La Liga 2026/27 Matchday 10 Recap: Mbappé Double Wins El Clásico, Barcelona vs Real Madrid 1-2

Barcelona vs Real Madrid: Kylian Mbappé celebrates his second goal, the late winner at Spotify Camp Nou.

Barcelona vs Real Madrid 1-2: Mbappé Hits 100

José Mourinho came to Barcelona without Vinícius Júnior, who was suspended, and without Thibaut Courtois, who had the flu. Andriy Lunin started in goal. On paper, a problem. On grass, no problem at all.

Mbappé opened the scoring on 41 minutes. Yan Diomande's cross was cleared by Gerard Martín straight onto Mbappé, and the ball went in off his thigh. Not pretty. Still counts. Lamine Yamal missed a big chance to level before halftime, and Arda Güler had already forced Joan García into an early save.

Barça also lost Xavi Espart to injury before the half-hour, with Alejandro Balde coming on. They came out strong after the break anyway. Raphinha equalised on 61 minutes from a Pedri pass, and the Camp Nou woke up. Five minutes later Lunin saved a Gerard Martín header, and that save was as big as any goal. Hair. Pulling. In Utah.

Then the winner. Jude Bellingham spun away with a roulette, Güler found Eduardo Camavinga, and Camavinga set up Mbappé to finish on 88 minutes. According to Real Madrid's website, it was Mbappé's 100th goal for the club. Mourinho said afterwards that Madrid won the Clásico with all the merit, and for once I fully agree with him. One worry: Federico Valverde went off with discomfort in his right leg, so keep an eye on that this week.

Madrid's league record is now eight wins and two losses. Those two losses hurt at the time, but this is the kind of win that makes you forget them. Big teams win big games, and Mourinho's Madrid just won the biggest one in Spain without two of their best players. My coffee went cold, but this time I didn't care.

Midweek: 4-1 Over Leipzig in the Champions League

Madrid warmed up on Wednesday by beating RB Leipzig 4-1 at the Bernabéu in the Champions League. Bernardo Silva scored his first goal for the club, and Güler, Mbappé and Diomande added the rest. That's three wins from three in Europe. Mourinho is smiling, which is always a little scary.

La Liga Title Race: Barcelona Still Lead, Atlético Close In

Hansi Flick's Barça are still top with 27 points, but the gap is shrinking. Atlético Madrid sit second with 25. Real Madrid are third with 24, three points off the top after being six behind before kickoff. Three teams, three points, and it's only October. The second Clásico is going to be loud.

Barça will be fine. They have Pedri, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal, and one loss doesn't change that. But for one night, the noise at the Camp Nou was the sound of Madrid fans in the away end.

So that's La Liga this week. Barça lead on 27, Atlético have 25 and Madrid 24, all after ten games. Madrid go to Racing Santander next, then AEK Athens in the Champions League. Mbappé has 100 goals for the club, and if he keeps scoring like this, nobody in Madrid will care about cold coffee.

Verdicts

• Real Madrid: No Vinícius, no Courtois, and still a win at the Camp Nou. That's a team, not just a lineup.
• Mbappé: 100 goals, and the big ones too. Keep him fed and keep him healthy.
• Barcelona: First loss of the season. Still top. Still dangerous.

Up next: Real Madrid at Racing Santander, then AEK Athens away in the Champions League.