The Euro Roundup: Messi inspires Barca hammering

All you need to know from the previous round of European football action that took place this weekend.

The final round of matches prior to the international break took place this weekend, with players set to jet off around the world for UEFA Nations League matches and friendlies with their countries.

The next European football fixtures in domestic competitions will come in just under a fortnight, but this weekend was a busy few days of action.

Messi strikes in Barca win

After three games, Barcelona and Real Madrid are predictably the only Spanish teams with a 100% record.

Barcelona, in particular, have got off to a spectacular start to the season. They beat Huesca 8-2 on Sunday night, with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez scoring two each and Ousmane Dembele also involved on the score sheet. Messi’s first was a typical Messi goal that set his team on their way to a comfortable victory.

Real Madrid beat Leganes 4-1 at the Bernabeu on Saturday. Gareth Bale scored their first before Karim Benzema got two, and Sergio Ramos added another from the penalty spot.

Valencia are yet to win a game having drawn with Levante 2-2 on Sunday while Sevilla fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat at Real Betis.

So tight is the table at this early stage, Levante in fourth place and Huesca in 14^th both have four points; only Rayo Vallecano are yet to pick up a single point, although they have only played twice.

Juve on top

Three matches have also elapsed in Serie A, with Juventus the only team to have won all three games so far. Sassuolo are the closest to the Old Lady with seven points in second place.

Cristiano Ronaldo is still yet to get off the mark since his big move, but Juve will not care as Mario Mandzukic and Blaise Matuidi got the goals in their 2-1 victory in Parma.

AC Milan beat Roma 2-1 with a 95th-minute winner from Patrick Cutrone at the San Siro, while Inter won 3-0 away at Bologna.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli fell to a heavy 3-0 loss at Sampdoria, but the game of the week was Sassuolo beating Genoa by five goals to three. The same fixture finished 0-0 last season, but Kevin-Prince Boateng, Goran Pandev and Khouma Babacar among others made certain that was not to be repeated.

Mbappe sees red

In Ligue 1, the season is four games in, with PSG the only side to have won all four matches. Dijon and Toulouse occupy the spots behind them having picked up nine points from a possible 12.

Thomas Tuchel was impressed with his side’s fight as they went 2-0 up against Nimes, before their opponents got it back to 2-2. Late goals from Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani made it a 4-2 away win.

That game was notable for a couple of other incidents, too, though: firstly, Neymar’s celebration after scoring the opening goal, where he went over to a Nimes banner labelling him a ‘cry-baby’, and pretended to wipe tears from his eyes, and then Mbappe being sent off in stoppage time for pushing Teji Savanier over.

Savanier was also dismissed, as his poor tackle on the French forward was what incited the shove that followed.

Nantes beat Strasbourg 3-2, Montpellier won 1-0 at Reims and Rennes beat Bordeaux 2-0, but the game of the weekend saw Marseille win 3-2 at Monaco.

The game was goalless until first half stoppage time when Konstantinos Mitroglou scored for the visitors. Youri Tielemens and Radamel Falcao turned the game around for Monaco but then Florian Thauvin and Valere Germain sent the points Marseille’s way.

Germain scored the winner just two minutes after coming on as a substitute, in the 90th minute of the game.

Bayern leading the way

Only Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg and Hertha Berlin have won both of their opening two fixtures in the Bundesliga, with the German league slightly behind the others and only two weeks in.

Bayern won 3-0 away at Stuttgart on Saturday with Leon Goretzka scoring his first for the club since signing on a free transfer, with Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller also on the score sheet. They top the standings on goal difference and will expect to remain there come May.

Wolfsburg also won away from home, beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 at the BayArena, while Hertha beat Schalke 2-0 with both goals coming through Ondrej Duda. Marko Grujic made his Hertha debut in that game, having signed on loan from Liverpool.

Elsewhere, RB Leipzig have only taken one point from their opening two games having drawn with Fortuna Dusseldorf on Sunday and Hoffenheim got their first victory of the season, beating Freiburg 3-1 with Andrej Kramaric among the scorers.

Borussia Dortmund drew 0-0 at Hannover and they are currently fourth in the table.