Real Madrid Secure 2-0 Victory Over Villarreal But Suffer Dani Carvajal Injury Setback
Real Madrid defeated Villarreal 2-0 in La Liga on Saturday to recover from their midweek Champions League defeat.
Los Blancos, who remain unbeaten in the Spanish top division and level on points with leaders Barcelona, were able to clinch the three points thanks to goals from Fede Valverde and Vinicius Junior.
Real Madrid defeated Villarreal 2-0 on Saturday in La Liga, capping a comeback from their first loss since January thanks to goals from Fede Valverde and Vinicius Junior. Although Los Blancos lost their Champions League match in Lille, they are still undefeated in the top flight of Spain and have drawn even with leaders Barcelona before the Catalans’ Sunday visit to Alaves. Vinicius’s rocket and Valverde’s deflected effort put Madrid ahead by four points against their third-place rivals, who fought valiantly but lost the match in the capital.
Defender Dani Carvajal had a late injury that required him to be taken off the field on a stretcher, which soured Madrid’s victory. Reporters were informed by Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti that “it seems to be a serious knee injury, it will be looked at in the coming hours.”
“The players are sad, worried, because something happened that happens a lot, because of the (busy) calendar, and it happened to a very, very important player for us.”
Vinicius was taken off late because he was experiencing neck and shoulder pain, and Ancelotti said that he would also undergo medical testing. After Kylian Mbappe’s recovery from a thigh injury, the Italian coach started him.
The former striker for Paris Saint-Germain was limited to a bench role in Madrid’s underwhelming midweek performance. Mbappe, who has not been selected by France for the next Nations League matches, was quiet at the Santiago Bernabeu as his team won with a resolute rather than spectacular display.
Even if he was seated in a box this time, German midfielder Toni Kroos is still absent from Madrid. Though Mbappe missed the mark with his early shot from Luka Modric’s corner, midfield talisman Valverde broke the stalemate after 14 minutes.
The Uruguayan’s long-range strike veered past goalkeeper Diego Conde and ricocheted off Villarreal’s playmaker Alex Baena. With Marcelino Garcia Toral as their coach, the visitors are having a great start to the season. Nicolas Pepe’s header hit the top of the crossbar, but it was only inches from goal.
Mbappe had one more opportunity, but goalkeeper Conde stopped him with an outstretched leg after he sprinted into the area with lightning speed. When Aurelien Tchouameni, a center-back, took down Barry early in the second half, Villarreal called for a penalty, but the French striker was offside.
With a free kick, Baena nearly caught the Ukrainian goalkeeper filling in for the injured Thibaut Courtois, hitting the side-netting of Andriy Lunin’s goal. With 20 minutes remaining, Rodrygo Goes replaced Mbappe, who had just missed a close shot from Vinicius.
Vinicius, a striker for Brazil who is aiming to win his first Ballon d’Or later in October, scored the second goal with an incredible attempt that ripped into the top corner from outside the box.
Injury to CarvajalÂ
When Yeremi Pino put pressure on Spanish right-back Carvajal to clear the ball in stoppage time, Carvajal got hurt.
“Ultimately, the outcome is not as significant as Dani’s health,” Valverde stated on Real Madrid TV.
“The game was fine, it was neither very good or bad, it was what we had to do to win, two goals was enough.”
Concerned about Carvajal was also defender Raul Albiol of Villarreal.
“It looked bad… let’s hope it’s the least (damage) possible, because we all know how important he is for Real Madrid and Spanish football,” he stated.
The center back claimed that Madrid’s effective finishing was what decided the game.
“They have a lot of attacking punch and more or less with three chances they had two goals,” he stated.
Earlier, bottom-of-the-table Las Palmas was defeated 1-0 by a nine-man Celta Vigo.
Even with the red cards given to Celta by Ilaix Moriba and Iago Aspas—who moved up to ninth place in the standings after Borja Iglesias’ goal—the Canary Islanders were unable to secure their first victory of the season.
After a 1-1 tie at Getafe, Osasuna moved up to fifth place. Rayo Vallecano triumphed at Valladolid by the same goal, while Espanyol defeated Mallorca 2-1.
