#kylian-mbappe

#kylian-mbappe

FC Barcelona breezed past Athletic Club earlier this week to secure a place in the finals of the 2025/26 Spanish Super Cup, thrashing the Basque club 5-0. The Blaugrana will now face Real Madrid in the title-decider in Jeddah, after Los Blancos huffed and puffed their way to a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid in the second semifinal on Thursday night. However, the victory came at a significant cost for Xabi Alonso & co. as a number of his players finished the game with physical problems.

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe will miss Sunday's La Liga home game against Real Betis due to a knee injury but is pushing to be available for next week's Spanish Super Cup semifinal against Atletico Madrid, manager Xabi Alonso has said. The 27-year-old France captain, who equalled Cristiano Ronaldo's club record of 59 goals in a calendar year for Real in their 2-0 La Liga win over Sevilla on December 20, has a sprain in his left knee.

Defending champions Barcelona were Spain's "Christmas champions," heading into the break with a four-point lead at the top of the table despite losing the first Clásico of the season against their bitter rivals 2-1 back in October. Despite turning their stadium into a winter wonderland over the festive period, the Bernabéu has not been a happy place for Real Madrid,

The European Golden Shoe or Golden Boot was launched in 1967-68 by French newspaper L'Equipe to celebrate the leading goalscorer in league matches from the top division of a European league. European Sports Media took over the award from the 1997-98 season, deciding it would be won on a weighted points-based system, with the goals that players score multiplied by a specific number denoted by the Uefa coefficient of the league they play in.

Real Madrid faces off against Barcelona in a La Liga showdown on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 8:15 a.m. PDT at Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid. The first El Clasico this season finds Los Blancos and Barca at the top of La Liga the table, in first and second place. That's exactly how fans of both mega teams like it. Also, both teams have come from decisive wins in the Champions League. Barcelona thrashed lowly Olympiakos, while Real Madrid won a tight match against another superpower, Juventus.

France secured their place at next summer's World Cup with an easy 4-0 win over Ukraine in Paris. Les Bleus dominated possession from the outset but struggled to turn territory into clear chances before the break. Michael Olise and Rayan Cherki provided early spark on the flanks, while Kylian Mbappe twice tested Anatoliy Trubin, who produced strong saves from a low drive in the 17th minute and a bending Barcola effort just before half-time.