Valverde strikes late as Real Madrid beat Celta Vigo

2026-03-07 - 07:43

Federico Valverde’s heavily deflected 95th-minute drive snatched injury-hit Real Madrid a 2-1 win at Celta Vigo in La Liga on Friday. The Uruguayan midfielder needed a stroke of fortune at the death to pull his team to within one point of leaders Barcelona, who visit Athletic Bilbao on Saturday. Aurelien Tchouameni opened the scoring for Los Blancos early on but Borja Iglesias soon pulled Celta level at their Balaidos stadium. Alvaro Arbeloa’s Madrid, without injured striker Kylian Mbappe, had lost their previous two league games and are struggling to find consistent form. Valverde’s shot, which flew into Celta’s net after bouncing off former Barcelona defender Marcos Alonso, stopped his side going three consecutive La Liga matches without a win. “There’s a long way to go in La Liga, a lot of points left to play for... at this point it’s almost like La Liga has not started yet,” Arbeloa told reporters. “Every game you’re playing against a team that has their own objectives and each game will be a war. “We came here with 10 players out so I think our win deserves a lot of credit.” As well as French superstar Mbappe, the team’s top goalscorer, Arbeloa was without several other players including Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo Goes and Eduardo Camavinga. Despite the victory, Madrid’s form and their injury list does not inspire confidence ahead of next week’s Champions League last 16 clash against Manchester City. Arbeloa started 18-year-old midfielder Thiago Pitarch for the first time and he offered a decent display even as his team failed to impress. Iglesias forced Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois into a solid low save with a drive from the edge of the box in the opening exchanges. Arbeloa’s side started well and Vinicius Junior struck