Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham both shined in the first half, helping Real Madrid beat Barcelona 2-1 at Santiago Bernabeu. This victory helped Los Blancos widen the gap with their arch-rivals in the La Liga championship race to 5 points.
Fermin Lopez promptly equalized in the 38th minute in a turbulent match, but just 5 minutes later, Bellingham scored the decisive goal, helping Real Madrid end a 4-match losing streak against Barca.
The match was even more dramatic when Wojciech Szczesny successfully blocked Mbappe's penalty in the second half. Throughout the match, the home team had 3 goals disallowed for offside.
Barcelona tried to find an equalizer in the final minutes, but apart from a remarkable opportunity from Jules Kounde, they could hardly create pressure on Real's goal. The match ended in a tense atmosphere with a fight between players and coaching staff of both teams, after Pedri received a red card in the last minute.
Xabi Alonso reverses the situation with resounding victory
Xabi Alonso needs this victory. There have been many positive signs since he took over as head coach from Carlo Ancelotti in the summer. However, in really important matches, Real Madrid under Alonso showed a lack of steam.
These include a 0-4 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals and a 2-5 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Madrid derby a month ago.
Alonso now has had his first personal and important victory in the most important match against Real Madrid. A run of four consecutive defeats to the Blaugrana last season was the clearest proof that the Ancelotti era had come to an end. Not only because Madrid lost all four, but also because of the scale of those failures, with a total score of 7-16.
Therefore, the results and recent performances are a strong affirmation of Alonso's determination to open a new chapter with Real Madrid.
Real Madrid played with great intensity, determination and cohesion, completely breaking Barcelona's playing style when constantly putting pressure on goalkeeper Szczesny with two central defenders Pau Cubarsi and Eric Garcia.
Alonso's bold decision - to add a midfielder and sacrifice a winger - has brought clear results. Jude Bellingham and Eduardo Camavinga coordinated well with Aurelien Tchouameni and Arda Guler, forming a flexible 4-4-2 formation whenever the team did not have the ball.
However, Alonso still has many challenges ahead, especially in the way he handled Vinicius Junior, who expressed his frustration when he was substituted in the 72nd minute. This is a reaction that publicly expressed disagreement with the coach.
Madrid's defense is still sometimes fragile, even when Barca have difficulty creating truly dangerous opportunities.
Overall, this was the first performance on the biggest stage that Alonso could consider a clear testament to the team's true progress. Of course, he himself affirmed that this journey is just beginning.
"I don't want to lose focus on important things. This is an issue that we will solve internally. In a great match like this, Vinicius contributed a lot. This is an important and completely deserved victory. We created many opportunities, including a penalty.
This result shows that Real Madrid is a very competitive team in big matches. The team has many different personalities, and that is a good thing. Now we will enjoy this victory, and when the right time comes, we will discuss in the dressing room" - Alonso said after the match.
