MADRID: Federico Valverde’s deflected effort four minutes into added time earned Real Madrid a hard-fought 2-1 victory at Celta Vigo in La Liga on Friday, ending a run of two successive defeats and trimming Barcelona’s lead to one point.
Aurelien Tchouameni’s strike put the visitors ahead in the 11th minute, but Borja Iglesias levelled in the 25th after Williot Swedberg broke down the left and crossed low.
With the contest seemingly drifting towards a draw, captain Valverde let fly from well outside the box and saw his thunderous effort take a decisive deflection, wrongfooting the goalkeeper before nestling the ball into the net to keep Real firmly in the title hunt.
Real, beaten by Osasuna and Getafe in their previous two outings, move to 63 points.
“There’s still a long way to go in La Liga, with many points still up for grabs. Every match will be a battle. Our performance today was very commendable, Real manager Alvaro Arbeloa told a press conference.
“Hopefully it will be a victory we remember if we win La Liga. It guides us on the path we want to follow in every match. This is Real Madrid: believing and fighting. Hopefully it will be a turning point.”
Celta began at a fierce tempo and almost caught their depleted visitors cold.
Thibaut Courtois produced a fine one-handed save in the fifth minute to turn Iglesias’s drive from the edge of the box away as the hosts targeted a Real side missing nine players, including the injured Kylian Mbappe, Rodrygo, Eder Militao and Jude Bellingham.
Real responded swiftly. Vinicius Jr struck the left post during a counter-attack before Tchouameni broke the deadlock two minutes later.
After Arda Guler worked a short corner, he squared for Tchouameni in the middle, whose first-time effort crept in just inside the left post.
Celta levelled in the 25th minute when Williot Swedberg surged past Trent Alexander-Arnold down the left and delivered a low cross for Iglesias to convert from close range.
Swedberg nearly turned scorer himself before halftime, but Courtois reacted sharply to deny him from inside the box.
Vinicius remained Real’s main outlet after the break, yet clear chances were scarce. Substitute Iago Aspas came closest for Celta, striking the post in the 88th minute.
Just as a draw loomed a result that could have proved costly in the title race Valverde stepped up with a strike that, via a helpful deflection, ensured Real kept up the pressure on Barcelona.
Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2026
