Real's Pyrrhic Victory

Real Madrid secured a dramatic 3-2 victory over struggling hosts Elche on Tuesday in the sixth round of the Spanish La Liga, with substitute youngster Carlos Espe scoring the winner. Facing a team that had not beaten the Madrid club since March 1978, when Elche won 3-1 in the league, Portuguese manager José Mourinho’s side claimed all three points to move into second place, trailing Barcelona on goal difference.

Real Madrid believed they had the match in the bag after leading 2-0 at halftime. The first goal came from a brilliant free kick by Turkish midfielder Arda Güler with his left foot; the ball rebounded off the right post and then Argentine-Chilean goalkeeper Matías Dituro into the net (25'). French forward Kylian Mbappé added his seventh goal in his sixth league appearance, finishing a cross from new Ivory Coast signing Yan Diomandé (33'). The French international, who was injured while adding the second goal but continued playing, thought he had scored a personal second goal just before halftime, but it was disallowed for offside (42').

Elche improved in the second half and repeatedly threatened the goal of Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, taking advantage of the visitors’ declining performance. The hosts’ pressure paid off when Argentine Abel Ojeda headed in a cross from Chilean Lucas Cepeda to pull one back (71'), just minutes after Englishman Jude Bellingham and Moroccan Brahim Díaz came on for Güler and Brazilian Vinícius Júnior.

Real Madrid then rallied, pinning Elche in their own half in search of a third goal to seal the win. However, the goal came from the other side, as Fernando Nino scored from a pass by Xosé (83').

But young substitute Espe, who came on in the 87th minute for Englishman Trent Alexander-Arnold, saved Mourinho and Real Madrid from embarrassment, snatching the winning goal in stoppage time after a pass from Mbappé (90+1').

In another match, the managerial change at Valencia appears to have borne fruit, as the “Flying Squirrels” recorded their first win of the new season, beating hosts Alavés 1-0. Valencia had decided to terminate the contract of manager Carlos Corberán, who took over in December 2024, after finding himself at the bottom of the table with just one point after five rounds. Oscar Sánchez, the reserve team coach, took over on an interim basis until a new manager is appointed, and he succeeded in giving the “Flying Squirrels” their first victory thanks to a goal scored in the 78th minute by Luis Rioja against the team he had played for from 2019 to 2024.

As a result, Alavés suffered their second defeat, with their points tally frozen at 10 in fourth place, temporarily ahead of Atlético Madrid and Sevilla on goal difference, and one point ahead of Deportivo La Coruña.

Rayo Vallecano achieved their second win of the season, defeating visitors Espanyol 2-1, in a match where the Catalan club finished the final seconds with ten men after the red card to Moroccan defender Omar El Hilali.