Kylian Mbappe scored twice to help Real Madrid edge past Celta Vigo with a tense 3-2 victory, keeping their La Liga title hopes alive and maintaining pressure on league leaders Barcelona.
Following Barcelona’s narrow win over Valladolid, Madrid knew they had to respond. Despite going three goals up, they faced a late surge from Celta Vigo, forcing them to defend desperately to preserve the win at the Santiago Bernabeu. The victory kept them four points behind Barcelona ahead of the highly anticipated Clasico next weekend.
Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti acknowledged the challenge posed by injuries, particularly in defense. “It seemed the match was over… but with six defenders missing, we struggled at times,” he admitted. “Still, it’s a valuable win.”
Madrid, looking to recover from recent setbacks in both the Champions League and Copa del Rey, started strongly. Young Turkish midfielder Arda Guler filled in for the ill Rodrygo and impressed with his creativity. After missing an early overhead kick, Guler scored the opening goal in the 33rd minute with a superb curling shot.
Mbappe then took center stage. He added Madrid’s second goal six minutes later following a quick counter-attack, latching onto a Jude Bellingham pass and firing past Vicente Guaita. Just after halftime, he scored again, this time calmly finishing from a Guler assist—his 24th league goal of the season, putting him just one behind Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski in the scoring charts.
Madrid seemed in control, but Celta Vigo fought back. Javier Rodriguez capitalized on a dubious corner call to tap in from close range. Substitute Iago Aspas then assisted Williot Swedberg, who scored to make it 3-2. Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois nearly let a third goal slip past him but was saved by the slow roll of the ball.
Had Madrid dropped points, Barcelona could have potentially secured the league title with a Clasico win. Midfielder Fede Valverde summed up the stakes: “The Clasico is the game of the year for us — maybe our last shot at La Liga. We’ll give everything to get the three points.”
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