Real Madrid emerged with the best possible preparation for El Clásico after thrashing RB Leipzig 4-1 in the UEFA Champions League, while Arsenal snatched a valuable 2-2 draw away to Bayern Munich during the third matchday of the league phase on Wednesday evening.
The European night delivered contrasting messages for the three teams: Los Blancos continued their campaign with a 100% record, Arsenal maintained their unbeaten run, and Bayern squandered an opportunity to return to continental winning ways. As for Leipzig, they left Madrid with a defensive crisis that now extends far beyond a single poor performance.
At the Santiago Bernabéu, Bernardo Silva opened the scoring in the 44th minute, and Arda Güler added the second in the 52nd minute, before Kylian Mbappé sealed the advantage in the 83rd minute. Tidiam Gomis pulled one back for the visitors in the 85th minute, but substitute Yan Diomandé responded with a brilliant goal against his former club two minutes later to secure the victory for José Mourinho’s side. Real Madrid raised their tally to 9 points in fourth place, having scored ten goals across their three European matches.
Attention now turns to the clash against Barcelona on Sunday, October 25, at the Spotify Camp Nou, where Real Madrid enter El Clásico sitting third in La Liga with 21 points, six points behind their table-topping rivals, adding doubled significance to the fixture in the title race. Their next European test will be an away trip to AEK Athens on November 4.
Conversely, a harsh period continued for Leipzig, who conceded ten goals in two consecutive matches between Saturday and Wednesday—six against Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, followed by four against Madrid. Martin Demichelis’s side failed to contain the fallout from their domestic collapse, further complicating their European campaign as they remain stuck on three points ahead of hosting Manchester City in the next matchday.
In Munich, Arsenal took the lead through Eberechi Eze in the 25th minute after coming on early as a substitute for Bukayo Saka, but Alphonso Davies equalized in the 35th minute before Harry Kane turned the score around from the penalty spot in the 61st minute. Just as Bayern looked set to seal the win, Declan Rice stepped up to score the equalizer in the 82nd minute, denying the hosts two valuable points.
With this result, Arsenal sit seventh in the current standings with seven points from two wins and a draw, while Bayern occupy 14th place with five points. The Bavarian side’s trajectory raises defensive questions; after opening the tournament with a 5-0 victory over Bodø/Glimt, they drew 3-3 with Viking and 2-2 with Arsenal, conceding five goals in their last two matches and slipping temporarily outside the top eight qualification spots for the Round of 16.
Bayern face a congested fixture list beginning with a visit to Freiburg on Sunday, followed by hosting Magdeburg in the DFB-Pokal, before facing Borussia Dortmund on October 31 and traveling to face Atlético Madrid in Europe on November 3. Arsenal will host Everton this coming Saturday, then face Liverpool away before visiting Slavia Prague on November 4, after which the continental challenge heightens with fixtures against Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid.
In Wednesday’s other matches, Manchester United suffered a resounding 4-1 defeat to Como, Galatasaray beat Lille 4-2 in France, Aston Villa defeated Viking 3-1, and Club Brugge overcame Lens 3-0. Additionally, Inter Milan edged Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0, with Real Betis securing a matching 1-0 victory over Feyenoord.
