On a day of anger at the Bernabeu, Real Madrid returned to winning ways as they saw off Levante in La Liga.
Loud boos greeted the players as they entered the field of play, and they continued throughout the first half. Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and president Florentino Perez were the main targets, and the off-field atmosphere contributed to a flat performance from Real Madrid, who struggled to test Levante’s back-line. Rather, it was the visitors that went closest, with Pablo Martinez twice firing just wide.
Alvaro Arbeloa made changes at half time to correct his side’s performance, with Arda Guler and Franco Mastantuono brought on. Just over 10 minutes into the second half, it worked as Real Madrid took the lead. Kylian Mbappe was fouled inside the penalty area by Levante defender Adrian de la Fuente, and he dusted himself off to score from 12 yards.
Seven minutes later, Real Madrid made it 2-0. Guler’s wonderful corner from the left was brilliantly met by Raul Asencio, who made it goals in back-to-back Bernabeu matches as he found the back of the net.
From there on, Real Madrid were comfortable. They should have added to their lead when Bellingham was played in by Fede Valverde, but the Englishman’s header was well saved by Levante goalkeeper Mathew Ryan, who also denied Vinicius on a couple of occasions, as he sought to get the boo-boys off his back.
It was another underwhelming performance from Real Madrid, but the important thing is that the three points were secured. It means they are back to within one point of Barcelona in the La Liga title race, with the Catalans having the chance to re-establish their buffer on Sunday. Nevertheless, Arbeloa and his side can take some positives from this.