REAL MADRID 1-1 ATLETICO: MADRID DERBY ENDS IN DRAW, MBAPPE, ALVAREZ SCORE

Real Madrid salvaged a 1-1 draw against city rivals Atletico Madrid in LaLiga on Saturday with Kylian Mbappe scoring a second-half goal to cancel out Julian Alvarez’s first-half opener for the visiting side.

It was a very even first 35 minutes, with neither side having had a clear-cut opportunity.

The first of the match has ended up coming from the penalty spot, and it resulted in Atleti taking the lead courtesy of Julian Alvarez.

After a cross from the left, Aurelien Tchouameni was adjudged to have fouled Samuel Lino after standing on his foot.

The foul was not given on-field, but after a VAR review, referee Cesar Soto Grado pointed to the penalty spot, which allowed the Argentine to break the deadlock.

That moment caused a lot of frustration for Real Madrid, who could not find an equaliser before the half time interval.

However, they did managed to hit back only a few minutes into the second period as Kylian Mbappe scored his 16th La Liga goal of the season – and his 22nd in all competitions.

It was brilliant play from Rodrygo Goes on the right, as he got to the by-line before cutting the ball back to Jude Bellingham – his effort was blocked by Jose Maria Gimenez, but the French forward made no mistake.

Real Madrid would dominate the second half, and they had a couple of half chances to score the winning goal. Vinicius Junior’s strike from a tight angle was palmed away by Jan Oblak, who also hung on to a dangerous in-swinging Luka Modric free-kick in the final minutes.

The result means that Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid remain separated by a single point after 23 matchdays. While it is not a bad outcome for either side, Barcelona are the ones that will be celebrating as a victory at Sevilla on Sunday would see them close to within two points of the La Liga summit.