Real Madrid secured a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Valencia at Mestalla on Sunday, closing the gap to La Liga leaders Barcelona to just one point. Goals from Alvaro Carreras and Kylian Mbappe ensured Los Blancos remained in the title race.
The Spanish champions were without suspended forward Vinicius Junior and injured midfielder Jude Bellingham, which limited their attacking fluency. Despite this, Madrid managed to grind out a win in a tense encounter.
England international Trent Alexander-Arnold returned from injury as a second-half substitute, adding fresh legs to Madrid’s defense and attack.
Madrid created several early chances, but Valencia goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski kept the hosts in the game. Carreras broke the deadlock midway through the second half, curling a shot with his weaker right foot past Dimitrievski from the left side of the box. Mbappe later added a second goal to seal the victory.
Valencia came close to equalizing when Lucas Beltran’s effort clipped the post, but Madrid held firm to claim all three points.
With this win, Madrid keeps the pressure on Barcelona, who had beaten Mallorca the previous day, setting up an exciting title run-in in La Liga.
