Victory at Mendizorroza

Real Madrid beat Alavés at Mendizorroza in their final LaLiga away game of the year. Mbappé put Xabi Alonso's side ahead in the first half, and Carlos Vicente equalised in the second. In the 79th minute, Rodrygo made it 1-2 from a Vini Jr. assist to seal the three points for our side, who could have killed off the game with a clear penalty on Vini Jr. that was not given by either García Verdura on the pitch or González Fuertes in the VAR.

Madrid took to the Mendizorroza pitch with academy product Valdepeñas making his debut. Mbappé fired an early warning with two shots from the edge of the area in the fifth and eighth minutes, respectively, that failed to find the target. It was a prelude to what would come after the halfway point of the first half. Bellingham carried on a swift attacking move with a superb pass into space for our number ten, who raced forward, beat Tenaglia with a clever bit of footwork and opened the scoring with a precise shot in the 24th minute. The Frenchman has now scored 26 goals this season, 17 of them in LaLiga.

Chances
In added time, from a set piece, Courtois prevented the equaliser with a commendable save after a series of rebounds and a subsequent shot by Ibáñez in the six-yard box. The first chance after the break fell to Xabi Alonso's side in another quick counter-attack started by Bellingham in the 53rd minute, with Sivera twice coming to the rescue, first in a one-on-one with Mbappé and then with a spectacular save from Vini Jr.'s shot. And from a possible 0-2 to 1-1 with Carlos Vicente's goal in the 69th minute.

Rodrygo clinches victory
Everything was level with 20 minutes to go, but in the 76th minute, the visitors took the lead again. Fine play by Vini Jr., who outpaced Jonny and assisted Rodrygo with the outside of his right foot, who slotted home with ease. It was the second consecutive game in which the Brazilian found the net. In the 86th minute, Madrid were denied a clear penalty when Tenaglia fouled Vini Jr. inside the area, but neither referee García Verdura on the pitch nor González Fuertes in the VAR room blew their whistles for the clear infringement. From then until the end, the team maintained their lead and could even have extended it in added time when Brahim's shot went wide and another from Bellingham inside the area, which Sivera reacted brilliantly to save.