The Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé scored the opener and set up another goal as the hosts beat mid-table Sevilla 4-2 on Sunday to move up to second place in La Liga and close the gap on Atlético Madrid to one point going into the winter break.
Mbappé scored with a thunderbolt from outside the box in the 10th minute before Federico Valverde put the reigning champions two goals ahead from long-range 10 minutes later. Rodrygo fired in the third in the 34th from a cross by Lucas Vázquez.
Sevilla pulled one back a minute later when Isaac Romero headed home but Brahim Díaz restored the home side’s three-goal cushion in the 53rd minute when he finished off a clever move after Mbappé and Vázquez combined to set him up.
Sevilla got a late goal when Dodi Lukebakio was put through in the 85th but Real saw the game out to move two points clear of Barcelona, who are third on 38 points having played a game more than the top two after losing 2-1 to Atlético on Saturday.
Borussia Dortmund struck three times in five first-half minutes to secure a 3-1 win at Wolfsburg on Sunday and climb to sixth in the Bundesliga.
Donyell Malen marked his return to Dortmund’s starting lineup in style, opening the scoring with a close-range volley following a corner in the 25th minute. Maximilian Beier doubled the lead just three minutes later with a superb finish off the post before setting up Julian Brandt, who returned to action after a month out injured and scored on the half-hour mark.
The hosts got on the scoresheet with a Denis Vavro header from a corner in the 58th minute. Dortmund were then reduced to 10 men four minutes later as Pascal Gross was sent off for a last-man foul on Lukas Nmecha.
Dortmund moved to 25 points to sit in the last European spot, while Wolfsburg remain 11th with 21 points. Bayern Munich, who thrashed RB Leipzig 5-1 on Friday, are leaders with 36 points.
In Serie A, Atalanta’s Charles De Ketelaere was his team’s hero on Sunday, scoring a late second goal to secure a 3-2 victory over Empoli at home and send his side back to the top of the table.
The Belgian weaved his way to the edge of the box four minutes from time, skilfully holding off defenders before drilling a low shot into the near bottom corner for the match-winning goal. Atalanta now top the table with 40 points, two ahead of Napoli, with Empoli 11th on 19 points.
Lorenzo Colombo stunned the hosts after 13 minutes, giving Empoli the lead by driving a volley into the net, capitalising on a assist from the byline that took the Atalanta defence by surprise.
However, Atalanta showed why they are fighting at the top, with De Ketelaere equalising after 34 minutes with a low diving header from a cross that managed to get into the bottom corner.
Sign up to Football Daily
Kick off your evenings with the Guardian’s take on the world of football
after newsletter promotion
Ademola Lookman sealed Atalanta’s first-half comeback in stoppage time, expertly bringing the ball down inside the box with his thigh before calmly slotting it into the net.
Despite Atalanta’s pressure, Empoli pulled level three minutes before the hour mark as Sebastiano Esposito converted from the penalty spot after Berat Djimsiti brought down Alberto Grassi.
The match remained evenly contested until De Ketelaere’s late goal sealed the outcome.
Paulo Dybala scored twice and set up another goal to get Roma back on track in with a comfortable 5-0 win over Parma.
The Argentinian playmaker scored an early penalty and pounced on a rebound from Alexis Saelemaekers’ initial shot early in the second half to steer Roma to just their fifth league win of the season.
Roma looked to have finally clicked under Claudio Ranieri when they managed back-to-back wins over Lecce and Braga in the league and Europa League but they lost last weekend at promoted Como.
More details to follow after later matches …
