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European Paper Review

A first defeat for Atletico Madrid as Real Madrid go top, Lionel Messi continues to score and Nice remain spectacular in France - where the country’s biggest game ends 0-0. Chelsea’s 4-0 hammering of Manchester United makes headlines, too.



Real Madrid are top of La Liga after they beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 and previous leaders Atletico Madrid lost at Sevilla. “A lesson from Sevilla for Simeone,” opined the Catalan daily La Vanguardia.

‘Leaders in Distress,’ is the headline on Monday’s Marca. ‘Morata rescues Madrid in the 83rd minute.’ Zinedine Zidane’s team didn’t always convince.

“Leader between the whistles,” states La Vanguardia – that’s whistles from the crowd. ‘They recoup first place with little football and without success’. Marca praised the Basques who fell to their 12th consecutive defeat at the Bernabeu, but not Cristiano Ronaldo, to whom they refused to even give a mark. He joined Zidane and defender Varane on the naughty step for the perceived crime of performing poorly. Madrid remain unbeaten after nine league games, while Sevilla are second, with a 100% home record of five straight wins.

Barcelona came from 2-1 on Saturday to beat Valencia 3-2 at Mestalla, with the winner coming from a Lionel Messi penalty in the 93rd minute. Objects were thrown at the celebrating Barça players from the home crowd for their troubles.

'MESSI, DOUBLE PICHICHI’ is the cover of Monday’s Catalan based Mundo Deportivo, trumpeting that the world’s best player is now the leading scorer in both La Liga and the Champions League, with an incredible 49 goals so far in 2016. There was bad news for Barça as Andres Iniesta was stretchered off injured. “Objective Clasico” writes Marca of a player they’d rather not (should this be deleted? ) play in the clasico at the start of December.

“Bavarians frustrate Dortmund!” said German tabloid, BILD – “but it wasn’t the champions from Munich!” Borussia Dortmund drew for second week in a row in the Bundesliga but their dramatic 3-3 away at minnows Ingolstadt could have been much worse. Thomas Tuchel’s injury-hit side twice trailed by two goals before Christian Pulisic’s stoppage time equaliser spared their blushes.

“Dortmund rescue point by the skin of their teeth!” said Handelsblatt. “Pulisic caps off wild ride!” summed up Kicker. “Naïve BVB avoid humiliation,” said Süddeutsche Zeitung, adding: “Tuchel’s talented troop still has a lot to learn.” The new Dortmund manager has seen his young squad decimated by injuries and local Revier Sport absolved him from blame, instead attacking the young players for a lack of “passion, desire and drive.”

Unlike last week, Bayern Munich capitalised with a comfortable 2-0 win over Borussia Mönchengladbach, who looked tired following their midweek win against Celtic. “One-way football from Bayern” said Kicker, “Bayern return to their old dominance,” added Süddeutsche Zeitung, before lamenting that: “the league is bending over all too easily.”

Indeed, Gladbach and Dortmund weren’t the only sides to suffer Champions League hangovers as Bayer Leverkusen also crashed to a 0-3 defeat at home to Hoffenheim. Temperamental manager Roger Schmidt was sent to the stands for the second time this year for a verbal assault on visiting manager Julian Nagelsmann. “What sort of nutcase are you?” raged Schmidt in the direction of his opposite number, leading the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung to pose the inevitable question of “What sort of nutcase are you?” in return.

While Germany’s European representatives stutter, Hoffenheim find themselves among a surprise top four which also includes Hertha Berlin (who inflicted Cologne’s first defeat of the season, 2-1) and the ever-popular RB Leipzig who beat Werder Bremen 3-1. “The Bulls are on the march!” screamed BILD – “2 goals from Naby Keita! 2 points off Bayern! 2nd in the league!” The FAZ called Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side “The Leipzig record-breakers!” as the club created by an Austrian drinks manufacturer in 2009 became the first ever promoted team to remain unbeaten after eight Bundesliga games.

In France, Nice Matin hailed a “victoire spectaculaire!” for league leaders Nice as the Eagles beat Metz 4-2 to remain four points clear at the top of Ligue 1. L’Équipe called Lucien Favre’s side “irresistible” as Alassane Pléa hit a hat-trick in the absence of the injured Mario Balotelli.

Monaco lead the chasing pack following a 6-2 thumping of Montpellier. “Monaco obliterate Montpellier” said Ouest-France whilst L’Équipe pointed out that no team has scored as many goals after just ten matches since Nice in 1972. Radamel Falcao was among an impressive six different goal-scorers for the Monégasques.

At the end of a week which saw American businessman Frank McCourt complete a €45m takeover of Marseille, the struggling Phocéens travelled to Paris for the first Classique of the season. “Can we really still call it a classico?” asked a cynical France Football pre-match, referring to the current gulf between the two cubs. Libération agreed, adding that “the repressive measures taken against supporters have significantly cooled the atmosphere.”


And so it was that, despite the presence of PSG’s vocal ultras following talks with the club, the biggest fixture in French football finished 0-0 – Edinson Cavani missing a golden opportunity in the second half whilst OM failed to register a single effort on goal. “Paris bang their heads against Marseille wall” said France Football. Le Parisien also described the visiting team as “concrete” under new manager Rudi Garcia but Marseille-based La Provence said: “OM stand up to PSG and hold their own.”

Elsewhere, the European press also reacted to Manchester United’s devastating 4-0 defeat by Chelsea. France Football said José Mourinho was “given a spanking by Chelsea” whilst L’Équipe called the result a “humiliation – a nightmare for Mourinho.” In Germany, Kicker sarcastically asked for “Schweinsteiger, please!” whilst also questioning the continued absence of former Dortmund favourite Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

In Italy, United’s defeat is also front page news with Gazzetta Dello Sport reporting ‘Chelsea Flatten United’. In Serie A, Inter Milan lost again, this time at Atalanta. ‘Super Atalanta: Gasp crushes Inter again,’ is the headline of Gazzetta Dello Sport. “Off De Cliff. (the Inter coach) De Boer plummets, he could be sacked already.’


That tallies with Rome based Corriere dello Sport’s opinion: ‘Last Call. De Boer, on Wednesday he gambles with Inter.’ Inter are 14th and have won only three of their nine league games. “The Chinese owners are disconcerted, but Thohir saves the Dutchman” it writes of Indonesian businessman and club president Erick Thohir. “If he fails there are three options: Piolo, Blanc and Leonardo.”

In Turin, Torino drew 2-2 with Lazio. “Toro draw like a big club” writes the local Tutto Sport. Torino are a highly creditable fifth, while the paper also praises AC Milan, who beat leaders Juventus on Saturday. “Go Milan,” is one headline. “You look like Conte’s Juve.” A compliment indeed, not that Conte was short of them this weekend.