Brits Abroad: Contrasting fortunes for Harry Kane & Jobe Bellingham in Der Klassiker as Marcus Rashford continues to be Spanish media darling despite miss for Barcelona

Is Harry Kane the best striker in world football? He's certainly making an air-tight case for that title this season, with the ruthless 32-year-old currently averaging a goal almost every 52 minutes in a Bayern shirt, his latest effort coming in a massive Klassiker victory over arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund. 

The former Tottenham frontman put Bayern in front in the 22nd minute, rising above the Dortmund defence to nod home a Joshua Kimmich corner. It was a trademark header that fittingly brought Kane up to 400 career goals, including a staggering 104 in just 107 appearances for Bayern.

Michael Olise added a second late on, and though Julian Brandt pulled one back for the visitors moments later, Bayern held on for the 2-1 victory to make it 11 wins from 11 in all competitions so far in 2025-26. Vincent Kompany's side are fast becoming the most feared side in Europe, and that's mostly down to Kane, who has left his manager in awe with his consistency.

"I think [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo have set the bar so high that you feel like scoring in the manner Kane is scoring right now should be normal, but what he is doing is really outstanding," Kompany said after the game. "He worked so hard for the team tonight and was once again very important for us."

Pressed on how he is getting the best from Kane, the Belgian coach added: "I can't teach Harry Kane how to head the ball the way he does it. Some things you can't teach - the feeling for the area, for example. He just does it so well."

Kane's killer instincts seem to be getting sharper with age. He's already up to 12 Bundesliga goals, with Bayern boasting a five-point lead at the Bundesliga summit after seven games, and it feels like the England captain could well break Robert Lewandowski's single season record of 41 strikes if he continues on his current trajectory. Multiple trophies could follow, and perhaps even a maiden Ballon d'Or.

Jobe Bellingham can't catch a break. From making headlines due to ill-advised input from his parents to swiftly losing his place in Niko Kovac's starting XI, it's fair to say that the 20-year-old's first three months at Borussia Dortmund have been a complete disaster.

Remarkably, his stock plummeted even further on Saturday, after a 17-minute cameo against Bayern that was memorable for all the wrong reasons. Dortmund were very much in the hunt for a point before Luiz Diaz fizzed the ball across the six-yard area in the 78th minute, straight to the feet of Bellingham. It should have been a simple task for the ex-Sunderland man to clear the danger, but he stumbled when taking his first touch and took what seemed like an eternity to make his second, which was chased down and deflected into Dortmund's net by a grateful Olise.

If ever there was an example of Bellingham not being in tune with the intensity of football in one of Europe's top five leagues, this was it. At the moment, it's difficult to see the England Under-21 international becoming a regular in Dortmund's midfield, let along emulating his brother Jude's exploits at Signal Iduna Park, but at least Kovac won't be holding his Klassiker blunder against him.

"I can’t find any fault with Jobe. He was standing where he needed to be. The ball was played in so sharply," the BVB boss said. "It was an artistic feat in its own right that he didn’t score an own-goal. When a ball is played in so sharply, his first task is to hold his centre of gravity. He had his head down and Olise took advantage of this split second and slid in. That’s not a simple (situation). There’s no fault. I think that everything is fine with that situation."

That was a surprisingly kind assessment from Kovac, who has not been shy when it comes to being critical of Bellingham in public. The youngster may yet get the chance to redeem himself in Tuesday's Champions League game against Copenhagen, but until he delivers a statement performance against top opposition, questions will continue to be asked of whether he is cut out for life at the top level.

No one in the Barcelona squad has more goal contributions than Marcus Rashford so far this season (eight). That's quite the feat considering Hansi Flick can call upon world-class attackers like Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, but it will only be temporary if the Manchester United loanee reproduces the erratic performance he put in against Girona at the weekend.

Rashford didn't score or assist, and was guilty of one of the misses of the season in the second half, somehow turning Roony Bardghji's beautiful trivela cross wide of the post from point-blank range. That was one of eight shots Rashford recorded as Barca dominated for large spells, and though he was unfortunate to hit the post with a sublime free-kick, the 27-year-old's lack of clinical edge may have cost Flick's team on another day.

As it turned out, though, Barca managed to secure a crucial 2-1 victory thanks to a last-gasp effort from Ronald Araujo, which saw them keep the pressure on La Liga leaders Real Madrid heading into next weekend's Clasico. And, to his credit, Rashford was never anything less than a handful, and helped to create many of Barca's best openings, while delivering five crosses after getting the better of his marker.

Rashford remains a darling in the Spanish media, with Diario Sport describing the England forward as "incisive and dangerous", and MonEsport hailing his "very active" display. Indeed, he is showing far more endeavour than in his last two years with Manchester United, and is now fully established in Flick's all-star attack. Real Madrid will be the biggest test yet and a potential marker for whether Barca should try to sign Rashford permanently, but he's playing with a real confidence again that suggests he won't be overawed by the occasion. 

Mason Greenwood won plenty of admirers after his debut season at Marseille, as the ex-Manchester United forward finished as joint-top scorer in Ligue 1 alongside Paris Saint-Germain's Ousmane Dembele with 21 goals, and before Saturday, he'd made a solid start to the current campaign with seven goal involvements from nine appearances in all competitions.

But in Marseille's latest Ligue 1 fixture against Le Havre at Stade Velodrome, Greenwood arguably delivered the best performance of his entire career to date. The 24-year-old scored four of the home side's goals in a thumping 6-2 victory that saw Le Havre take an early lead, only to completely capitulate after Gautier Lloris was sent off in the 34th minute for a handball in the box. 

Greenwood stepped up to calmly convert the resulting penalty, and then went goal crazy in a remarkable nine-minute, second-half burst. He doubled his account with a deflected strike after a mazy run and completed his hat-trick with a lovely finish after some neat footwork, before adding a fourth from close range. 

The final result saw Marseille leapfrog PSG at the top of Ligue 1 and Greenwood entered the history books as the first OM player since Jean Pierre-Papin in 1991 to score four goals in a single league game. Matching a Ballon d'Or winner is another major feather in Greenwood's cap, and Roberto De Zerbi believes the attacker is well on his way to reaching elite status himself, though the Marseille boss is also eager to ensure Greenwood does not rest on his laurels.

"It's true that Mason can do more, not just in terms of goals scored because in that area he doesn't need to do better. He's already a top player in front of goal, but he can become one of the best players in the world, because he has the ability," De Zerbi told reporters. "He can improve in helping the team when it needs it, when it's necessary. But I want to protect Mason from criticism, he's always scored a lot of goals and never missed a training session. But he still has room for improvement."

Marseille could emerge as genuine Ligue 1 title contenders and a Champions League force if Greenwood keeps improving at this rate.

Could Toulouse challenge for Champions League qualification? That's the question some fans may be daring to ask after their 4-0 rout of Metz on Sunday, which saw Carles Martínez Novell's team rise to eighth in the Ligue 1 standings, just three points behind third-place Strasbourg. 

It was the perfect follow-up to Toulouse's 2-1 upset win over Lyon before the October international break, with a heavily deflected shot from Frank Magri and an Aron Donnum penalty putting the home side two goals in front inside the first 10 minutes. Metz's task was then made nigh-on impossible when Sadibou Sane was sent off just before the interval, and in the second half, it became the Charlie Cresswell show.

The English centre-half showed his aerial prowess by providing the flick on for Yan Gboho to score Toulouse's third, with the Ivorian producing a brilliant turn and volley that left the Metz goalkeeper watching on in disbelief as the ball flew into the top corner. Cresswell then got in on the act himself, powering a bullet header into the net after another great leap to meet a Donnum corner.

Toulouse always carry a threat from set-pieces because of Cresswell's presence, and he often cuts off that route to goal for opponents, combining his imposing physicality with astute positioning and timing. The 23-year-old has racked up 26 caps for England's U21s, and a call-up to Thomas Tuchel's senior squad is not beyond the realms of possibility if his colossal club displays continue. Nor is a move to one of Europe's heavyweight clubs, with Cresswell reportedly still registering on Dortmund's radar ahead of the January transfer window after their failed summer approach.

Two weeks ago, Lyon were being billed as dark horses for the Ligue 1 crown, but the aforementioned home defeat to Toulouse brought them crashing back down to earth, and Paulo Fonseca's side failed to get back on track when travelling to Nice on Saturday. Lyon dropped to fifth after a hugely disappointing 3-2 defeat at the Allianz Riviera, and though there was plenty of blame to go around in the dressing room, Ainsley Maitland-Niles would surely have felt the most guilt.

With Nice leading 2-1 in the 53rd minute, the former Arsenal full-back missed a golden chance to equalise from the penalty spot, with his nonchalant effort reaching the perfect height for goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf to push away. To compound Maitland-Niles' misery, barely two minutes later, Nice went up the other end to score a third, with Hicham Boudaoui rifling into the far corner after a sweeping move.

Lyon would have moved back up to second with a win, and the momentum of the contest surely would have changed had Maitland-Niles converted from 12 yards. Instead, everyone's heads dropped and Nice were able to carve through Lyon all too easily, making a comeback unlikely. 

Maitland-Niles was also far too slow to close down Melvin Bard before he hammered in Nice's opener in the fifth minute. The 28-year-old has been one of Lyon's most consistent performers over the last two seasons, but this was a miserable afternoon that he will need to put behind him quickly.

Josh Brownhill reportedly rejected a new contract at Burnley and approaches from Brentford, Wolves and West Ham to join Saudi outfit Al-Shabab in the summer transfer window. It was a decision that raised a few eyebrows, but who can really blame the 29-year-old for chasing financial gain at this late stage of his career? He is reportedly now earning north of £100,000 at Al-Shabab, which is way more than he would have pocketed by taking on his fifth season of Premier League football.

That lucrative salary didn't look justified in Brownhill's first three appearances, which yeiled only one win via penalties in the King's Cup, but he finally announced himself in Al-Shabab's 1-1 draw with Al-Ahli on Friday, much to the frustration of compatriot Ivan Toney. Al-Ahli, last season's AFC Champions League winners, went in front after just 15 minutes when Toney scored a penalty, and it appeared to be a formality that they'd see the game out after Mohammed Al Shwirekh was shown a red card for a reckless tackle in the 77th minute.

However, Al-Shabab refused to give in, and as the clock clicked down on regulation time, they managed to play through the Al-Ahli defence and get to the byline, with the ball eventually cut back for Brownhill to side foot into the net from an awkward position. The former Burnley man snatched the Player of the Match award from Toney in the process, and it was no less than he deserved for an industrious performance. Brownhill had four shots at goal and completed 82 percent of his passes, while his constant pressing helped ensure that Al-Ahli never built up any proper rhythm.

Currently 13th in the Saudi Pro League table, Al-Shabab should be able to climb into the top half if Brownhill can build on this platform, while Toney will have to up his game in order to get back into Tuchel's England thinking, with Al-Ahli's title hopes already starting to dwindle.