Real Madrid returned back to the top of the Spanish La Liga table after two late goals ensured they beat Valencia on Sunday night away from home.
The game which took place at the Mestalla stadium saw the top two sides in the league go head to head in an attempt for an outright place at the top of the league table.
Carlo Ancelotti made one change to the Madrid team that beat Inter Milan in midweek, with Eden Hazard coming in for Lucas Vazquez in the starting lineup.
Madrid suffered for the most part of the game, with Valencia riding on the support from their home fans to frustrate Carlo Ancelotti’s team.
Los Che threatened the away side for the majority of the game and Madrid had Thibaut Courtois to thank once again for saving them on a number of occasions.
Both teams went into the first-half break with nothing to separate them but Valencia were forced into two substitutions due to injury with both Carlos Soler and Thierry Correia being replaced while Real Madrid also saw Dani Carvajal depart the pitch in the 26th minute due to injury.
However, the injury to Carvajal meant that Vazquez was called upon as the makeshift right-back for the remainder of the game.
After the recess, Valencia continued from where they left off in the first half, pressure Real Madrid for the game’s opener, and they were rewarded in the 66th minute when former Madrid forward Hugo Duro volleyed his effort past Courtois after a misjudgment of the ball by Vazquez.
Ancelotti then made changes to his side with Rodrygo, Goes, Eduardo Camavinga, Luka Jovic, and Isco all coming into the game. The substitutes added a spark to the Los Blancos’ game as they took charge of possession in the late stages of the game.
Their dominance saw Vinicius Junior equalised in the 86th minute of the encounter with a heavy deflection playing a part as he latched unto Karim Benzema’s pass.
Two minutes later, it was the Brazilian who teed up the France international to shoot Madrid into the lead and ensure they walked home with all three points.
Madrid are now back on top of the league table with 13 points from five games, two above rivals Atletico who drew over the weekend, while Valencia drop to third.
