Real Madrid climbed to the summit of LaLiga with a 3-1 victory over Villarreal, extending their flawless home run to eight games and responding in style to their derby defeat against Atletico Madrid.
Returning to the Santiago Bernabeu, Xabi Alonso’s men were determined to restore momentum, and they began brightly as Arda Güler went close with a fierce strike after combining neatly with Kylian Mbappe.
The hosts applied relentless pressure, with Aurelien Tchouameni and Franco Mastantuono both threatening early on.
Villarreal, though, nearly silenced the home crowd when Tani Oluwaseyi broke clear on goal, only for Thibaut Courtois to produce a vital save to keep Real level.
Mastantuono continued to impress at the other end, narrowly missing the target as the first half ended goalless.
Just two minutes into the second half, Real finally broke through. Vinicius Junior cut in from the left and saw his shot deflect off Santi Comesaña, wrong-footing Arnau Tenas to give Los Blancos the lead.
The Brazilian soon doubled his tally from the penalty spot after being brought down by Rafa Marín, his effort squeezing through Tenas’ hands for his fourth goal in as many league meetings against Villarreal.
Real looked to be cruising when Georges Mikautadze pulled one back for the visitors with a stunning drive past Courtois, briefly setting up a tense finale. But Villarreal’s hopes of a comeback were dashed when Santiago Mourino was sent off for a second yellow after shoving Vinicius.
Mbappe then added a third to seal the points in the 81st minute, finishing off a flowing move with Brahim Diaz to net his 14th goal in just 10 appearances across all competitions.
The win marked Real Madrid’s fifth straight unbeaten meeting with Villarreal (four wins, one draw) and halted Marcelino’s side’s three-game winning streak. Alonso’s men, meanwhile, march back to the top of LaLiga confident, clinical, and seemingly unstoppable at home.
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