🇪🇸 Real Madrid move top of LaLiga with victory over 10-man Villarreal | OneFootball

Real Madrid temporarily moved to the top of LaLiga on Saturday after beating Villarreal 3-1 at home.

Scorers: Vinicius 47', 69' (P), Mbappé 81'; Mikautadze 73'. Red: Mouriño 77'

It wasn't much of a first half inside the Santiago Bernabéu as those in attendance were treated to a thrilling second half.

Vinicius Junior and Franco Mastantuano were the two liveliest players throughout the initial 45 minutes as Real Madrid hunted for their first goal, but none of their 12 attempts could beat a compact and defensively sound Villarreal.

Instead, it was actually the visitors who had the best chance. Tani Oluwaseyi was sent through on goal and beat two defenders for pace, but unfortunately for Villareal, he saw his shot denied by a rushing Thibaut Courtois.

Things sat 0-0 after that miss, and manager Xabi Alonso clearly had a half-time talk with his side to help them find their scoring touch. Almost immediately, Vinicius made an impact. He found himself on the left side of the box and fizzed in a shot which deflected in at the near post.

As the game went on, he continued to drag his side forward as he looked to ease any pressure against Villareal's quick counterattacks. The Brazilian later earned a penalty which he powerfully shot low beyond Arnau Tenas for 2-0.

The visitors, still, showed they were never down and out. Record signing Georges Mikautadze had one moment with no Madrid defenders near him and whipped in a low shot to cut the deficit in half and the Bernabéu fell silent.

Unfortunately for him, their momentum was derailed when Santiago Mouriño was sent off with a second yellow four minutes later. That man advantage then allowed Real Madrid to put the game to bed when Kylian Mbappé redirected a third home from just over the penalty spot.

Real Madrid now sit two points above Barcelona, who play on Sunday, while Villarreal remain third.

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