Diomandé scored his first Real Madrid goal, and Vinícius was sent off for pulling Saliba’s hair in a 1-0 win over Villarreal
Real Madrid held on with ten men at the Bernabéu after Vinícius Júnior’s goal was ruled out and he was shown a straight red. The Clásico is two weeks away.
Oct 11, 2026
Real Madrid beat Villarreal 1-0 at the Bernabéu on Saturday, 10 October, and the player who could have made it comfortable made it hard instead. Vinícius Júnior came off the bench in the second half, put the ball in the net in the 72nd minute, and was sent off when VAR showed he had pulled Nathan Saliba’s hair in the build-up.
Yan Diomandé’s goal was enough. The 19-year-old Ivorian, who joined from RB Leipzig in August for a club-record fee, ran on to Federico Valverde’s pass and finished low into the far corner in the 62nd minute. It was given offside at first, VAR overturned the call, and he had his first goal for the club.
A goal, a check and a straight red
José Mourinho had left Vinícius out of the starting line-up. With Madrid a goal up, Jude Bellingham set him up for what looked like the second. The VAR went back through the move and found Vinícius yanking Saliba back by the hair as the two chased the ball in midfield. The goal was ruled out and the Brazilian was shown a straight red card.
He apologised to his team-mates and the fans on social media after the game. It is a strange way to answer being dropped.
Courtois saw out the last 20 minutes
Madrid should have been ahead long before Diomandé scored. Kylian Mbappé hit the post inside seven minutes, and Peter Gulácsi saved from him as well. Ibrahima Konaté headed over from a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner and Arda Güler shot wide.
Villarreal had their chances as well. Alberto Moleiro went close and Thibaut Courtois saved from Pape Gueye. With ten men for the last 20 minutes or so, Madrid sat deep and needed Courtois once more when Georges Mikautadze got a shot away late on.
Sevilla next, then Barcelona
The win takes Madrid to 18 points from eight games. They are third, six behind Barcelona, who beat Getafe 3-0 earlier on Saturday and have won all eight. Villarreal are eleventh with eight points.
Sevilla come to the Bernabéu on 18 October, and Madrid go to Camp Nou for the first Clásico of the season on the 25th. Whether Vinícius plays in either depends on the ban the competition committee hands out once it has the referee’s report.