Mbappé's last-gasp penalty lifts Real Madrid to 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano in Spanish league

Kylian Mbappé converted a penalty kick deep into stoppage time as Real Madrid salvaged a 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano to get back within a point of Spanish league leader Barcelona on Sunday.

The Associated Press
February 1, 2026 at 4:04PM

MADRID — Kylian Mbappé converted a penalty kick deep into stoppage time as Real Madrid salvaged a 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano to get back within a point of Spanish league leader Barcelona on Sunday.

Vinícius Júnior also scored for Madrid after again being jeered by fans at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Jude Bellingham, also booed when the lineup was announced, had to be replaced 10 minutes into the match because of an apparent left hamstring injury.

Madrid was coming off a 4-2 loss against Benfica that dropped the team out of the eight automatic spots for the round of 16 of the Champions League. It will face Benfica again in the playoffs.

Mbappé scored his eighth goal in his last five matches with Madrid with the last-gasp penalty that allowed Álvaro Arbeloa's side to keep pace with Barcelona, which won 3-1 at Elche on Saturday.

The boos toward Vinícius were subdued after he scored in the 15th minute with a superb goal. The Brazil international cleared three defenders before sending a right-footed shot into the top corner.

Rayo, which played a man down from the 80th after Pathé Ciss was sent off with a straight red card for a hard foul, equalized with Jorge De Frutos in the 49th.

Vallecano, which threatened at times at the Bernabeu, also saw Pep Chavarría shown a second yellow in the final minutes of added time.

___

ADVERTISEMENT

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

about the writer

about the writer

TALES AZZONI

The Associated Press

More from Sports

See More

Two years before the Los Angeles Olympics, the United States is already dominating the narrative in the run-up to the opening ceremony of the Milan Cortina Winter Games.