Faltering La Liga champions Real Madrid slid to a shock 2-1 defeat at home to Alaves on Saturday as goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made a catastrophic error and record signing Eden Hazard suffered yet another injury.
Lucas Perez gave Alaves the lead in the fifth minute from the penalty spot after a handball from Nacho, the fifth penalty that Madrid have conceded in the league in three matches.
Hazard wasted a chance to equalise when he fired straight at Alaves keeper Fernando Pacheco and then had a penalty appeal waved away before hobbling off with a muscle injury in the 28th minute.
Former Madrid youth player Joselu made the most of a gift from Courtois to double Alaves’s lead early in the second half, unexpectedly receiving a stray pass from the Belgian outside the area and slotting into the empty net.
Casemiro pulled back a goal for Madrid in the 86th minute from close range while Isco almost found an equaliser in the sixth minute of added time but his shot bounced off the crossbar and Madrid had to swallow a third defeat in 10 league games.
Zinedine Zidane’s side are fourth in the standings on 17 points after 10 games, six below leaders Real Sociedad and second-placed Atletico Madrid.
Atlético Madrid snatched a 1-0 win at Valencia thanks to a late own goal to go level on points with La Liga leaders Real Sociedad.
The Serie A champions, Juventus, were held to a 1-1 draw away to promoted Benevento on Saturday, their fifth draw in nine league games this season, after resting Cristiano Ronaldo. Álvaro Morata gave Juventus a 21st-minute lead before being sent off as tempers flared at the end of a niggly second half. Gaetano Letizia had rifled in Benevento’s equaliser in first-half stoppage time.
Juve’s performance raised more questions about the team’s dependence on 35-year-old Ronaldo, their leading scorer in the league with eight goals having played only five matches. Although they are still unbeaten, Juve have yet to win a league game this season without Ronaldo.
The Turin side are fifth with 17 points, three behind leaders AC Milan. The former Italy and AC Milan teammates Filippo Inzaghi and Andrea Pirlo, coaches of Benevento and Juventus respectively, faced each other on the touchline for the first time.
Federico Chiesa set up Juve’s goal with a majestic crossfield pass to release Morata and the Spaniard scored with an angled shot off the post. Paulo Dybala should have added a second but curled wide before Benevento grabbed their equaliser three minutes into first-half stoppage time.
Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny made a brilliant save to deny Pasquale Schiattarella but the resulting corner was poorly cleared by Arthur and the ball fell perfectly for Letizia to rifle in. Juventus had more possession but did little with it, while Benevento looked dangerous when they broke forward. Benevento had six players booked and Juventus one in the second half before Morata lost his cool and was dismissed.
Internazionale continued their rollercoaster season by scoring twice in the first 15 minutes on the way to a convincing 3-0 win at previously unbeaten Sassuolo in Serie A. Outplayed in a 2-0 home defeat by Real Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday, Inter went ahead through the former Arsenal and Manchester United forward Alexis Sánchez in the fourth minute, and doubled their lead when Vlad Chiriches scored an own goal.
Roberto Gagliardini scored an exquisitely taken third goal on the hour as he flicked up a bouncing ball with his left foot and volleyed into the far corner with his right. The win takes Inter into second place with 18 points, ahead of Sassuolo on goal difference, and two behind the leaders, Milan, who host Fiorentina on Sunday.
In Germany, Kingsley Coman scored one goal and set up another as Bayern Munich came from a goal behind to beat VfB Stuttgart 3-1 on Saturday and defend top spot in the Bundesliga. Robert Lewandowski drilled in his 12th league goal of the season on the stroke of half-time from a Coman assist to turn the game around after Tanguy Coulibaly had put the hosts in front in the 20th minute and Coman had levelled.
It was the seventh consecutive game in which Bayern conceded a goal, and Philipp Förster should have doubled Stuttgart’s lead when he missed the target from three metres out. But Coman then hit the home side on the break, scoring from a tight angle to level on 38 minutes.
Stuttgart kept carving out chances in the second half and Manuel Neuer did his best to keep the visitors in front. It was not until Douglas Costa’s low shot three minutes from time made it 3-1 that the Bavarians were able to breathe easily.
Bayern, who face Atlético Madrid in the Champions League next week, are on 22 points with RB Leipzig second on 20 after beating Arminia Bielefeld 2-1 thanks to goals by Angeliño and Christopher Nkunku.
Borussia Dortmund suffered a shock 2-1 loss at home to Cologne to drop four points off the pace in the Bundesliga title race. Cologne stunned the hosts with an early goal when Ellyes Skhiri tapped in at the far post in the ninth minute. Dortmund, who fired five goals past Hertha Berlin last week, were lacking punch and instead it was hard-working Cologne who scored again with Tunisia international Skhiri.
Thorgan Hazard cut the deficit with a low shot on 74 minutes but despite desperate late attacks and a golden chance missed by Erling Haaland deep in stoppage time they could not find an equaliser. Dortmund are third on 18 points, four behind Bayern and two behind RB Leipzig.