Mbappé brace lifts Real Madrid level with Barcelona
Real Madrid returned to winning ways on Saturday with a 4-1 victory over Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabéu. Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 14th minute after Álvaro Carreras was fouled, then supplied Carreras for the second three minutes later. Jude Bellingham added a third in the 35th minute from Vinícius Júnior’s cut-back. Sergio Camello reduced the deficit shortly after half-time, but Mbappé completed his brace in stoppage time. The result gave José Mourinho’s side four wins from five league matches and moved them level with Barcelona on 12 points, although Barça had played one fewer game.
The emphatic first half answered some of the questions raised by Madrid’s defeat against Real Betis last Friday, while Mbappé’s two goals took his league tally to six. According to the New York Times, the French forward, Bellingham, Vinícius and new signing Yan Diomandé started together for the first time, creating chances with ease before the balance of the team deteriorated after the interval. Mourinho said it had been “a 45-minute game”, acknowledging that Madrid lacked physical and mental energy after the break. Rayo’s pressure made Thibaut Courtois important, but Mbappé’s late strike secured the points.
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Flick warns Barcelona to maintain focus before Levante trip
Hansi Flick urged Barcelona to preserve their intensity and concentration before Sunday’s La Liga visit to Levante. Barcelona had won all four of their opening league matches and sat top of the table, with 17 goals scored and two conceded, while their start across all competitions stood at five victories and 22 goals. The Catalans also began their Champions League campaign with a 5-1 win over Feyenoord earlier in the week. Flick said the squad had to prove its level in every match rather than rely on its early results, with the trip to the Ciutat de València offering the next test of their consistency.
The manager’s warning reflected the demands of Barcelona’s high-intensity style and a schedule already involving twice-weekly football. Flick said, “We know in football things can change very fast,” while stressing that any change in attitude would send the team in the wrong direction. He also indicated that rotation was being considered to keep players fresh, an issue particularly relevant with the match following the European fixture. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha had contributed 13 goals between them in all competitions, but Flick’s message was that attacking form would only remain effective if Barcelona kept their intensity, focus and activity without the ball.
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Valencia remain bottom after fourth defeat in five matches
Valencia’s difficult start continued with a 1-0 defeat away to Sevilla on Saturday, leaving them with one point from their first five La Liga matches. The result meant four losses and one draw for the club, who remained 20th and bottom of the table. Ryunosuke Sato started on the left side of midfield and played 62 minutes, but Valencia failed to find a response at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. The setback deepened the pressure around a team that had already endured a troubled opening and had struggled to convert possession and attacking phases into goals.
Spanish outlet Super Deportivo described Valencia’s performance as “shameful”, arguing that the situation was worsening rather than improving. The report also said local supporters and media had intensified their criticism, while the club’s coach acknowledged the team’s attacking problems. Sato’s arrival during the summer had brought attention to Valencia’s rebuilding effort, but his involvement against Sevilla did not alter the outcome. With four defeats already recorded, Valencia face an early fight to move away from the bottom and must find greater attacking threat quickly if their season is not to become defined by another prolonged struggle.
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Aubameyang makes strong La Liga return with Deportivo
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has made an impressive return to La Liga with Deportivo La Coruña, scoring four goals and providing two assists in his first four matches for the Spanish club. The 37-year-old joined Deportivo during the summer and has quickly become the main attacking figure for a side that returned to the top flight last season after eight years in the lower divisions. His goalscoring form placed him behind only Raphinha and Sergio Camello among the league’s leading scorers at the time of the report, making his start one of the early individual stories of the campaign.
Aubameyang’s resurgence added another chapter to Deportivo’s recovery after the club’s fall as low as Spain’s third tier. His career has already included goal-heavy spells with Saint-Étienne, Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal and Barcelona, but the move to Galicia represented a fresh challenge at a later stage of his career. Four goals and two assists in four games suggested that his experience had immediately given Deportivo a proven source of production. For a newly promoted side rebuilding its top-flight identity, that output could prove particularly valuable as the season develops.
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