Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Villarreal: Lethal Mbappe Reignites La Liga Title Race

Los Blancos have now won back-to-back games away at Villarreal for the first time since 2011.

Kylian Mbappé is making an early case for the 2026 Ballon d’Or. | Jose Jordan/AFP/Getty Images

Real Madrid secured a comfortable 2–0 victory over Villarreal on Saturday evening to momentarily go top of the La Liga standings.

Coming off a 6–0 rout over Monaco, the Spanish giants made the trip to the Estadio de la Cerámica looking to snag their third victory in a row under new boss Álvaro Arbeloa. Despite coming up empty in the first half, Los Blancos always looked a threat to score, and who else but Kylian Mbappé to deliver.

The Frenchman gave his side the 1–0 lead just two minutes after the restart following a great bit of skill from Vinicius Junior. Mbappé then sealed the victory in stoppage time with a panenka to send Real Madrid back to the Spanish capital with three points.

The alarm bells sounding at the Bernabéu have suddenly gone quiet. The 15-time European champions reclaimed first place of La Liga, putting the pressure on Barcelona ahead of their match on Sunday.

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Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Villarreal (4-1-2-3)

Kylian Mbappé has now scored 21 league goals this season. | Jose Jordan/AFP/Getty Images

*Ratings Provided by FotMob*

GK: Thibaut Courtois—7.8: Probably would have thought he’d be busier, but only had to make one save. Secured just his second clean sheet in 2026.

RB: Federico Valverde—7.2: Lacked the splendor of his last two performances, but solid nonetheless. Benefited from Asencio’s help to defend in transition.

CB: Raúl Asencio—7.3: Cleaned up his teammates’ mistakes for most of the night. Put in an admirable effort while injured to hold Mikautadze and Moreno to zero shots on target.

CB: Dean Huijsen—7.6: Made a nice sliding challenge to dispossess Mikautadze in the early stages, setting the tone for the night. Played with confidence going forward and won all his duels on the ground.

LB: Álvaro Carreras—7.6: Becoming one of the unsung heroes on the team. Hardly ever puts a foot wrong in defense and so rarely makes a mistake in possession.

DM: Eduardo Camavinga—7.8: Did his job defensively, but was too lackadaisical on the ball. Caught in possession and sent errant passes to players in yellow far too often.

AM: Arda Güler—8.0: Yet another game where he created the most chances. Room to grow in the midfield, but his playmaking in the final third is what will keep him in Arbeloa’s XI.

AM: Jude Bellingham—7.9: Covered immense ground and dazzled with his long-ball service. So much was asked of him defensively in Villarreal and he met the challenge without complaint.

RW: Franco Mastantuono—7.4: Did well to pounce on Villarreal’s early mistakes, but his final touch let him down on more than one occasion. Made up for it with his defensive efforts.

ST: Kylian Mbappé—9.1: Simply inevitable. Up to 21 league goals this season and looking like the best player in Spain, and maybe all of Europe.

LW: Vinicius Junior—7.1: At times had four players surrounding him, all trying to neutralize the threat he brought to the left flank. Set up the Mbappé’s first and likely would have created more had he not been relentlessly fouled in the second half.

Substitute	Rating (Out of 10)
Gonzalo García (74’ for Mastantuono)	5.8
Brahim Díaz (71’ for Güler)	6.0

Subs not used: Andriy Lunin (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Dani Carvajal, David Alaba, Diego Aguado, Fran García, Dani Ceballos, Jorge Cestero, Rodrygo.

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Villarreal (4-4-2)

Starting XI: Luiz Júnior; Pau Navarro, Juan Foyth, Renato Veiga, Alfonso Pedraza; Tajon Buchanan, Dani Parejo, Pape Gueye, Alberto Moleiro; Gerard Moreno, Georges Mikautadze.

Subs used: Rafa Marín, Nicolas Pépé, Tani Oluwaseyi, Thomas Partey, Ayoze Pérez.

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Player of the Match: Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid)

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Villarreal 0–2 Real Madrid—How It Unfolded at the Estadio de la Cerámica

Vinicius Junior was at the heart of the action for Real Madrid. | Jose Jordan/AFP/Getty Images

Despite the whistles coming from the sea of yellow shirts in the stands, the environment at the Estadio de la Cerámica was ironically less hostile than the crowd that greeted Real Madrid at the Bernabéu last weekend. Mistakes from both sides marred the opening 15 minutes, preventing either team from gaining a strong foothold in the game.

Los Blancos cleaned up their blunders faster than Villarreal and turned their sights toward goal. Arda Güler saw a brilliant individual effort saved by goalkeeper Luiz Júnior, before the Türkiye international soon sent his next chance over the crossbar. The hosts then breathed a sigh of relief in the 26th minute when Júnior parried away a first-time strike from Kylian Mbappé.

Despite knocking on the door, Arbeloa’s men were missing the end product to get on the scoresheet. The team became slightly predictable, funneling attack after attack down the left flank. Mbappé found himself drifting all over the pitch just to get involved.

After narrowly sending a dangerous shot wide, Vinicius Junior was back at the heart of the action, this time on the counter attack. The Brazilian was through on goal on the brink of halftime, but the referee blew the whistle for a foul that occurred in the build-up near the halfway line. Every player in white was fuming, but a replay showed the No. 7 shoved his marker to break free.

Vinicius Jr had plenty of complaints for the officiating crew. | Manuel Queimadelos/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

Real Madrid emerged from the tunnel with a point to prove in the second half, led by Vinicius Jr. Less than two minutes after the restart, the winger did well to keep the ball in play and then fearlessly drove into the box, getting the better of Pau Navarro on his way to the byline.

Vinicius Jr looked to cut it back, but Pape Gueye made a sliding challenge to break up the play. Mbappé pounced on the loose ball, though, and buried a right-footed strike from close range to put Los Blancos up 1–0.

😄 The goal machine strikes again! pic.twitter.com/swKHvgUGOu

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 24, 2026

Villarreal had a glorious opportunity to equalize off a well-worked set piece just past the hour-mark. Dani Parejo sent in an inviting low cross from the left flank and found an unmarked Gerard Moreno 12 yards out from goal. The striker skied his finish, though, muffing what should have been a goal.

Real Madrid entered cruise control in the final 25 minutes, but they still hunted for a second goal, not content to just sit back and defend like so many times under Carlo Ancelotti and Xabi Alonso. A brilliant ball from Eduardo Camavinga played Mbappé through on goal in the 82nd minute, but Navarro made what was likely a goal-saving block.

The Yellow Submarine did not go down quietly, but they never truly looked a threat to score. Mbappé, meanwhile, was everywhere and bagged what felt like an inevitable brace when he won his side a penalty in stoppage time. The Frenchman calmly sent a panenka into the back of the net to secure all three points for his side.

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Villarreal vs. Real Madrid Halftime Stats

Statistic	Villarreal	Real Madrid
Possession	43%	57%
Expected Goals (xG)	0.17	0.42
Total Shots	4	8
Shots on Target	0	2
Big Chances	0	0
Pass Accuracy	79%	87%
Fouls	7	6
Corners	4	2

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Villarreal vs. Real Madrid Full Time Statistics

Statistic	Villarreal	Real Madrid
Possession	42%	58%
Expected Goals (xG)	0.58	1.58
Total Shots	8	14
Shots on Target	1	4
Big Chances	2	1
Pass Accuracy	81%	88%
Fouls	19	10
Corners	6	6

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