Real Madrid returned to winning ways in La Liga by defeating Levante 2-0 at home, thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappé and Raúl Asensio.
On 17 Jan 2026 GMT+7, in the Spanish La Liga match at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Real Madrid defeated Levante 2-0 to earn three crucial points, closing the gap to league leaders Barcelona to just one point, despite having played one more match.
Before the game, the White Giants were rebuilding confidence after recently dismissing coach Xabi Alonso and suffering a 2-3 defeat to Albacete in the Copa del Rey round of 16. This made winning this match essential to regain faith, even though several key players including Éder Militão, Antonio Rüdiger, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ferland Mendy, and Brahim Díaz were absent.
Meanwhile, Levante continued to fight against relegation, sitting 19th in the standings with only 14 points. Although the visitors were underdogs, they hoped to cause an upset on the road against the giants.
From the start, Real Madrid dominated possession and attack. In the 4th minute, Kylian Mbappé used his pace to break through nearly to the penalty area but was stopped by Levante's defense. The visitors had several chances from free kicks in the 13th and 42nd minutes but failed to score.
The game remained controlled by the home side, but their finishing was not sharp enough, so the first half ended scoreless at 0-0.
In the second half, Real Madrid intensified their play and earned a turning point in the 57th minute when the referee awarded a penalty. In the 58th minute, Kylian Mbappé confidently converted the spot-kick to put the White Giants ahead 1-0.
After scoring, Madrid continued to press and netted a second goal in the 65th minute from a sequence following a corner kick. Raúl Asensio finished decisively to extend the lead to 2-0.
For the remainder of the match, Real Madrid controlled the game. Although they had additional attacking opportunities, they could not increase the score. The match ended with a 2-0 victory for the White Giants, earning three vital points and intensifying the pressure on Barcelona in the La Liga title race.