Real Madrid maintained their 100% start in the Champions League with a 4-1 victory over RB Leipzig, as Bernardo Silva scored his first goal for the Spanish side.
Jose Mourinho’s team were made to work for the result after Leipzig created the better opportunities for much of the opening half. Thibaut Courtois kept Real level by producing important saves to deny Christopher Nkunku and Romulo.
Real eventually took control before the interval. Two minutes before half-time, Bernardo reacted quickest from close range to force the ball over the line and give the hosts the lead. The midfielder joined Real Madrid from Manchester City in the summer.
Arda Guler added a second shortly after the break. His effort took a deflection off a defender and travelled awkwardly between the legs of Leipzig goalkeeper Maarten Vandevoordt before Guler bundled it over the goalline.
Vandevoordt then made a fine save to turn Federico Valverde’s powerful attempt around the post early in the second half, but he had no chance when Guler met Kylian Mbappe’s header across the face of goal to score from close range.
Mbappe, who had already scored 12 goals in his first 12 games of the season, went looking for another. He sent a shot into the side netting after being played in by a Jude Bellingham cut-back, but eventually found the target with a curling finish from the edge of the penalty area.
Leipzig reduced the deficit when Tidiam Gomis completed a well-worked move, giving the visitors a brief prospect of a comeback.
That hope lasted only two minutes. Real substitute Yan Diomande, who left Leipzig for Madrid in the summer, struck a spectacular volley from outside the box to make it 4-1 against his former club. Diomande was the club’s £120m summer signing.
Leipzig’s attacking threat had been evident early on, but their failure to convert their chances allowed Real to recover and secure a convincing victory. The result leaves Mourinho’s side with a perfect record in the competition.
Real Madrid’s next fixture is the first Clasico of the season against Barcelona on Sunday, 25 October at 20:00 GMT.
They will then travel to Greece to face AEK Athens on Wednesday, 4 November at 17:45 GMT. Leipzig will host Manchester City later that day, with kick-off scheduled for 20:00 GMT.
