La Liga: Madrid beat Villarreal 2-0 to level leaders Barca

La Liga: Madrid beat Villarreal 2-0 to level leaders Barca

Fede Valverde and Vinicius Junior strikes helped Real Madrid bounce back from their first defeat since January with a 2-0 win over Villarreal on Saturday in La Liga.

Los Blancos lost in the Champions League at Lille but are still unbeaten in the Spanish top flight and moved level with leaders Barcelona before the Catalans visit Alaves on Sunday.

Valverde’s deflected effort and a rocket from Vinicius allowed Madrid to put a four-point gap between them and their third-placed opponents, who battled well but came up fractionally short in the capital.

Madrid’s victory was marred by a late injury to defender Dani Carvajal, who had to be taken off on a stretcher.

Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti started Kylian Mbappe after the French striker had recovered from a thigh problem.

The former Paris Saint-Germain striker could only appear from the bench in Madrid’s disappointing midweek display.

Mbappe, whom France have not selected for upcoming Nations League fixtures, was quiet at the Santiago Bernabeu as his team ground out victory with a determined, rather than inspiring, performance.

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The forward sent an early volley off-target from Luka Modric’s corner.

Instead it was midfielder powerhouse Valverde who broke the deadlock after 14 minutes.

The Uruguayan’s drive from distance deflected off Villarreal playmaker Alex Baena and arced beyond the reach of goalkeeper Diego Conde.

The visitors, enjoying a strong start to the season under coach Marcelino Garcia Toral, came close when Nicolas Pepe’s header clipped the top of the crossbar. Then Thierno Barry headed over from close range.

La Liga: Madrid beat Villarreal 2-0 to level leaders Barca