MADRID, Oct 27 — Goals from Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham earned Real Madrid a 2-1 victory over Barcelona in a spiky El Clásico yesterday that snapped a four-match losing streak against their rivals and extended their lead atop the LaLiga standings.

Mbappé opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a close-range finish after a perfectly timed through ball from Bellingham.

However, Barcelona capitalised on a mistake by Arda Güler to equalise in the 38th minute through Fermín López.

Real regained the lead five minutes later when Bellingham tapped in from inside the six-yard box following an inspired run and cross by Vinícius Jr.

Real had several chances but were denied by an excellent display from Barça keeper Wojciech Szczęsny, who kept out Mbappé’s penalty early in the second half.

Barcelona barely threatened Real keeper Thibaut Courtois after the break and finished the match with 10 men after midfielder Pedri earned a second yellow card for a sliding tackle from behind on Aurélien Tchouaméni in added time.

The closing stages were marked by drama as Vinícius Jr reacted angrily to being substituted by manager Alonso, storming down the tunnel before returning to the bench.

The Brazilian was later involved in a heated exchange between players from both sides, prompting Spanish police to intervene and prevent a full-scale brawl.

Real moved to 27 points at the top of the LaLiga standings, five ahead of Barcelona in second. After four consecutive defeats to Barcelona across three competitions, Real Madrid entered the match like a team desperately in need of a statement win to validate the project of new manager Xabi Alonso.

“I’m very happy for the lads. They needed this feeling of winning a big match,” Alonso told reporters.

“We know it’s still October and it’s early days, that we have a lot of work to do. But we wanted to feel good about ourselves, and that’s how it’s been. We need a lot of what we’ve seen today.”

Penalty overturned

Roared on by a sold-out Santiago Bernabéu crowd, Real cornered Barcelona in a match that started with referee César Soto Grado overturning a penalty for the home side following a VAR review.

The official ruled that Vinícius Jr had kicked Lamine Yamal’s leg while attempting a shot, reversing his initial decision.

But it was not the first call that left the Real Madrid players and coach fuming.

A few minutes later, Mbappé had a stunning long-range strike ruled out for offside, despite replays suggesting Barcelona’s López may have been the last to touch the ball.

Real Madrid kept piling on the pressure, dominating proceedings with over 75 per cent of possession in the first half-hour.

But they were frustrated by Szczęsny, who made some remarkable saves to deny Mbappé, Dean Huijsen and Vinícius Jr from close range.

Their persistence paid off when Mbappé latched onto Bellingham’s through ball and slotted home to break the deadlock, but Barcelona equalised against the run of play following Güler’s mistake.

Vinícius Jr tormented Barcelona’s defence as he created Real’s second goal, breezing past Frenkie de Jong and Jules Koundé on the left wing before delivering a cross that Éder Militão headed back into the path of Bellingham, who tapped into an empty net in the 43rd minute.

Real had several chances to extend their lead early in the second half, including a penalty awarded for Eric García’s handball.

However, Szczęsny, Barcelona’s standout performer, denied Mbappé with a superb one-handed save, adding to his string of crucial interventions that kept the visitors in the game.

Despite enjoying more possession in the final 30 minutes, Barcelona lacked creativity in attack and failed to trouble Courtois while their frustrations were compounded when Pedri received a second yellow card.

“In the first half, we weren’t quite sharp enough with the ball, and that’s where they’re very dangerous,” De Jong told DAZN. “In the second half, we controlled the game, but we struggled to create dangerous chances.” — Reuters