Soccer Football - LaLiga - Real Madrid v Espanyol - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - September 21, 2024 Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior celebrates scoring their third goal with Kylian Mbappe REUTERS/Juan Medina
MADRID (Reuters) -Vinicius Jr came off the bench to score once and set up another goal to steer champions Real Madrid to a 4-1 fightback victory over Espanyol in LaLiga on Saturday.
Real Madrid dominated proceedings but fell behind in the 54th minute due to a rare blunder by their goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who accidentally deflected a low cross from Jofre into his own net.
However, Real found the equaliser four minutes later with a close-range strike by Dani Carvajal, taking advantage of a mistake by Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia who let a Jude Bellingham lateral shot from close range squeeze under him, leaving the ball free for Carvajal to smash into an empty net.
Vinicius Jr then worked his magic within three busy minutes, first lifting a brilliant cross with the outside of his foot to Rodrygo, who netted a first-touch effort from the middle of the box in the 75th minute, and then scoring himself with a tidy finish from a counter-attack in the 78th.
Kylian Mbappe finished off the win from the penalty spot after substitute Endrick was fouled inside the box in the 90th minute following a fine individual play by the Brazilian teenager.
Real remained second on 14 points, one behind leaders Barcelona who have a game in hand and visit fourth-placed Villarreal on Sunday.
"We played a very good game but it's true that it was difficult for us to finish plays. We created a lot of chances but we have a lot of room for improvement," captain Luka Modric told Movistar Plus.
"I don't know if it was our best or not but it was a great game, from start to finish. We must continue like today. To have Vinicius, Mbappe, Bellingham and Rodrygo is awesome; they are great.
"They and the whole team are doing everything right but we still can improve; we'll keep going in the next few games until we feel we reach out true potential. This match can give us confidence."
Real manager Carlo Ancelotti made four changes from the team that beat Stuttgart 3-1 in their Champions League opener on Tuesday but they still were in commanding form from the start, with Mbappe as the main focus of their efforts up-front.
The France captain was busy and relentlessly trying to connect with his team mates but lacked a final punch, missing several shots and still looking far from the difference-maker Real thought they were getting when they signed him as a free agent from Paris St Germain in the close season.
Modric and Federico Valverde fed him with several good passes through in space, but Mbappe either finished off-target or sent the ball into the hands of the keeper, wasting several opportunities.
After Espanyol got the lead, Ancelotti immediately brought Vinicius off the bench and the Brazilian winger gave the locals the spark they were missing.
Real host Alaves on Tuesday before facing local rivals Atletico Madrid in a highly anticipated Spanish capital derby next weekend.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; editing by Clare Fallon)
