Real Madrid beat Betis at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium ahead of the international break. A great second half saw Ancelotti’s side put the game beyond doubt. Mbappé stole the show, scoring his first brace for Real Madrid and coming off to a standing ovation when he was replaced by Modrić. His first goal came with a first-time finish following a stunning back-heel assist from Valverde, and his second came from the penalty spot after Vini Jr had been brought down.

A goalless first half despite the fact that Ancelotti’s side created a number of chances to score. The first dangerous move, however, came from Betis, with a cross from Perraud met by Abde who headed wide after ten minutes. Real Madrid hit back with a couple of chances. Rodrygo whipped in a corner after 20 minutes and Militão’s header drew a great save from Rui Silva to keep the ball out. Four minutes later, Valverde’s long-range effort took a nasty deflection off Natan, but the ball ended up in the keeper’s hands.

Vini Jr. struck the post
The tempo was stepped up in the second half, with Ancelotti’s side having now scored eight of their nine official goals this season after the break. Valverde launched a quick attacking transition that found Vini Jr. and the Brazilian’s shot from the edge of the box struck Llorente before the ball hit the post. A minute later, the Bernabéu appealed for a penalty following a move involving the same players. Vini Jr. crossed and the ball struck Llorente’s hand, held away from his body despite referee Alberola Rojas signalling that it was behind his body.

Mbappé’s brace
The game was being played around the Betis area and in the 56th minute Rodrygo came close, picking up the ball inside the area before his powerful shot was turned away by Rui Silva. A minute later, another controversial moment when Alberola Rojas didn’t award a penalty following a clear foul on Ceballos by Sabaly, who had not touched the ball at any point. The well-deserved goal arrived in the 67th minute and it was a beautifully crafted goal. Rodrygo played the ball to Valverde and the Uruguayan set up Mbappé on the edge of the area with a back-heel for a first-time left-footed finish from the Frenchman.

Our team finally settled the game in the 75th minute. A great through ball from Brahim found Vini Jr., who broke through on Rui Silva and was brought down by the visiting goalkeeper. Alberola Rojas initially signalled offside, but after being notified by the VAR and watching the incident on the monitor, he pointed to the penalty spot. Mbappé converted the spot-kick to score his first brace as a Madrid player. It could have been three in the 89th minute, but the visitors’ goalkeeper got the better of Endrick in the one-on-one following another great pass from Brahim. Real Madrid’s second win at the Bernabéu in as many games and Ancelotti’s side have now gone 36 games unbeaten in La Liga.

Ancelotti: “We picked up three points and head into the break feeling good”

Carlo Ancelotti spoke in the press room at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium and gave his thoughts on the win against Betis in matchday four of LaLiga: “We’re not anxious or frustrated. We’re very excited and motivated to try to do better. We deserved to win today and we played better and with more cohesion between everyone. We got the three points and we’re going into the break feeling good. It’s a happy day as we’ve taken a step forward in terms of what we want to do and what we want to be. We have to work hard, but we’ve got all the tools we need to do well”.

“I had a good feeling in the first half, although we were a bit slower on the ball, but we defended well and the team stayed in the game. We got into a better rhythm in the second half, like we normally do. We put in a good performance in the second half. We’re not at our best, that will come gradually”.

Mbappé
“He’s never been put under pressure to score goals. He had a good game, like everyone else, and was very good in the box. Everyone worked well and Vini Jr. got the penalty for him. He was very unselfish and both of them, along with Rodrygo, have a good relationship. Scoring is important for Mbappé, but we assess the team’s work as a whole, which was better than in the last game”.

Defensive support from the three forwards
“Vini Jr. and Rodrygo are not new in this respect. We won the Champions League in 2022 with Rodrygo working and they will do well, without sweating. We look for chances in transition with the low block with three forwards who are very quick”.

The system of play
“We’ve tried to play with Vini Jr and Rodrygo out wide. Sometimes they come in when the full-backs go up. It worked fairly well. We’re much more solid defensively, with the three of them in the middle”.

What is the team lacking?
“We need to be more consistent. We sometimes lose our position and we can’t afford to give the ball away unnecessarily. The unit has always been and will always be the key to success, the last problem is scoring goals”.

Covering for Bellingham’s absence
“The three midfielders give us more solidity on the inside and the opposition are forcing play on the outside and that’s easier for us to control. It’s a system that we can sometimes do, like the 4-4-2”.

The introduction of Brahim and Fran García
“I don’t think I would label a player as a substitute. They are two good players who always contribute to the team no matter how many minutes they get. They were very well prepared because they brought a lot more energy to the team”.

Praise for Tchouameni
“He has demonstrated all his strengths. He’s a fantastic young defensive midfielder, who will gradually learn how to play just the right amount of time on the ball. He’s irreplaceable defensively because he helps a lot at the back. We’ve kept a clean sheet and his job was to work with the defenders, who did a great job”.

The international break
“It’s never a good thing because players have to go away, especially those who are travelling to South America, and it will be difficult for them to come back properly. The only thing I would ask for is that they don’t pick up any injuries because that’s the biggest danger. Otherwise, they’re quite used to playing all the time”.

Mbappé: “I was looking forward to scoring in this legendary stadium, the best in the world”

Real Madrid got the better of Betis at the Santiago Bernabéu and the man of the match, Mbappé, whose brace clinched the win, was delighted with his first two La Liga goals: “I was looking forward to scoring in this legendary stadium, the best in the world, but the most important thing was the win. Following the game in Las Palmas we knew we had to win and we did just that. It was a tough game, like every game, but we are Real Madrid and we got the win in the end”.

“Brahim started the move, then Rodrygo passes it to Valverde and he plays me in with an incredible back-heel. I’m there, I feel that the ball is going to arrive and I score the goal”.

Feelings about the win
“We need to win against big teams to gain confidence. We need to play with confidence and stick together. Other teams are winning too and it’s very important that we do too”.

Goal at the Bernabéu
“I’ve been very happy since I’ve arrived. People are very nice to me, even when I didn’t score. Three games without scoring for a lot of people isn’t much, but for me, it’s a lot. The people at the club, the players and the fans have always been behind me. They trust me to score goals for this badge”.

Ceballos has made 150 appearances for Real Madrid

Dani Ceballos made his 150th appearance for Real Madrid in the match against Betis. The midfielder reaches this milestone after six seasons with our team, in which he has won 15 trophies and scored seven goals. These 150 matches (112 of which have been wins) comprise of 98 LaLiga games, 22 Champions League games, 3 Club World Cup games, 19 Copa del Rey games, 5 Copa del Rey games, 5 Spanish Super Cup games and 3 European Super Cup games.

The season where Ceballos has made the most appearances as a Real Madrid player was 2022-23, with 46 games played. The opponent he has come up against the most times is Atlético de Madrid (9 matches).