Here Liverpool lead the Premier League by 22 points. Across the Channel Paris Saint-Germain are 12 points clear at the top of Ligue 1 en route to their eighth title in nine seasons. In Spain Real Madrid outstrip Barcelona by three points but robbed of the spark of youthful vibrancy, this duopoly that has shared 14 of the past 15 Liga titles has the whiff of a 1997 heavyweight bout between 49-year-old George Foreman and 48-year-old Larry Holmes.

Only four points separate first and fourth in the Bundesliga and Red Bull Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Mönchengladbach ought to have compelling claims of preventing the leaders, a tottering Bayern Munich, from winning an eighth successive championship. Yet all have wobbled in the past two months and cynics would not bother turning the page of this familiar story to wager how the last chapter pans out.

In Italy, though, a genuinely competitive title race is unfolding, merely the second for eight years that threatens to survive the winter and, for once, Juventus, scudetto winners for the past eight seasons, are being hounded by two clubs: Internazionale, unbeaten in 16 games, who lead them on goal difference and Lazio, undefeated for 18 matches, who trail both by a point. First plays third on Sunday at the Stadio Olimpico in what should be a cracker but is more likely to be a cagey, tense night in Rome.

Lazio and Inter jointly recognise that their best chance of finally dethroning Juventus may depend on maintaining the challenge from two fronts for as long as possible before decisively nipping ahead.

Italian football is still beset by dismal outbreaks of racism from the stands, a blight which has been reinvigorated here too and continues to be the shame of our game. This week eight Verona fans were banned for two years for trying to enter the Bentegodi carrying hats emblazoned with a badge depicting Hitler and a Roma supporter was suspended for three years after racially abusing the Bologna striker, Musa Barrow.

Mario Balotelli and Romelu Lukaku both suffered abuse and have been told by people who should know better that banter not bigotry is the motive. Inter’s Lukaku, who has scored 17 times in their rise to the top, would be entitled to gloat if he returns to Cagliari, where the monkey chants rang out, as a champion of Italy next season.