Following September's 1-0 win over Espanyol, Real had five games without a win -- a run in which they went eight hours and one minute without scoring.
Cristiano Ronaldo kept up his rich La Liga scoring form as Real Madrid beat Villarreal 2-0 on Saturday to move up to fourth.
It was N'Golo Kante, who at the age of 30 appears to be elevating his games to new levels, who knitted the French team together during their Group F match against Germany on Tuesday.
Real Madrid tightened their grip on top spot by beating Alaves 3-0 at home in La Liga on Sunday to provisionally move five points ahead of nearest challengers Barcelona despite coach Zinedine Zidane making a string of changes in defence.
Real Madrid opened a two-point lead over Villarreal at the top of La Liga when Cristiano Ronaldo set a club scoring record in a 3-0 stroll at home to Levante on Saturday.
Not even the return of Cristiano Ronaldo could arrest Portugal's ailing fortunes as new manager Fernando Santos watched his men defeated 2-1 by France in a friendly in Paris on Saturday.
Ousmane Dembele's late strike rescued a 1-1 draw for champions Barcelona at Atletico Madrid but Sevilla moved top with a 1-0 win over Real Valladolid. European champions Real Madrid were humiliated in a 3-0 defeat at Eibar.
Barcelona followed up last weekend's 3-1 defeat at Real Madrid with another reverse on Saturday, squandering a host of chances to lose 1-0 at home to Celta Vigo and handing the lead in La Liga to their arch rivals.
Real Madrid star Vinicius racially attacked for 10th time this season.
Gareth Bale made up for the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo by scoring twice to inspire Real Madrid to come from two goals down and win 3-2 at Rayo Vallecano on Saturday. Real managed to edge to the top of the table despite Ronaldo missing his first league game of the season with a muscle strain although they also suffered another scare before their Champions League semi-final next week with a suspected injury to Karim Benzema. Real had found themselves two behind within 14 minutes as Adrian Embarba scored from close range in the seventh minute before Rayo's Venezuelan striker Miku pounced on more poor defending from the visitors. Bale started the revival, heading in from a 35th minute corner before Zinedine Zidane's side drew level six minutes after the break through substitute Lucas Vazquez. Welshman Bale then completed the comeback nine minutes from time, collecting a misplaced pass from a Rayo defender before powering the ball past goalkeeper Juan Carlos.
Zinedine Zidane's side joined Atletico Madrid on 66 points and moved top of the table
Here are five talking points from the weekend's La Liga action:
Gareth Bale was once again subjected to whistling from a section of the Bernabeu crowd.
France will play Argentina, who are also looking to win the World Cup for the third time, in Sunday's final at the Lusail Stadium.
Real Madrid trimmed Barcelona's lead at the top of La Liga to one point when they recovered from conceding an early goal to secure a stirring 3-1 comeback win in the 'Clasico' on Saturday.
Rediff.com encapsulates all the sporting action from the past week in this eye-catching photo feature.
Real Madrid are hoping the fit-again Cristiano Ronaldo can lead them into the Champions League final although strike partner Karim Benzema remains a doubt for Wednesday's return match with Manchester City.
Real Madrid have moved to broaden their options in attack by agreeing to sign Mexico striker Javier Hernandez on loan from Manchester United for the 2014-15 season.
Real are third in the league standings with 54 points after 28 games, two behind second-placed Atletico Madrid who visit Athletic Bilbao later on Saturday and nine points behind leaders Barcelona who play at Real Betis on Sunday.
Liverpool came into Saturday's Champions League final against Real Madrid on a wave of confidence but Zinedine Zidane's side showed exactly why they are the masters of Europe's top club competition in their 3-1 win.
Madrid recovered from an early goal by Anthony Lozano to take a 2-1 halftime lead thanks to a Lucas Vazquez strike and a cheeky 'Panenka' penalty from captain Ramos but were pegged back by Alex Granell's penalty midway through the second half.
A Marco Asensio-inspired Real Madrid crushed Eibar 3-0 to close the gap on La Liga leaders Barcelona to five points on Sunday, with Karim Benzema starting on the bench.
France ended Nigeria's hopes of a first World Cup quarter-final appearance when they scored two late goals to beat the Super Eagles 2-0 in a rough second-round match on Monday.
Real Madrid suffered a humiliating 2-1 home defeat by Leganes on Wednesday to exit the King's Cup at the quarter-final stage on away goals.
'After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barca, it was time to go to the US league to experience football in a different way and enjoy the day-to-day.'
With no fans allowed into venues and Real playing their home games at the 6,000-capacity Alfredo Di Stefano stadium while the Santiago Bernabeu is being refurbished, it will be a title race unlike any other.
Neymar stole the show from the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale when the Brazilian's strike set Barcelona on the way to a 2-1 win over Real Madrid in Saturday's 'Clasico' at the Nou Camp.
A reshuffled France drew 1-1 away to Croatia in their second Nations League game on Monday, four days after an opening defeat by Denmark.
Barcelona closed in on the LaLiga title as they picked up a 1-0 win over Osasuna and holders Real Madrid went down to
France's probable starting line-up for World Cup final
Brazilian Douglas Costa was in fine form as Bayern Munich beat Real Madrid 1-0 in a pre-season tournament.
Real Madrid's star striker Cristiano Ronaldo made up for his otherwise quiet night by scoring the winner to beat Barcelona 2-1 win at the CampNou in Barcelona on Saturday.
World champions France recovered from two goals down to beat Belgium 3-2 in a thrilling Nations League semi-final on Thursday with a last-minute strike from Theo Hernandez securing a place in Sunday's showpiece match against Spain.
Atletico Madrid turned up the heat on champions Barcelona when they fought back to secure a 2-1 win at home to Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday as Real Madrid slipped off the pace with a 1-0 loss at Villarreal.
A round-up of Friday's action in the UEFA Nations League.
A Paco Alcacer header gave Valencia a 2-2 draw in a highly charged La Liga clash against third-placed Real Madrid who had taken the lead with eight minutes remaining on Sunday.
Gareth Bale angered Real Madrid team mate Cristiano Ronaldo for the second La Liga game in a row on Saturday.
Spanish media has reported that Solari, 42, is to be relieved of his duties
Real Madrid returned to winning ways after last weekend's drubbing at Atletico but failed to convince and were whistled by their own fans during a drab 2-0 victory at home to Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday.
Real Madrid suffered an almighty fright before a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick hauled them back from 2-1 down and gave them a 4-2 win over rank outsiders Kashima Antlers in the Club World Cup final on Sunday.
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