Gareth Bale was once again feeling the heat

Each Real Madrid v Barcelona Clasico is about more than just football, with both superclubs having deep roots within Spanish and Catalan society. But this week’s two Clasicos in four days have even wider resonance than usual, given the current mix of legal and political issues directly and indirectly involving both clubs.

The past week or so has been so tricky for some of Europe’s elite clubs that they might be looking forward to the Champions League as a welcome diversion, writes David Shonfield