It makes sense that sports teams want to keep influencers out of their games. The battle some clubs are waging with their fans, however, is a different dilemma

By all appearances, things on the Yellow Wall seemed as they always had been. The stadium announcer hollered out the first names of Borussia Dortmund’s starting lineup and the supporters responded with their last names, tens of thousands of voices bellowing as one. Dozens of black and yellow flags waved over Europe’s largest standing terrace, a mass of faces fixed on the field beneath them.

And then Signal Iduna Park, sold out with 81,365 fans, roared when Max Beier’s lone goal led Dortmund to victory over Eintracht Frankfurt last Saturday, putting the home side even on points with Bayern Munich atop the Bundesliga standings.

Real Madrid forward was dropped by brands for comments Chinese media generally steered clear of outlining

It’s been a bad start to the week for the Kylian Mbappé. The France forward missed out on joining the elite roster of Ballon d’Or winners and instead became the latest high-profile addition to a far less illustrious list – that of foreign brands and individuals charged with “hurting the feelings of the Chinese people”.

The saga began when a video of the Real Madrid player making light of a meme involving him and China’s former leader Mao Zedong began spreading.

• Atlético accused Barcelona during summer chase

• Striker now rebuilding his reputation with fans

Barcelona’s pursuit of Julián Álvarez came at a modest cost ⁠on Tuesday after the Spanish FA fined the club €602 (£503) following a complaint by Atlético Madrid over contact ⁠with ​the striker.

Atlético accused Barcelona of approaching the Argentine, whose contract runs until June 2030, ⁠without first notifying them in writing.

It was just like old times as José Mourinho ended a night at Camp Nou with a knee slide and three points

José Mourinho had already done the por qué?, the printout and the press conference no-show in under 100 days. Now he’s done a knee slide too, and in the perfect place: back where it all began and where it can all begin again. When Kylian Mbappé scored the first in the clásico on Sunday night, Real Madrid’s manager hardly moved, sitting in the shadow of the bench – but when the striker got the second to win it with time running out, that was different. Mourinho leapt into the light, throwing himself to the grass, the knees of a 63-year-old’s trousers muddy as a schoolboy’s, stuck his tongue out and pumped his fists.

He does so love it when a plan comes together. To the right of him, the bench was emptying, subs joining the players in sprinting towards the south-west corner. As they leapt about, dodging the bottles thrown towards them from the end, way, way up in the furthest corner and stuck inside a glass box like a bunch of David Blaines, the small group of Madrid fans who had come were going mad. In the main stand, a thousand phones were raised. And 600 kilometres west, back in Boadilla, Thibaut Courtois was watching his teammates from the sofa at home, presumably wrapped in a blanket and cradling a cup of Lemsip. On the morning of the biggest game there is, he awoke with flu, forced to miss out.

The Orlando City product scored his first goal in La Liga, playing three positions in a comeback win over Valencia

While most of La Liga’s oxygen was consumed by the first el clásico since José Mourinho’s return to Real Madrid this weekend, another rivalry put Alex Freeman in the spotlight position.

Or quite a few positions, as it turned out.

Thirteen years later, José Mourinho led Real Madrid into the Camp Nou as one team and them out again as another having secured the kind of late victory he loves and which opens up a whole new world. With just three minutes and the final reserves of energy remaining, a wonderful moment of skill from Jude Bellingham found Eduardo Camavinga and set them on one last run. Camavinga sprinted free, skilfully slipped Pau Cubarsí and pulled back for Kylian Mbappé to provide the finish, a little bit of history written.

“The world that loves football will have stopped to watch this and they won’t have gone disappointed; this was two teams that played to win,” Mourinho said. It had been an intense, breathless ride, a proper battle, and it was his team who won it. Arriving right on time, Mbappé scored his second to make it 2-1, the Camp Nou falling quiet and their team given no time to react. They had drawn level after Mbappé’s opener, Raphinha scoring, but could not do it again.

Kylian Mbappé scored twice as Real Madrid ended their rivals’ perfect league start in a statement victory for José Mourinho

Richard Hirst asks: “Can we add this to Peter’s bingo card? … Points out he’s only been the manager for 35 seconds.” A fair shout.

Peter Oh has prepared a José Mourinho bingo card for tonight’s game …

• Lazio win 2-1 while Roma draw 3-3 with Napoli

• Beier gives Dortmund win over Eintracht Frankfurt

Lazio climbed to the top of Serie A with a 2-1 home win ⁠over Parma ⁠as Roma ​twice came from behind to secure a 3-3 draw with Napoli in a pulsating clash in Naples.

Lazio have 22 points from their eight matches this ⁠season and are three points clear of champions Inter Milan, who have played a game fewer and host Fiorentina on Sunday. Lazio opened the scoring in the 50th minute as Kenneth Taylor ⁠struck his first of the season, before Parma’s Diego Carlos put the ball into his own net trying ​to cut out a cross. The visitors scored a ‌late consolation through Simone Lontani.

• Head coach in hospital after collapsing in training

• Assistant coach Aaron Danks to take charge against Freiburg

Bayern Munich expect Vincent Kompany to miss an extended period as their head coach continues his hospital treatment for a virus after collapsing on the training pitch on Friday. Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Bayern’s sporting director, Max Eberl, confirmed Kompany was still in hospital in a stable condition.

Kompany’s English assistant coach, Aaron Danks, will replace the 40-year-old for Sunday’s Bundesliga match at Freiburg. Eberl said examinations were continuing to determine the nature of the former Manchester City and Belgium captain’s condition, with a recovery timeframe yet to be determined.

Once Bobby Robson’s translator at the Camp Nou, José Mourinho is tasked with bringing down Barcelona on Sunday

José Mourinho has done the por que?, the printout and the press conference no-show, and he’s been here only three months. The Real Madrid manager has played the classics without even playing a clásico. Not yet anyway, but it’s time: on Sunday night he returns to the stadium he first arrived at 30 transformative years ago as Bobby Robson’s talented young translator, and last visited in 2013 as the most famous manager in football.

The coach who once declared “today, tomorrow and always, Barcelona in my heart,” and claimed he would only ever go to Real Madrid to destroy them, has been entrusted with attempting to bring about the destruction of Barcelona. It is not the first time: if his return is about nostalgia, which it is, that’s wrapped up in their rivals too.

The fixture’s relevance waned as the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry faded. Can Lamine Yamal and Mbappé lift it into a new era?

For the best part of a decade, el clásico was more than just soccer’s biggest fixture. It was the defining narrative. At the peak of the Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo era, there were clásicos everywhere. Yes, when the two historic rivals clashed on the pitch, but also in the voting for the Ballon d’Or every year and in so much of the discourse around the sport.

As the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry faded, though, so too did the clásico’s relevance. This isn’t to say matches between Barcelona and Real Madrid no longer matter. They always have and always will. In 2026, however, it’s difficult to measure a clásico’s standing. Is it still the sport’s biggest fixture?

Freiburg gegen Bayern. Das Top-Top-Topspiel des Spieltages. Ein Hochgefühl, oder?!

The beloved high school TV show is returning in a different political climate. I’m skeptical that Ryan Murphy has the nuance this moment needs

For months, Ryan Murphy has been discussing Glee. In July, he expressed his love for the musical comedy drama he created. In September, he said that he had finished writing a pilot for a potential reboot, adding that he had reached out to some of the cast about a reunion. And now it is official: Disney+ and Hulu have commissioned a Glee revival.

Glee, which ran for six seasons between 2009 and 2015, was a cultural juggernaut during its initial tenure. The show won six Emmys, four Golden Globes and made stars of actors including Lea Michele, Jonathan Groff, Chris Colfer, Darren Criss and the late Cory Monteith and Naya Rivera. Centred on the trials of New Directions, a scrappy show choir at the fictional McKinley high school in Ohio, the show became known for its peppy covers of show tunes, 80s power pop hits such as Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’ (a Glee signature), 2010s chart-toppers and some truly baffling mashups (the amalgamation of Scissor Sisters’ Let’s Have a Kiki and Turkey Lurkey Time from Promises, Promises remains … a choice).