Joan García demonstrated why he is a rising goalkeeper until Vinícius Júnior got Real Madrid’s offense going.
Vinícius came off the bench to assist Rodrygo and score one himself, while Kylian Mbappé added a late penalty, leading Madrid to a 4-1 victory over a strong Espanyol team in the Spanish league on Saturday.
García made several key saves for Espanyol before an Olympic gold medalist started an attack with a long pass from his box, which resulted in an own goal by Thibaut Courtois in the 54th minute.
However, García’s only mistake of the match allowed Dani Carvajal to equalize just four minutes later when Jude Bellingham’s low pass went under the goalkeeper. Carvajal simply pushed the ball over the line to make it 1-1.
Vinícius rested during the first half as coach Carlo Ancelotti rotated his attacking players. But after Espanyol took the lead, Ancelotti sent Vinícius on, and he quickly made an impact, curling in a perfect cross with the outside of his left foot for Rodrygo to score in the 75th minute.
Vinícius then scored himself in the 78th minute after Espanyol lost the ball and Mbappé set him up on a quick break.
Mbappé converted a penalty in the 90th minute after Endrick came on late and was fouled by Carlos Romero.
“We made mistakes that maybe you can get away with in other games, but not here,” said Espanyol coach Manolo González.
Madrid is now just one point behind leader Barcelona before facing Villarreal on Sunday.
Bellingham had a moment of concern when he fell awkwardly on his right shoulder in the first half, but after a quick check from a doctor on the sidelines, he returned to the game. Ancelotti said it seemed like the England midfielder was fine.
Ancelotti expressed satisfaction with the “well-rounded” performance.
