After their victory against FC Barcelona (2-1) and a week filled with controversy surrounding Vinícius Jr, Real Madrid (1st) returned to Santiago Bernabéu on Saturday to face Valencia (18th). In this Liga match, Xabi Alonso set up an attacking lineup with Bellingham and Güler supporting Tchouaméni along with Mastantuono and Vinícius alongside Mbappé. On the Valencia side, José Gaya, Baptiste Santamaria, and Arnaut Danjuma were part of Carlos Corberan’s 4-4-2 formation.
Real Madrid quickly took control of the match. After attempts by Valverde (6th), Vinícius Jr (10th), and Bellingham (14th), they broke the deadlock with a penalty due to a handball by César Tárrega in the box. Kylian Mbappé converted the penalty to score his 12th league goal (19th, 1-0). Just over ten minutes later, the unstoppable Mbappé doubled the lead for Real after a cross from Arda Güler, with a well-placed left-footed shot (31st, 2-0). Already with 14 goals in 18 matches this season, the French captain could have completed a hat-trick after a second penalty was awarded for a foul on Carreras. However, he handed the penalty to Vinícius, whose attempt was saved by Agirrezabala (43rd).
Shortly after, Bellingham added a third goal for Madrid (44th), securing the win before halftime. In the second half, Real managed the game while Valencia tried to fight back, but to no avail. In the 82nd minute, Álvaro Carreras scored the fourth goal of the night with a stunning left-footed shot that found the top left corner of Agirrezabala’s net. This complete performance allowed Xabi Alonso to rotate his squad, even giving Endrick his first minutes of the season.
As they await the Barça-Elche match this Sunday, Real Madrid leads La Liga with a seven-point advantage over Villarreal. The Madrid side is now focused on the Champions League and their trip to Anfield to face Liverpool. In contrast, Valencia suffers their sixth defeat in 11 matches and sits 18th in the relegation zone.
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