Coach Xabi Alonso brought both Vinicius and Alexander-Arnold back into the starting XI for this match. Alexander-Arnold nearly made an early impact in the 6th minute with a long ball over the top for Mbappe to score, but the goal was ruled out for offside — by just half a shoulder.
Real Madrid went behind but quickly turned the game around before halftime.
Real again struggled to break down Mallorca’s deep defensive block, and while the hosts were still searching for a solution, disaster struck in the 18th minute. Real’s defense lost track of striker Muriqi on a Mallorca corner, and his header flew into the far corner past Courtois, giving the visitors the lead.
However, Real Madrid completely transformed late in the first half. They scored two goals in just one minute to flip the match. First, Carreras delivered a high cross and Huijsen smartly headed it across for Guler to nod into an empty net. Moments later, Valverde intercepted the ball and launched a counterattack — Vinicius took matters into his own hands, dribbling past defenders before finishing clinically into the far corner to make it 2-1.
Real kept pressing: Alexander-Arnold’s long-range strike narrowly missed the post, and Guler forced a save from a tight angle. The biggest miss came from Mbappe, who shot wide in a one-on-one after Guler’s perfect assist, and minutes later was flagged offside despite chipping the goalkeeper for what would have been a stunning goal in the 43rd minute.
Guler’s misfortune continued in the 55th minute when he thought he had scored from close range, but VAR ruled the goal out for handball during the buildup. This seemed to spark Mallorca’s hope for an equalizer: Joseph missed narrowly wide under pressure from Alexander-Arnold in the 61st minute, and in the 65th minute Samu Costa’s volley beat Courtois but was cleared off the line by Carreras.
After surviving that scare, coach Alonso made substitutions to tighten up Real’s defensive shape. The hosts created few chances late on, but they also denied Mallorca any further opportunities and held on to secure a 2-1 victory.