Real Madrid got a hard fought victory over Mallorca at home on Sunday. The hosts were the better team for the whole match, but Mallorca took the lead from a set piece after 35 minutes through Vedat Muriqi. Madrid levelled right on half-time with a brilliant strike by Fede Valverde and then Vinicius made it 2-1 18 minutes from time, not long after Antonio Sanchez should have scored for Mallorca. Rodrygo and Rudiger then netted in the closing stages.
Mallorca almost took the lead inside the first minute when a long ball found Vedat Muriqi and he scooped the ball over Rudiger's head before being denied by a fine save by Courtois. However, Real Madrid quickly became the dominant force in the first period. Dani Ceballos tested Mallorca goalkeeper Rajkovic with a 25 yard effort after five minutes and then there was plenty of pressure from Ancelotti's side. They had more than 10 shots in the first 45, but only a handful were on target. Mallorca's strategy was just to defend and then play on the counter.
Madrid were looking the more likely to take the lead as Kroos struck one wide of the mark while Rodrygo was denied by the goalkeeper just before the half hour after Kroos' ball hit Valverde on the back and fell nicely for the Brazilian. Then, with 35 minutes on the clock, Mallorca took a shock lead.
After Pablo Maffeo had won a free-kick for the islanders on the far side, Kang-In Lee delivered a beautiful free-kick to Muriqi at the back post and he headed in. The goal stunned the hosts, but then Fede Valverde levelled just before the break when he got the ball in his own half and ran all the way to the edge of the Mallorca box before finding the top corner.
September 11, 2022
The goal was a huge blow for the islanders, but Mallorca stuck to their game plan in the second period. They allowed Madrid to have possession and decided to play on the counter. They restricted Madrid to a Lucas Vazquez shot on the hour mark which curled wide of the mark and should have scored a second themselves.
Mallorca worked a move on the far side, subsititute Grenier got to the by-line before cutting back for Antonio Sanchez who hit wide from six yards out. That was easily the best opportunity of the second period and Javier Aguirre's men were made to rue that miss in the 72nd minute when Madrid hit the front.
Modric gave the ball to Rodrygo who then laid off for Vinicius and he found the far corner. That left Mallorca having to change their strategy, but despite making some changes and forcing some corners, they did not look like scoring. In fact, Real Madrid secured the points in the 89th minute when Rodrygo dribbled past Nastasic and Raillo before finding the corner.
There was still time for Rudiger to make it four in stoppage time after volleying in Toni Kroos' free-kick although the final scoreline made it look more one-sided than it actually was. Mallorca were clearly second best, but were in the game until the very end.