It's El Clasico

Barcelona and Madrid are squaring off at Camp Nou for the 1st clasico of the season, which could turn out to be a mouth watering clash as Bale and Neymar could show what they are made of.

The Barca attack which was virtually unstoppable in the early stages of the new campaign. They have only scored one goal over the past two matches, and their overdependance on Messi already on the show, however, which should give Real an extra boost of confidence as they arrive to Camp Nou.

While Barcelona are going through a brief lull, los Blancos are coming off an impressive midweek victory over Juventus. It makes for an intriguing rivalry clash as Barca attempt to rebound and Real try to keep their recent hot streak alive.

For Barcelona, the squad is highlighted by the dynamic attacking duo of Lionel Messi and Neymar, who have been able to forge a successful partnership quickly. The Brazilian's willingness to adapt to a playmaking role has helped that process. Of course, while Messi and Neymar dominate the headlines, the midfield is still the foundation of Barca's success. Andres Iniesta and Xavi continue to showcase terrific form, which makes the forwards' job much easier.
They don't represent as big of an advantage over Real Madrid this season, though. The arrivals of Gareth Bale and Isco have bolstered the talent level in the middle of the pitch for Real and that will certainly come in handy for these rivalry matches.
The Blancos will also need a strong showing from Diego Lopez to secure a positive result. For Real to emerge from Camp Nou with a win, the goalkeeper will probably have to outshine all of the aforementioned superstars.

Also on the mind should be the league table as Madrid currently trail table toppers Barca by 3 points and Atletico Madrid lead their rival city by 2 points.

Southampton stunned Liverpool at Anfield

Liverpool’s fairy run came to an end as Southampton secured a 1-0 win at Anfield.
The Reds lacked the creative spark of Philippe Coutinho who was injured earlier in the week. Southampton stunned Anfield when taking the lead on 53 minutes.
Dejan Lovren showed tremendous strength to shake off his marker and power a header on goal from a corner. Steven Gerrard attempted to keep the ball out, but he could only divert it into the roof of the net.

Saints could have doubled their lead moments later, but Simon Mignolet produced a superb save to keep out Osvaldo’s drive. With no Coutinho and Luis Suarez, Gerrard is the focal point for Liverpool and he went close to a leveller, but Artur Boruc kept out his free kick. Southampton should have put the game safe, but Mignolet showed exactly why Reds boss Brendan Rodgers brought him to the club in the summer with a brilliant triple save to deny the visitors a second goal.
Raheem Sterling had a late chance to snatch a point, but his touch let him down when in on goal.

Stats 
Shots: Liverpool 10-12 Southampton 
Corners: Liverpool 6-6 Southampton 
Possession : Liverpool 55.3-44.7 Southampton 
Passes Completed:Liverpool 360-268 Southampton 
Fouls Committed:Liverpool 6-9 Southampton

World Cup Qualifiers : Group B

Czech Republic 1-2 Armenia 

Armenia stunned the Czech Republic as, Karlen Mkrtchyan and Gevorg Ghazaryan scored in Prague. Mkrtchyan put the visitors ahead with a first-half wonder-goal , but Tomas Rosicky leveled for the Czechs in the second half . Czech Republic had lot of chances missed, and Ghazaryan made them pay, combining with Yura Movsisyan before slotting past Petr Čech for the winner in stoppage time. Armenia, who beat Denmark, 4-0, in their last match, moved up to fourth with nine points, one behind second-placed Bulgaria. The Czechs also have nine points, but are third based on goal differential.

Italy 1-0 Bulgaria 

Alberto Gilardino scored the only goal in the 38th minute, as Italy grabbed a nervy win at home to Bulgaria. Italy top the group with 17 points with three matches remaining. Another win at home to the Czech Republic on Tuesday would seal automatic qualification as group winners.

Malta 1-2 Denmark 

An own goal by Malta's Ryan Camillieri in the 53rd minute gave Denmark the win. Leon Andreasen put the visitors ahead in the second minute, but Clayton Failla equalised seven minutes before halftime. With nine points, fifth-placed Denmark remain alive in the race for the playoffs.

World Cup qualifiers: Group A

Scotland 0-2 Belgium 

Belgium took a step forward for a berth in Brazil with a win at Scotland. Steven Defour scored in the 38th minute to give Belgium a 1-0 lead. Kevin Mirallas then made it 2-0 in the 89th minute, freeing himself from his marker before powering his shot into the net. The result kept Belgium atop Group A, five points ahead of Croatia with two matches remaining. Scotland prop up the group with five points. Belgium can clinch automatic qualification with a win or draw at Croatia on Oct. 11.

Serbia 1-1 Croatia

The result was a draw, however Serbia were eliminated from contention. Mario Mandzukic opened the scoring for Croatia in the 53rd minute, only for Aleksandar Mitrovic to equalise 13 minutes later. Serbia's Nemanja Matic was sent off in the 75th minute, and Croatia's Josip Simunic followed five minutes later. Croatia must beat Belgium at home next month to have a chance at winning the group.

Macedonia 2-1 Wales

Ivan Trickovski put Macedonia ahead in the 20th minute, but Aaron Ramsey leveled for Wales from the penalty spot six minutes before the break. Aleksandar Trajkovski grabbed the winner 10 minutes from time.
Surprisingly Gareth Bale, the world's most expensive player, remained on the bench for the full 90 minutes. 

La Liga top 2 spenders

After looking at the EPL top spending clubs in our previous post, lets take a look at La Liga top two spending clubs.

Barcelona - £62 million

Barcelona added only one player in the transfer window, a marquee signing in the form of Neymar for slightly over £50 million. But they have to shell out around £12 million for their own striker Bojan Krkic.

Bojan was with AS Roma for two years—the second of which was actually spent at AC Milan—but under the terms of the initial agreement, the Spanish side had to fork out to bring back the one-time wonderkid if Roma decided they didn't want to keep him for a longer period. It's turned out to be a costly deal for the Catalan side, but they will hope the addition of Neymar is enough to propel them to another La Liga title.
One thing they will rue, their inability to sign a Centre Back as their defence could be the weak link.

Real Madrid - £144 million

Having broken their own world record for a transfer fee (which they break again and again) following the capture of Gareth Bale from Spurs.  His £85 million deal makes up the vast expenditure from last season's La Liga runners-up, but they also doled out huge fees on Spanish duo Asier Illarramendi and Isco, both of whom will have big expectations on their shoulders to wrest back the league title from Barcelona this season.
 Casemiro and Dani Carvajal were lower outlays, and Carlo Ancelotti will be hopeful that he now has a balanced squad with enough depth to challenge on all three fronts.
And, let's be honest, if he hasn't, then question marks will be raised over one man above all others.