Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe Lead LaLiga October Player of the Month Nominees as Goal Award Race Takes Shape

LaLiga has confirmed the October Player of the Month nominees, and the shortlist brings together the two most talked about attackers in Spanish football. Lamine Yamal of Barcelona and Kylian Mbappe of Real Madrid head a five man list that also includes Alejandro Grimaldo of Atletico Madrid, Goncalo Guedes of Real Sociedad and Matias Dituro of Elche. The announcement arrived on 29 October 2026, and it set up a fresh contest between Yamal and Mbappe only days after both men missed out on the Ballon dOr. Harry Kane took the Ballon dOr, with Yamal and Mbappe finishing behind the Bayern Munich striker. Yamal at least claimed the Kopa Trophy for the best young player, while Mbappe left the ceremony without an individual prize. The monthly award now gives both players a clear target, and the vote will test which October form impresses supporters and experts most.

Mbappe leads the October scoring chart

Mbappe enters the contest with the strongest scoring record of the month. He scored four goals in three LaLiga matches during October, and his best moments arrived as braces. The first brace came against Sevilla, and the second brace came against Barcelona in El Clasico, a match Real Madrid won 2-1 at the Spotify Camp Nou. Those goals took Mbappe to 11 goals in LaLiga this season, along with two assists, for a total of 13 goal contributions. That return leaves him second on the league scoring list, behind Barcelona winger Raphinha, who has 13 goals. Thanks in large part to the Mbappe goals, Real Madrid recorded three straight league wins in October and cut the gap to leaders Barcelona to three points. The run pulled Real Madrid firmly back into the title race, and it gave Mbappe a strong case for the monthly prize. He also wants to turn a strong scoring run into a new individual prize after losing the September Player of the Month award to Raphinha. The October numbers show a striker in full flow, and the Clasico brace will stay in the memory of voters because it decided the biggest match of the month.

Yamal answers with goals, assists and influence

Yamal enters the contest with a different kind of record. He recorded one goal and two assists in three LaLiga matches during October, for three direct contributions in the month. The numbers are smaller than the Mbappe scoring return, but the influence of Yamal on Barcelona play goes beyond a simple count of goals and assists. Across the whole season, Yamal has eight goals and six assists in LaLiga, for 14 goal contributions, which is one more than the Mbappe season total of 13. Yamal was one of the stars of the Barcelona 3-0 win over Getafe, where he registered one assist, and he followed that display with one goal and one assist as Barcelona beat Real Betis 5-2. He could not have the same impact as Barcelona fell to a 1-2 defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico, yet the nomination still underlines his place among the leading lights of the competition. The nomination also reflects his standing in the individual awards race after the Ballon dOr ceremony, where his Kopa Trophy win confirmed his status as the best young player in world football. For Barcelona supporters, the Yamal nomination is a reminder that the teenager continues to shape matches even when the team result goes against Barcelona.

Grimaldo, Guedes and Dituro complete a strong shortlist

The other three nominees give the shortlist real depth, and each man earned a place through a distinct role. Grimaldo, the Atletico Madrid defender, brings attacking threat from a defensive position and has become a key part of the Atletico system under Diego Simeone. Guedes, the Real Sociedad attacker, brings direct running and goal threat for a team that has climbed the table with an open and attacking style during October. Dituro, the Elche goalkeeper, brings the case of a goalkeeper who has kept his team competitive through saves and calm command of the penalty area. A shortlist that mixes a defender, an attacker and a goalkeeper with the two star forwards shows how wide the October voting pool has become. It also shows that strong team form matters, because Atletico Madrid, Real Sociedad and Elche all had reasons to feel that October went well for them. Voters must now weigh the headline scoring of Mbappe against the all round influence of Yamal and the specialist value of the other three nominees. The mix makes the result hard to predict, and that uncertainty is part of the appeal of a monthly award.

Yamal and Mbappe also contest the Goal of the Month award

The rivalry between Yamal and Mbappe does not stop at the Player of the Month award. Yamal has also been nominated for the LaLiga Goal of the Month award for October for his brilliant strike in the Barcelona win over Real Betis. Mbappe has also been put forward for the Goal of the Month award for his remarkable effort against Sevilla. The third nominee for the goal award is Hugo Novoa of Alaves. Yamal therefore faces Mbappe twice in the same awards cycle, and the double contest adds extra spice to a rivalry that already defines the title race. Barcelona have dominated the monthly awards in the early months of the season, with Raphinha winning the Player of the Month award for August and September. Yamal now carries the Barcelona challenge into October, while Mbappe carries the Real Madrid challenge after a month of braces and big match goals. The goal award will be decided on one moment of quality, while the player award will be decided on a full month of work. Both awards stay open until the winner is announced, and the battle between Real Madrid and Barcelona for the top spot in LaLiga continues alongside the individual contests.

What the October awards mean for the title race

The October awards matter beyond individual pride because they track the form of the teams at the top of the table. Barcelona still lead LaLiga with 27 points after 10 matches, with Atletico Madrid on 25 points and Real Madrid on 24 points. Only three points separate the top three clubs, and the October form of Mbappe helped Real Madrid close the gap after the Clasico win. The Yamal form helped Barcelona stay in front during a month that also included setbacks, including the defeat to Real Madrid and a loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. The awards shortlist therefore reads like a snapshot of the title race, with the leading clubs supplying the leading names. The next round of matches will test whether the nominees can keep the same level. Yamal is back in action for Barcelona against Alaves on Saturday, while Mbappe travels with Real Madrid to Racing Santander on Sunday. Strong displays in those matches will not change the October vote, but they will shape the story of November and the next monthly shortlist. For now, the October nominees give supporters a clear debate, and the debate centres on a simple question: does the month belong to the scorer or to the creator?

Nominee	Club	October LaLiga return
Kylian Mbappe	Real Madrid	4 goals in 3 matches
Lamine Yamal	Barcelona	1 goal and 2 assists in 3 matches
Alejandro Grimaldo	Atletico Madrid	Nominated as defender
Goncalo Guedes	Real Sociedad	Nominated as attacker
Matias Dituro	Elche	Nominated as goalkeeper

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