Real Madrid defeated Deportivo Alaves with a final score of 2-0, in the intermediate stage of the Spanish championship, achieving the first success since the match against Atletico de Madrid. Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior brought the three points for the club coached by Alvaro Arbeloa, and Eder Militao came out injured in the first half, his situation being under control, for the moment, according to the first information. The group from the “Bernabeu” managed, thanks to the victory, to remain in the fight for the title in La Liga, waiting for the result that Barcelona will record in this round, while the visiting team remains in the “red” zone in the domestic competition.

Real Madrid and Deportivo Alaves dueled in the 33rd round of the Spanish championship, at the “Bernabeu”. The intermediate round of La Liga put “face to face” two teams that were in different situations, because the team trained by Alvaro Arbeloa was in second place in the general standings, nine lengths behind the current leader, Barcelona, ​​while the team from Vitoria-Gasteiz occupied the 17th place in the current hierarchy, one point away from the relegation zone.

In the previous round of the domestic competition, the “los blancos” team had drawn, at home, in the company of Girona, final score 1-1, and the club trained by Quique Sanches Flores had finished in a draw, away, against Real Sociedad, final score 3-3, in what was a local derby. The pressure on Alvaro Arbeloa’s shoulders has begun to increase, following the elimination from the UEFA Champions League, in the quarter-finals of the competition, the Spanish championship being the only competition from which, mathematically, Real Madrid could win a title this season.

The team from the “Bernabeu” was at the time of this game, at the end of the ticking of seven victories in the last nine matches that took place in front of their own supporters in all competitions, while Deportivo Alaves traveled to the Spanish capital recording four duels in a row without defeat, a performance equivalent to establishing the longest unbeaten streak this season. Regarding the direct duels between the two teams, Real Madrid had won the last eight direct matches that took place against the group from the north of the country, including the round match of the current edition of La Liga, when Kylian Mbappe and Rodrygo would bring success to the “galactic” band.

Thibaut Courtois and Rodrygo, due to injuries, and Raul Asencio, due to a conflict between the Spanish central defender and the Iberian coach, could not be included in the Real Madrid squad for the home match. Vinicius Junior, prior to this match, had managed to score four times against Deportivo Alaves in the games that were played at the “Bernabeu” against the team from Vitoria-Gasteiz. Before the match, the footballers, as well as the technical staff who are part of the Real Madrid youth team, were applauded on the open stage by both players and the stands at the “Bernabeu”, following the victory in the UEFA Youth League.

The first big chance to score belonged to the visitors, when Angel Perez took over as a forward and easily passed Alvaro Carreras, but the pass back from the Deportivo Alaves right-back could not be used by Lucas Boye, whose shot, cramped, was blocked by Eder Militao. A corner quickly executed by the students trained by Alvaro Arbeloa took the players from Vitoria-Gasteiz by surprise, but Federico Valverde’s finishing, from a complicated angle, bypassed the opposing goals.

The opening of the scoring in this game came in the 30th minute, when Kylian Mbappe received a pass from Arda Guler, stepped up with the ball at his feet and shot unstoppably, on the ground, the Deportivo Alaves goalkeeper remaining a “simple spectator” to this execution. Vinicius Junior was the protagonist of a dangerous incursion into the left flank of the Madrid attack, and the pass sent by the Brazilian footballer into the center of the box was picked up by Kylian Mbappe, but the execution of the top player from the Hexagon went past the opposing goal.

Eder Militao then spectacularly slid a shot into the crossbar after receiving a pass from Jude Bellingham inside the penalty area, and immediately after launching this execution from a tricky position, an injury forced him to leave the field of play prematurely. In the added minutes of the first half, Lucas Boye was passed into the center of the box, and the visitors’ striker deflected dangerously with his heel at the near post, but the ball hit the crossbar, and then the Deportivo Alaves striker volleyed in, and Andriy Lunin blocked.

The second half of the match began with a huge opportunity that Aurelien Tchouameni missed, at the end of a corner taken by Arda Guler, the header of the French central midfielder being rejected by the goalkeeper of the group led from the sidelines by Quique Sanches Flores, for later Jude Bellingham to send over the goal from a few meters. However, a few sequences away, Vinicius Junior “catapulted” a shot from a great distance, after receiving a pass from Federico Valverde, and the ball ended up in the bottom corner of the goal defended by Antonio Sivera.

Kylian Mbappe wasted the chance to triple the advantage of the “galactics” on a ball recovered by Vinicius Junior, but the shot of the French footballer was blocked by the opposing goalkeeper. Entered during the match, Brahim Diaz shot strongly, from inside the penalty area, but a player from Deportivo Alaves blocked from the goal line. Deportivo Alaves was close to scoring inside the last 10 minutes of the match, when the header sent by Victor Parad, from few meters, hit the post.

As a result of this success recorded at the “Bernabeu”, Real Madrid achieved its first victory in about a month, and the gap to Barcelona in the general standings has narrowed to six points, with the mention that the Catalan team has one match less than its rival from the Spanish capital. On the other hand, Deportivo Alaves remains in the danger zone of the current hierarchy, keeping a single point ahead of Elche, the occupant of the first relegation position. In the next round, the group trained by Alvaro Arbeloa will duel with Real Betis, in Seville, while the team from Vitoria-Gasteiz will play in the company of Real Mallorca, at home.