Real Madrid remain in contention for the La Liga title after defeating Alavés 2-1 at home, with Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Jr both finding the net in a result that temporarily reduces the gap to league leaders Barcelona to six points.
The victory, however, arrives against a backdrop of significant concern at the Santiago Bernabéu. Prior to facing Alavés, Los Blancos had managed just one win from their previous five matches across all competitions — a run that had already confirmed their elimination from the Champions League and seen them fall nine points behind Barcelona in the title standings.
Mbappé opened the scoring in the first half, with Vinícius Jr adding a second after the interval. Both goals were described as well-taken efforts, yet the subdued reactions from players on the pitch reflected the broader anxiety surrounding the club’s recent form. The muted atmosphere was compounded late in the game when Toni Martínez pulled one back for Alavés, beating goalkeeper Andriy Lunin to deny the hosts a clean sheet and inject an element of late tension into proceedings.
The match was played under the watch of Álvaro Arbeloa, the former Real Madrid defender who has taken charge of the first team during this period. Arbeloa, who won multiple La Liga titles and Champions League trophies as a player at the club, has found management of the senior squad a considerably more challenging proposition.
With Barcelona continuing to set the pace at the top of the table, Real Madrid’s path to a title remains narrow. A six-point deficit with limited matches remaining means that consecutive dropped points from Barcelona, combined with consistent victories for Real Madrid, would be required for the championship to change hands. Given the form differential between the two sides in recent weeks, that scenario appears unlikely, according to current standings.
The result nonetheless represents a necessary three points for Madrid, preventing the gap from widening further. Their performance level, however, and the visible tension among players throughout the contest, will give Arbeloa and the club’s hierarchy cause for reflection heading into the final weeks of the season.
Alavés, for their part, made a spirited attempt to salvage something from the fixture through Martínez’s late strike, demonstrating the competitive nature of La Liga’s mid-table and lower-table sides even in matches against the traditional giants of Spanish football.
