius Jnior to score the 66th-minute winner at Balaidos Stadium. It was a hard-fought game, Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. But we knew how to hang in there and got three important points thanks to a great pass by Modric. Luka always gives us something. Kylian Mbapp put the visitors ahead with a long-range strike in the 20th, only for Williot Swedberg to equalize in the 51st from a cross by scar Mingueza. That set the scene for Ancelotti to look to his bench and call on Modric to set things right for the defending champion. When a

Barcelona forward Ferran Torres sidelined because of thigh injury

Forward Ferran Torres will be sidelined because of a right thigh injury sustained in Barcelona's victory over Alaves in the Spanish league, the club said Monday. Torres had to be replaced five minutes into the 3-0 win at Alaves on Sunday, when striker Robert Lewandowski scored a hat trick. Barcelona said tests carried out on the first team player Ferran Torres confirm that he has an injury to the biceps femoris muscle in his right thigh. His return to training will be dependent on his recovery. Torres has made 10 appearances this season, six as a starter. His only goal came in the 7-0 league win against Valladolid in August. Barcelona is going into the international break with a three-point lead over Real Madrid at the top of the Spanish league standings.

First-half hat trick for Lewandowski as Barcelona remain on top in LaLiga

Robert Lewandowski continued his impressive start to the season, scoring a hat trick in a 25-minute span as Barcelona beat Alaves 3-0 and went into the international break top of the Spanish league. Lewandowski scored in the seventh, 22nd and 32nd minutes on Sunday to take his league tally to 10 goals in nine matches. He has a total of 12 goals in 11 games in all competitions, and has scored eight times in his last five matches. The Poland striker was coming off a brace in Barcelona's 5-0 rout of Young Boys in the Champions League on Tuesday. "We played a very good match from the first minute," Lewandowski said. "When you score three goals in the first half, it gives you the ability to be a lot more in control in the second." The victory moved Barcelona three points back in front of second-place Real Madrid ahead of the international break. Madrid had drawn even on points with the Catalan club with a 2-0 win over fourth-place Villarreal on Saturday. Barcelona was coming off its f

Real Madrid extends Carvajal's contract despite tests showing knee injury

Real Madrid extended Dani Carvajal's contract on Sunday after tests showed he will likely be sidelined for the rest of the season with a serious knee injury. Madrid said it agreed with Carvajal to extend his contract until June 2026 in an announcement made hours after the right back was diagnosed with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, a ruptured external collateral ligament and a ruptured popliteus tendon in his right leg. Madrid said Carvajal will undergo surgery in the coming days. The defender got hurt in second-half stoppage time of Madrid's 2-0 win against Villarreal in the Spanish league on Saturday. He went down in pain after kicking the leg of an opponent. The Spain international was crying when he was carried off the field on a stretcher. The 32-year-old Carvajal joined Madrid's youth squads at age 10 in 2002. He became a member of the main team in 2013 and has won 26 titles with Madrid, including six Champions League titles. Madrid had to deal with several knee liga

Atletico fans threw objects on field to interrupt Madrid derby in La Liga

The city derby between host Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid was interrupted after Atletico fans threw objects onto the field. The referee stopped the Spanish league game and sent the players to the locker rooms around the 70th minute at the Metropolitano on Sunday before play resumed after more than 15 minutes. Madrid had just scored the first goal of the match with der Milito, who celebrated near the sideline in front of Atletico fans. Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois alerted the referee about the objects including lighters being thrown onto the field. Atletico defender Jos Mara Gimnez and midfielder Koke Resurreccin went to talk to the fans in the section behind Courtois' goal. That section is where usually the more radical Atletico supporters are located. Atletico coach Diego Simeone also asked several times for the fans to behave. A message on the stadium's loudspeaker said the match was being interrupted for 15 minutes, and that it would be suspended if the problem ...

Osasuna ends Barcelona's unbeaten streak after picking 4-2 victory

Bryan Zaragoza scored one goal and set up another to spark Osasuna's stunning 4-2 win over Barcelona, dealing the Spanish league leader its first loss. The lightning-fast forward on loan from Bayern Munich crossed for Ante Budimir to open the scoring in the 17th minute. Zaragoza then showed some fancy high-speed dribbling to round goalkeeper Iaki Pea on the break for 2-0 in the 28th on Saturday. Barcelona youth player Pau Vctor pulled one back for the visitors in the 53rd, but Budimir earned and converted a penalty to put the result beyond doubt in the 72nd. Abel Bretones made it 4-1 in the 85th and substitute Lamine Yamal scored Barcelona's second goal. Barcelona recorded wins in the first seven rounds of the league. An eighth victory would have equaled a club record established in 2013. Barcelona remained atop the league standings at four points ahead of Real Madrid before the defending champion visits Atletico Madrid in a derby on Sunday. Osasuna moved into sixth place and sta

La Liga 2024-25 points table, standings, top 5 highest goal-scorers

Both Barca and Real are followed by Atletico Madrid (15 pts), Mallorca (14 pts), Villarreal (14 pts), and Athletic Club (13 pts), rounding off the top 6 at the moment.

Rodri to Mbappe: Top football players injured across European leagues

The defending La Liga and UCL champions Real Madrid suffered a massive blow when their star signee Kylian Mbappe picked up an injury during their match against Alaves

FC Barcelona's Dani Olmo to miss 4 to 5 weeks with hamstring injury

Barcelona got some bad news a day after extending its perfect start to the season, with winger Dani Olmo being diagnosed with a leg injury that will sideline him for four to five weeks. The club said tests conducted Monday showed he sustained a right hamstring injury in the second half of the 4-1 win at Catalan rival Girona in the Spanish league on Sunday. Olmo had to be replaced in the 61st minute, less than 15 minutes after he had scored the team's third goal in the match. The Spain international was signed from Leipzig this season and had been a crucial piece for coach Hansi Flick in the team's perfect start. Barcelona has won its first five games in the Spanish league, which it leads by four points ahead of Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Villarreal.

Table toppers across top five European leagues after international break

Teams from the top five European leagues will return to action later this week after a short seven-day international break.

Mbappe's dry run continues, Real Madrid drops points against Las Palmas

Kylian Mbapp remained scoreless and defending champion Real Madrid settled for a 1-1 draw at Las Palmas in the Spanish league. Mbapp, Madrid's biggest signing in years, is yet to score in the league this season. His only goal with Madrid came in the team's UEFA Super Cup victory against Atalanta earlier this month. It was Vinicius Junior who scored for Madrid, which beat Valladolid 3-0 in the previous round but had opened its title defense with a 1-1 draw at Mallorca. It's been difficult for us to be as solid as we were last season, Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. We need to find a solution quickly, and I think we are going to find it. It has been harder than expected. These first three matches showed me a lot of things that have not been working well. Vinicius found the net for his first league goal this season by converting a 69th-minute penalty kick after a handball inside the area. The hosts had taken the lead five minutes into the match after Alberto Moleiro got past a co

How the champions of Europe's top 5 leagues started their 2024-25 season

Manchester City and PSG have both started their campaign with straight wins

Lamine Yamal help Barcelona secure 2-1 victory over Athletic Bilbao

Lamine Yamal got the better of fellow Spain star Nico Williams when Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 Saturday in the players' first matchup since the two young talents led their nation to European Championship glory. Yamal opened the scoring before Robert Lewandowski provided the second goal to give Barcelona two wins in two games to start the Spanish league season. The Barcelona teenager struck in the 24th minute with a curling shot that was reminiscent of Lionel Messi's favorite moves. Yamal controlled a deflected ball, took two touches to skirt along the outside edge of the box before he found the angle to unleash a left-footed shot. The ball found the net after a deflection on Athletic player igo Lekue. Yamal and Williams chatted before and after kickoff. Yamal would not reveal in a post-game interview what they talked about, saying we are just good friends. But he did, perhaps half-jokingly, make a dig at his pal when he described his goal. I saw that Nico, who is not very

Real Madrid suffer setback, Jude Bellingham picks muscle injury in leg

Jude Bellingham has sustained a right-leg muscle injury, Real Madrid said Friday. Madrid did not say how many games the England midfielder would miss, but media reports said he could be out for up to a month. He took a knock and we're assessing him, Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said Friday. Madrid hosts Valladolid on Sunday aiming to bounce back from its 1-1 draw at Mallorca in the opening round of the Spanish league.