Kylian Mbappe found the back of the net again and super-sub Vinicius Junior baited two red cards as Real Madrid beat Getafe 1-0 on Sunday night. Los Blancos were dragged into a rather ugly contest, but the Frenchman's second-half goal saw them get the job done and go two points clear of arch-rivals Barcelona at the La Liga summit ahead of next week's Clasico.
Madrid struggled to create an opening in the first half. Mbappe came close, only to see a weak-footed shot parried away by the excellent David Soria in the Getafe net. David Alaba, too, was denied by the Spaniard, who saved an awkwardly spinning free kick.
Mbappe had a good chance after 65 minutes, running onto a Jude Bellingham through ball before firing into the side netting.
What followed was a remarkably odd sequence. Right back Allan Nyom was subbed on to protect Kiko, who was on a red and facing the dangerous Vinicius Jr. Nyom was sent off after 50 seconds for elbowing the Brazilian. In the ensuing chaos, Getafe failed to reorganize their defensive setup, and Mbappe ran through to make it 1-0.
Vinicius baited a second red soon after, drawing a silly booking from Alex Sancris, who had already been cautioned and left Getafe with just nine men for the final stages of the game. And with a two-man advantage, Madrid rather cruised. Not an easy win, but a valuable one ahead of El Clasico.
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