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Real Madrid to fightback win against Espanyol
Vinicius Jr came off the bench to score once and set up another goal to steer champions Real Madrid to a 4-1 fightback victory over Espanyol in LaLiga on Saturday.
Real Madrid dominated proceedings but fell behind in the 54th minute due to a rare blunder by their goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who accidentally deflected a low cross from Jofre into his own net.
However, Real found the equaliser four minutes later with a close-range strike by Dani Carvajal, taking advantage of a mistake by Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia who let a Jude Bellingham lateral shot from close range squeeze under him, leaving the ball free for Carvajal to smash into an empty net.
Vinicius Jr then worked his magic within three busy minutes, first lifting a brilliant cross with the outside of his foot to Rodrygo, who netted a first-touch effort from the middle of the box in the 75th minute, and then scoring himself with a tidy finish from a counter-attack in the 78th.
Kylian Mbappe finished off the win from the penalty spot after substitute Endrick was fouled inside the box in the 90th minute following a fine individual play by the Brazilian teenager.
Real remained second on 14 points, one behind leaders Barcelona who have a game in hand and visit fourth-placed Villarreal on Sunday.
"We played a very good game but it's true that it was difficult for us to finish plays. We created a lot of chances but we have a lot of room for improvement," captain Luka Modric told Movistar Plus.
"I don't know if it was our best or not but it was a great game, from start to finish. We must continue like today. To have Vinicius, Mbappe, Bellingham and Rodrygo is awesome; they are great.
"They and the whole team are doing everything right but we still can improve; we'll keep going in the next few games until we feel we reach out true potential. This match can give us confidence."
Real manager Carlo Ancelotti made four changes from the team that beat Stuttgart 3-1 in their Champions League opener on Tuesday but they still were in commanding form from the start, with Mbappe as the main focus of their efforts up-front.
The France captain was busy and relentlessly trying to connect with his team mates but lacked a final punch, missing several shots and still looking far from the difference-maker Real thought they were getting when they signed him as a free agent from Paris St Germain in the close season.
Modric and Federico Valverde fed him with several good passes through in space, but Mbappe either finished off-target or sent the ball into the hands of the keeper, wasting several opportunities.
After Espanyol got the lead, Ancelotti immediately brought Vinicius off the bench and the Brazilian winger gave the locals the spark they were missing.
Real host Alaves on Tuesday before facing local rivals Atletico Madrid in a highly anticipated Spanish capital derby next weekend.
Bayern maintain perfect start as Olise sinks Bremen
Free-scoring Bayern Munich extended their perfect Bundesliga start when Michael Olise scored two goals and set up two more to give them a 5-0 victory over Werder Bremen in a one-sided contest at the Weserstadion on Saturday.
The Bavarians, who suffered a shock 1-0 defeat to Bremen when the sides last met in a league clash in January, ran out comfortable winners to move up to 12 points from four matches.
"(Olise) is a great player. We understand each other very well, we talk a lot. The more games we play together, the more chemistry we'll have. He's got a lot of quality," Bayern attacker Jamal Musiala told Sky Sports.
Winger Olise, signed from Premier League club Crystal Palace for a reported fee of 60 million euros ($66.97 million) in July, has quickly established himself in the first team. He once again repaid manager Vincent Kompany's faith as he was heavily involved in Bayern's attack.
Bayern, who have scored 20 goals in three matches across all competitions, opened the scoring in the 23rd minute when Harry Kane seized possession on the edge of the area and played the ball to Olise, who fired his shot past keeper Michael Zetterer.
The French winger then wriggled his way into Bremen's penalty area in the 32nd minute and his cutback was turned home by Musiala.
Bayern continued their onslaught after the break and Olise teed up Kane for a shot from the edge of the box, which led to the striker's 41st Bundesliga goal -- making him the highest-scoring English player in the German top flight's history.
Olise netted his fifth goal in three matches with a delightful sidefooted finish into the top corner and substitute Serge Gnabry wrapped up the scoring in the 65th minute.
"It's been a great week. Credit to the boys for the attitude and mentality," Kane told Sky Sports.
"The way we play on and off the ball has been great. The squad is being used well, the players are getting fitter, we were still pushing after three, four, five goals and wanted to score another."
Bayern were without veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who was named in the starting lineup before pulling out after the warm-up due to a thigh injury, but the change made little difference.
Deputy Sven Ulreich was untroubled throughout the match and faced no shots on target from a toothless Bremen attack.
Bayern stepped off the gas in the last 15 minutes of the match, likely saving energy for a testing clash against champions Bayer Leverkusen next Saturday.
Juventus held to goalless draw by Napoli
Juventus were held to a goalless draw by Napoli in Serie A on Saturday, their third consecutive match to end scoreless on the domestic front.
Juve are the only side yet to concede a goal in Europe's top five leagues but they now also remain goalless since the beginning of September in their domestic campaign.
Thiago Motta's side were previously held to 0-0 draws against AS Roma and Empoli before they got their Champions League campaign under way with a 3-1 victory over PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday.
Juventus are fourth in the standings on nine points, one point behind third-placed Napoli who have been unbeaten in four games.
The hosts had more possession throughout the game but Napoli came closer to snatching a winner and Juve goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio saved Scott McTominay's attempt from outside the box in the first half, before Romelu Lukaku failed to follow up.
Di Gregorio then leaped to deny winger Matteo Politano from a free kick in first-half stoppage time, diverting the shot with the tips of his fingers.
Politano had another great chance to put Napoli in front after the break when he went on a solo run but struck slightly above the bar from the edge of the box.
Good defending on both sides nipped many chances in the bud as Juve centre-back Gleison Bremer did well to keep Lukaku under control while Napoli's back line proved a tough nut to crack for Dusan Vlahovic, who was substituted at halftime by Timothy Weah.
Juventus won 10 of their previous 13 home games against Napoli in Serie A, including last season (1-0).
Only once previously have they managed to keep a clean sheet in their opening five games of a league campaign, in 2014-15.
Juventus next travel to Genoa on Sept. 28 before they visit RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Oct. 2.
Napoli host Monza in next round of games after they face Palermo in the second round of Coppa Italia on Thursday.
PSG stay unbeaten after draw at Reims
Substitute Ousmane Dembele's second-half goal earned Paris St Germain a 1-1 draw at Reims on Saturday to maintain their Ligue 1 unbeaten run.
The home side took an early lead when Junya Ito's clever cross into the box found his Japanese compatriot Keito Nakamura, who struck a superb finish after the ball bounced off PSG captain Marquinhos in the ninth minute.
Luis Enrique's side were desperate to equalise and midfielder Lee Kang-in had the clearest chance after Randal Kolo Muani's incisive cross, but he could not get his effort past goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf.
PSG were without striker Marco Asensio, who picked up an injury in Wednesday's last-gasp Champions League win over Girona, and they struggled to find their pace but they were more aggressive after the break.
Reims defended well and thanks to Ito's skilful assists even threatened more until Dembele came on for Desire Doue in the 65th and three minutes later latched on to Joao Neves's fierce cross to slot home from a tight angle.
"It's a difficult result and I don't think we deserved a draw," Neves said. "We tried to put things right in the second half. I'm not happy with the result but I'm happy with the way we played.
"I think you have to learn from every game. The next will be better and we'll try to get as many points as possible," he added.
Striker Muani described the match as complicated but said they fought with intensity.
"We were desperate to get back on the scoresheet and win the game... But you have to look on the bright side, we're still unbeaten," he said.
PSG top the table with 13 points from five games and host Stade Rennais next. Second place Olympique Marseille visit Olympique Lyonnais on Sunday.
Valencia shock Girona
Girona slumped to a surprise 2-0 defeat at struggling Valencia on Saturday as an own goal by Juanpe and a deflected strike by Dani Gomez within two minutes in the second half gave the hosts a first LaLiga win in six games.
The victory moved Valencia from bottom to 18th on four points, one ahead of Getafe and two ahead of Las Palmas. Last-year's surprise package Girona are 13th on seven points.
Valencia were toothless in a dour first half in which neither side managed to get a shot on target.
Despite controlling possession, Girona were out of ideas up-front and often exposed to counter attacks, after manager Michel made six changes to the team that lost 1-0 in the Champions League at Paris St-Germain on Wednesday, when they conceded a last-minute goal due to a blunder by their goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga.
Valencia broke the deadlock in the 56th minute following a bad mistake by the visitors' defence when putting the ball in play. Gomez recovered the loose ball and fired a strike from long range that was heading wide until it deflected off Girona's Juanpe and wrong-footed Gazzaniga before finding the back of the net.
Two minutes later, another error by Girona's defence helped Valencia to secure the win when Ladislav Krejci gifted a pass to Gomez who fired a strike from the edge of the box, Valencia's first and only shot on target, which slightly diverted off an opponent before slotting just inside the left post.
As Girona tried to make a late run, Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili showed why Liverpool decided to spend more than 30 million euros ($33.49 million) to sign him after he stood out with Georgia at Euro 2024.
The 23-year-old Mamardashvili, who is staying at Valencia on a one-year loan before moving to the Premier League next season, made a stunning reflex save to deny a bullet header by Girona’s Gabriel Misehouy in the 66th minute.
