Nine-man Getafe edged out by Mbappe as Real Madrid reclaim top spot

Mbappe once again stepped up to rescue Real Madrid against a tricky opponent ahead of El Clásico. Photo- Collected

Dhaka, October 20 — Kylian Mbappe struck the decisive goal as Real Madrid edged past nine-man Getafe 1–0 in their La Liga fixture on Sunday night, reclaiming the top spot after a dramatic encounter at the Coliseum that saw two home players sent off.

Getafe defender Allan Nyom was sent off within a minute of coming on as a substitute for a reckless elbow on Vinicius Junior. Moments later, Mbappe found the breakthrough for Los Blancos. In the closing stages, Getafe suffered another blow when winger Álex Sáncris had to leave the pitch after receiving a second yellow card.

Both Getafe red cards came within seven minutes — between the 77th and 84th — with Mbappe’s winner sandwiched in between. The French forward latched onto a superb through ball from substitute Arda Güler, beat the defense, and slotted home through the goalkeeper’s gloves. He has now scored in 11 consecutive matches for club and country.

Real’s first-half performance lacked sharpness as they struggled to create clear chances. The visitors improved after the break, although they were made to sweat for the win. Xabi Alonso’s side dominated the game with 23 attempts, 10 of which were on target, while Getafe managed only one shot on goal from seven attempts.

Madrid came close early when Rodrygo set up Mbappe in the 8th minute, but the forward’s angled shot was kept out by the Getafe goalkeeper. Mbappe’s long-range effort a minute later missed the target, and his tight-angle attempt in the 31st minute was also saved.

Just before halftime, David Alaba’s curling free-kick from 25 yards was spectacularly parried away.

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In the 55th minute, Alonso introduced Vinicius Junior for Franco Mastantuono, adding more pace to the attack. Madrid nearly took the lead in the 72nd minute when Mbappe’s free-kick deflected off Éder Militão and went narrowly wide.

The game turned when Nyom, on the pitch for only 44 seconds, elbowed Vini and was immediately shown a straight red card. After a lengthy protest from Getafe, play resumed with the decision unchanged, and Real quickly made the numerical advantage count through Mbappe’s strike.

Despite being two men down, Getafe almost rescued a point deep into stoppage time. Abou Kamara received a cross from the right inside the box, but Thibaut Courtois rushed off his line to block the forward’s effort and secure all three points for Los Blancos.

With eight wins from nine matches, Real Madrid reclaimed the La Liga top spot with 24 points, dethroning Barcelona, who have 22 from the same number of games.

The archrivals will meet at the Santiago Bernabéu next Sunday for the first El Clásico of the season, which will be crucial for both teams in the title race. - UNB