Federico Valverde and Vinicius Jr were on the scoresheet as Real Madrid cruises past Villarreal 2-0 in their La Liga 2024-25 match at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid on Sunday.
Real took the lead in the 14th minute with a deflected long-range shot by Valverde following a Luka Modric corner.
The Uruguayan’s drive from distance deflected off Villarreal playmaker Alex Baena and arced beyond the reach of goalkeeper Diego Conde
The visitors appealed for a penalty early in the second half when Aurelien Tchouameni, playing at centre-back, pulled down Thierno Barry, but the French striker was offside.
Brazilian forward Vinicius Jr doubled Los Blancos’ advantage with an an absolute screamer into the top corner from outside the box in the 73rd.
AS IT HAPPENED: REAL MADRID vs VILLARREAL
Despite the win, the night became sour for the defending La Liga champion as its Spanish right-back Dani Carvajal was stretchered off during the added time of the second half with an knee injury. The Euro 2024 winner collided with Yeremy Pino and was in visible discomfort.
Real is currently second in the standings, level with Barcelona on 21 points before the league leader visits 11th-placed Alaves on Sunday.
With this defeat, Villarreal stays at third with 17 points from nine matches.
