Carlo Ancelotti rested first-choice players, such as Antonio Rudiger, Ferland Mendy and Vinicius Junior, and Madrid struggled for fluency. Espanyol even took the lead in the 54th minute with an own goal from Thibaut Courtois, who miscued a seemingly harmless shot into his net.

Real are targeting three straight La Liga wins when they face their in-form visitors this weekend with Barca leading the way by four points. Ancelotti's side have 11 points from five games and have won their last two leagues outings as well as their UEFA Champions League opener. Espanyol have won their last two to rise to 12th with seven points.

Both Real Madrid and Deportivo Alaves’ leading chance creators, Vinicius Junior and Carlos Vicente, are top-five in LaLiga in that category.Real Madrid picked up a victory in its most recent

The Milan derby takes place on Sunday night in Serie A with the reigning champions in a much better place of late than the 2022 title-winners. Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan look slick and organised, holding Manchester City in the Champions League during the week and being unbeaten in their four opening league clashes so far.