Bellingham says Real Madrid’s El Clasico victory is only one step in title race

Jude Bellingham has warned Real Madrid that their 2-1 victory over Barcelona in El Clasico has not settled the Spanish title race.

The England midfielder posted a brief message on Instagram after Sunday’s La Liga meeting, writing: “We won the battle, but the war is still ongoing. Hala Madrid!”

Real Madrid claimed all three points at Barcelona after Kylian Mbappe opened the scoring for the visitors. Raphinha equalised for the Catalan side, but Mbappe struck again to secure victory for Carlo Ancelotti’s team.

The result, in the 10th round of La Liga fixtures, reignited the contest at the top of the table. Barcelona had hoped to use home advantage to strengthen their position in first place, while Real Madrid were aiming to reduce the gap between the two long-standing rivals.

Although the order of the leading three teams remained unchanged after the round, the margins between them narrowed considerably.

Barcelona stayed top with 27 points. Atletico de Madrid are second on 25 points, while Real Madrid moved up to 24 points in third place. Real Madrid are now just three points behind Barcelona.

The win provided a significant boost for Real Madrid and ended Barcelona’s strong start to the campaign. For Barcelona, the defeat was a damaging setback in their bid to remain ahead in the race for the La Liga title.

Bellingham’s message underlined that, despite the importance of the result, Real Madrid still face a lengthy challenge to overtake their rivals. The victory brought them closer to Barcelona but did not change the fact that the Catalan club remain at the summit.

The listed La Liga schedule includes Barcelona on 31 October 2026, Deportivo Alaves and Racing Santander on 1 November 2026, and Real Madrid.