Santander Defeated 3-0 as Real Madrid Maintain La Liga Title Pace
Real Madrid secured a 3-0 victory over Racing Santander at the Sardinero stadium on Sunday, maintaining pressure near the top of the La Liga standings. Football analysts and La Liga supporters saw third-place Madrid move within three points of league leaders Barcelona, led by an early penalty from French forward Kylian Mbappe following a week of off-pitch headlines.
Mourinho’s Side Secures Sixth Straight Win Across All Competitions
Mbappe converted an 11th-minute spot-kick after going down under pressure from Matteo Prati, marking his 12th league goal of the season. Jude Bellingham extended the lead after receiving a pass from Arda Guler, rounding the goalkeeper to record his 50th goal for the club since joining in 2023. Record signing Yan Diomande added the third goal from the edge of the penalty box, sealing Santander’s first home defeat of the season and keeping Jose Mourinho’s side one point behind second-place Atletico Madrid.
Racing Santander experienced a momentary lifeline in the second half when Aurelien Tchouameni was penalized for handball, but the award was overturned following a VAR review. Bellingham had a late effort ruled out for offside in stoppage time, while Racing goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala denied further attempts as Madrid controlled the final stages.
The match took place without coverage from Chinese state television, which declined to broadcast the fixture following public fallout over a social media video in which Mbappe joked about former Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The forward had issued an apology earlier in the week, which also saw him narrowly miss out on the Ballon d’Or to Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.
