Mbappe’s brace at Villarreal sends Real Madrid to top of La Liga

Real Madrid triumph 2-0 astatine third-placed Villarreal to ascent past rivals Barcelona to the acme of the La Liga table.

Kylian Mbappe netted doubly to assertion a 2-0 triumph for Real Madrid astatine Villarreal and instrumentality his broadside to the apical of La Liga.

Alvaro Arbeloa’s squad moved 2 points wide of rivals Barcelona, who big Real Oviedo connected Sunday.

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La Liga’s apical scorer Mbappe reached 21 goals for the play successful the contention to assistance Madrid spot disconnected a spirited Villarreal broadside connected Saturday, present 4th successful the table.

Arbeloa’s broadside person won 3 consecutive matches crossed each competitions, and triumph astatine Villarreal could beryllium a captious measurement successful the revival of their season.

After the daze Copa del Rey decision astatine second-tier Albacete, successful Arbeloa’s archetypal lucifer astatine the helm, his Madrid person started to instrumentality shape.

The manager has made wide however important his prima players are, and nary has been much important this play than Mbappe.

It was a lively but imprecise commencement astatine Villarreal’s Estadio de la Ceramica, arsenic the crippled glowed but neither broadside was capable to earnestly threaten.

Georges Mikautadze lashed a volley narrowly wide aft seasoned guardant Gerard Moreno recovered him with a floating cross.

At the different end, Madrid midfielder Arda Guler fired consecutive astatine Villarreal stopper Luiz Junior aft immoderate tidy footwork, and past changeable precocious implicit the barroom astatine the extremity of a swift break.

Villarreal’s Juan Foyth limped disconnected wounded successful a stroke for the hosts, who created a bully accidental for Pape Gueye conscionable earlier the break.

The Senegal midfielder, a champion astatine the Africa Cup of Nations past weekend, powered narrowly wide of the post.

Vinicius, who excelled successful Madrid’s Champions League 6-1 rout of Monaco successful midweek, besides came close, with a rasping effort crossed Luiz Junior’s extremity and wide.

The 25-year-old Brazil guardant went a 13th consecutive La Liga lucifer without scoring, but helium was progressive arsenic Mbappe opened the scoring 2 minutes into the 2nd half.

Vinicius came into the container from the near flank, and his debased transverse was blocked, but Mbappe was connected manus to compression location his 20th league extremity of the run from adjacent range.

Villarreal had the amended of the 2nd fractional arsenic they worked hard to propulsion level, but Moreno spurned their champion accidental by firing inches implicit erstwhile well-placed.

In stoppage time, Mbappe was clumsily felled by Alfonso Pedraza successful the box, and the French guardant cheekily dinked location the resulting punishment to seal Madrid’s victory.