Barcelona’s cushion is gone. Real Madrid’s 2-1 win at Spotify Camp Nou on Sunday cut the gap at the top of La Liga to three points, and because Atletico Madrid had already beaten Deportivo La Coruña the night before, the second-place challenge is closer still.
After matchday 10, Barcelona sit on 27 points, Atletico on 25 and Real Madrid on 24. Three clubs, three points, with Barcelona having played all 10 of their fixtures.
Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring in the first half, Raphinha drew Barcelona level just after the hour, and Mbappé struck again late to end Barcelona’s perfect start to the season and take him to 100 goals for Real Madrid in all competitions.
Flick blames fatigue after Clasico loss
The defeat was Barcelona’s second in five days, following a Champions League loss away to Paris Saint-Germain in midweek. Hansi Flick made no attempt to disguise his frustration afterwards.
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“It’s our first defeat in ten league games. We’re not playing at our best, and it has to do with freshness,” the Barcelona head coach told reporters.
Asked whether the schedule had taken a toll, Flick turned sharper.
“Do you only watch the matches?” he said, according to Goal. “We play here and there, and sometimes there are only two days between matches.”
He pointed to the week of recovery before Barcelona’s next fixture.
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“We have a week until the next match to prepare. We need to restore the team’s energy.”
Atletico quietly make it six in a row
Diego Simeone’s side have done their work without much noise. Atletico beat Deportivo La Coruña 1-0 on Saturday, Julián Alvarez converting in the second half, and have now won six La Liga matches in a row.
Simeone had set out his stall before matchday 10. Speaking two days before Barcelona lost at home, he told beIN Sports his side could compete at the top.
“Yes, of course, you can always compete. That’s perfectly clear. It’s obvious.”
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He stopped short of staking a claim on the trophy, pointing to Levante and a Champions League trip to Bayern Munich on the road ahead and praising Barcelona as “a fantastic team”.
Alavés at home, then the Metropolitano
Barcelona host Alavés at Spotify Camp Nou on Sunday 1 November, with Flick having a week to work on the physical recovery he says his players need.
Then comes the matchday that could reshape the top of the table. Atletico Madrid face Barcelona at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Sunday 8 November, with the chance for Simeone’s side to leapfrog the champions into first place if the home team win and Flick’s team fail to pick up a result the week before.
Real Madrid, three points off the summit, visit Valencia the same weekend.
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