Real Madrid moved level on points with Barcelona at the top of La Liga after securing a 2-1 victory over an energetic Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabeu.
It wasn’t the most convincing performance from Carlo Ancelotti’s side, who fielded several key players despite the upcoming return leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against city rivals Atletico Madrid.
Vinicius Junior came close early on, hitting the post, but the reigning La Liga champions took the lead through Kylian Mbappé’s 18th goal of the season. The French forward, constantly moving off the shoulder of Florian Lejeune, showed off his impressive footwork to cut inside onto his stronger right foot and fire a low shot into the far corner of Augusto Batalla’s goal.
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Not to be outshone by his star teammate, Vinicius then scored a brilliant individual goal, firing a deflected shot off Andrei Ratiu’s legs after a dazzling run past Lejeune near the corner flag.
Rayo Vallecano responded before the break with a stunning goal from Pedro Diaz, who unleashed a powerful strike that cannoned off the underside of Andriy Lunin’s crossbar. Madrid’s level dropped as Rayo applied constant pressure, forcing the hosts to scramble in possession.
Both Mbappé and Vinicius had chances to extend Madrid’s lead in the second half, with Vinicius missing a chance from six yards out following excellent work from Luka Modric. However, the hosts did enough to secure all three points, moving level with Barcelona at the top and ahead of rivals Atletico, who suffered a setback earlier in the day against Getafe.
