Vini Jr. shines as Real beat Atlético, stay in La Liga title race | OneFootball

With a decisive performance from Brazilian Vinícius Júnior, Real Madrid came from behind to defeat Atlético de Madrid 3-2 this Sunday at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, in the 29th round of the Spanish Championship. Vini found the net twice and Valverde completed the score for the home team, while Lookman and Molina scored for the visitors.

Standings Situation

With this result, Real Madrid kept up the chase for leaders Barcelona. The Merengue club secured their fifth consecutive win of the season, reached 69 points, and remained in second place in La Liga, four points behind their Catalan rivals. On the other hand, Atlético Madrid’s streak of four wins came to an end. The Colchoneros dropped to fourth place, with the same 57 points they started the round with.

📋 Match Summary

⚪🟡 REAL MADRID 3 x 2 ATLÉTICO DE MADRID 🔴⚪

🏆 Competition: Spanish Championship (29th round) 🏟️ Venue: Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid (Spain) 📅 Date: March 22, 2026 (Sunday) ⏰ Time: 5:00 PM (Brasília time) 🟥 Red card: Valverde, at 31' of the 2nd half (Real Madrid)

GOALS

How was the match?

Real Madrid threatened for the first time after just two minutes. Brahim appeared inside the box and crossed to the edge of the area. Carvajal hit it first time and Musso made the save. At the eight-minute mark, Valverde broke through and received the ball behind the opposing defense. The number 8 entered the box and shot across goal, but hit the left post.

Atlético de Madrid responded immediately. Griezmann broke down the right side of the box and played it to Llorente. The midfielder, however, shot weakly and Lunin made the save in a one-on-one.

It was in the 32nd minute that Atlético de Madrid opened the scoring. Lookman received a long ball and played it through to Ruggeri, who was advancing down the left. Ruggeri crossed to the middle, Giuliano Simeone gave a slight touch to evade the defender, and Lookman was left alone in front of goal, firing past Lunin.

Second half

Five minutes into the second half, Real Madrid were awarded a penalty after Brahim Díaz was brought down by Hancko in the box. Vini Jr. stepped up and struck powerfully, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way and leveling the Madrid derby.

In less than five minutes, Real Madrid completed the comeback. Valverde pressed Atlético de Madrid’s build-up and intercepted Giménez’s pass inside the box. The Uruguayan found himself one-on-one with the keeper and finished with the outside of his foot, turning the game around for the Merengues.

At the 21st minute, Atlético de Madrid leveled again. Molina, who came on in the second half, received the ball on the right side of the box, just before the arc, and fired a powerful shot into the top left corner of Lunin’s goal, scoring a screamer to tie the derby once more.

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At 26 minutes, however, Real Madrid responded and regained the lead. Alexander Arnold switched play to Vini Jr, who received on the left, cut inside, and curled a shot from the edge of the box, scoring the third goal to put the home side back in front.

Atlético de Madrid had a man advantage from the 31st minute, when Valverde was sent off for a second yellow. The Madrid side almost equalized with a placed shot from Julian Álvarez at the edge of the box, which struck the right post of Lunin’s goal.

Upcoming matches

⚪🟡 REAL MADRID

🔴⚪ ATLÉTICO DE MADRID

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.