Bellingham, Mbappe on target as Real Madrid beat Getafe 2-0 to go second

Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham celebrates after scoring the opening goal against Getafe at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. (AP pic)

MADRID: Jude Bellingham converted a penalty and Kylian Mbappe added another goal before halftime to spur Real Madrid to a 2-0 victory over Getafe at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday as they moved within touching distance of LaLiga leaders Barcelona.

Real climbed to second place in the table with 33 points from 14 matches, one point behind rivals Barcelona, who have played a game more. Getafe sit in 17th place after collecting 13 points from 15 matches.

Real were awarded a penalty in the 30th minute after Getafe right back Allan Nyom brought down centreback Antonio Ruediger in the box as the ball was being delivered from a corner.

Bellingham stepped up to take the penalty instead of Frenchman Mbappe, who had missed a spot kick in Real’s 2-0 defeat at Liverpool in the Champions League on Wednesday, and made no mistake as he knocked the ball straight down the middle to easily beat goalkeeper David Soria.

The 21-year-old England midfielder has now netted in three straight league matches.

It did not take Mbappe long to double the lead as he struck in the 38th minute, taking a brilliant ball from Bellingham and whipping it in from outside the box to score his 10th goal of the season across all competitions for Real.

The France captain, who moved to the Bernabeu from French champions Paris St Germain on a free transfer in June, is now also Real’s joint-top scorer in the league alongside the injured Vinicius Jr with eight goals.

Mbappe looked lively, especially in the second half, and nearly made it 3-0 on three occasions. The 25-year-old came closest when he made a superb run through on goal and went around Soria but his effort went just wide.

Real, who spurned a couple of other chances to extend their lead, were thoroughly dominant and held 70% of the possession against Getafe.

Getafe rattled the woodwork twice, including when midfielder John Patrick’s shot beat Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the closing minutes of the game.

“They dominated, but realistically we had two (shots against the) posts. With the result we had, it would have been a draw if they had gone in,” Getafe defender Juan Berrocal told DAZN.

The reigning champions visit Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday.

“We reacted well after the defeat the other day. They’re an intense team that tries to make plays short. We were able to score two goals,” Courtois told Real Madrid TV.

“In the second half we forgot to play. We created chances though. The pity is that Kylian couldn’t finish them. I’m sure the goals will come, he’ll score a lot.”

The Belgian was also asked about chasing down Barcelona.

“We’re going about our business. We have to do our job and in May we’ll see. We are focused on ourselves. We’ve improved a lot and we have to continue like this,” Courtois added.

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