After their victory against FC Barcelona (2-1), and a week marked by the Vinícius Jr. controversy, Real Madrid (1st) returned to the Santiago Bernabéu this Saturday to face Valencia (18th). For this match of the 11th round of La Liga , Xabi Alonso fielded a very attacking lineup, with Bellingham and Güler flanking Tchouaméni, and Mastantuono and Vinicius alongside Mbappé. For Valencia, José Gaya, Baptiste Santamaria, and Arnaut Danjuma were among those starting in Carlos Corberan's 4-4-2 formation.
Real Madrid quickly took control of the ball. After attempts by Valverde (6th minute), Vinícius Jr. (10th minute), and Bellingham (14th minute), Los Blancos finally broke through from the penalty spot after César Tárrega handled the ball in the box. Kylian Mbappé made no mistake from the spot, scoring his 12th league goal (19th minute, 1-0). Just over ten minutes later, the insatiable Mbappé doubled Real's lead, finishing off a cross from Arda Güler with a fine left-footed volley (31st minute, 2-0). Already with 18 goals in 14 matches this season, the French captain could have bagged his first league hat-trick of the 2025/2026 campaign, after Real Madrid were awarded another penalty for a foul on Carreras. But number 10 let Vinícius take that second penalty… whose attempt was saved by Agirrezabala (43rd).
Real Madrid cruise ahead before heading to Liverpool
Moments later, Bellingham scored Real Madrid's third goal (44th minute) to seal the victory before halftime. In the second half, Real Madrid controlled the game while Valencia tried to mount a comeback. In vain. In the 82nd minute, Álvaro Carreras scored the fourth goal of the evening with a magnificent left-footed strike that nestled into the top left corner of Agirrezabala's net. A perfect end to a night for Real Madrid and Xabi Alonso, who was able to rotate his squad and even brought on Endrick, who hadn't played a single minute this season.
While awaiting the Barcelona-Elche match this Sunday, Real Madrid sit atop La Liga with a seven-point lead over Villarreal . The Madrid side are now focused on the Champions League and their trip to Anfield to face Liverpool. As for Valencia, this is their sixth defeat in 11 matches. They are 18th and in the relegation zone.
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