Real Madrid maintained their perfect start to the La Liga season with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Real Sociedad, despite playing with 10 men for almost an hour. The win extends a dominant record over their opponent, with Real Sociedad now having won just one of their last 14 head-to-head matches against Los Blancos.
Real Madrid started strong, and after an early goal by Arda Guler was ruled offside, it was Kylian Mbappe who put them ahead. He capitalized on a misplaced pass from Mikel Goti, racing behind the defense to fire a clinical shot past goalkeeper Alex Remiro.
The momentum shifted in the 32nd minute when Madrid’s Dean Huijsen received a straight red card for a cynical foul on Real Sociedad’s captain, Mikel Oyarzabal, leaving the visitors a man down. Despite this setback, Madrid doubled their lead just before halftime. Arda Guler, linking up with Mbappe, calmly stroked the ball into the net to make it 2-0.
Real Sociedad came out fighting in the second half and was almost rewarded when a shot deflected off Aurelien Tchouameni, hitting both posts before being cleared. Their persistence paid off when Dani Carvajal was called for a handball, and Mikel Oyarzabal converted the penalty, sending Thibaut Courtois the wrong way to cut the lead to 2-1.
With the home crowd roaring, Real Sociedad applied intense pressure in the final minutes. However, Real Madrid’s defense, anchored by a stellar performance from Courtois, held firm. Courtois made a brilliant rush out to deny Oyarzabal and saved a late header, ensuring his team’s perfect record remained intact.
Real Madrid now has four wins from four matches to start the season, while Real Sociedad remains winless and has suffered back-to-back defeats.
