March 07, (THEWILL) — A late Federico Valverde strike gave Real Madrid a 2-1 win over Celta Vigo on Saturday, keeping the visitors firmly in the hunt for the LaLiga title.
Trent Alexander-Arnold threatened in the opening exchanges with a precise through ball that sent Vinicius Junior clear, but the Brazilian forward clipped the post. Madrid took control in the 11th minute when Aurelien Tchouameni received a pass from Arda Guler and steered a composed effort into the corner.
Celta responded 14 minutes later. Williot Swedberg laid the ball off for Borja Iglesias, who slotted home to restore parity. Thibaut Courtois then kept the scores level by denying Swedberg with a crucial stop just before the interval.
Neither side could find a breakthrough in the second half. Celta went close to a winner when Iago Aspas struck the woodwork three minutes from time.
Valverde had the final word in the 94th minute, his effort taking a fortunate deflection off Marcos Alonso before nestling in the net. Madrid remain one point behind league leaders Barcelona, though capital city side have played one more game.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
