Mallorca 0-1 Real Madrid: Tchouameni second-half strike earns league leaders narrow win

Aurelien Tchouameni scored early in the second half to give Real Madrid a 1-0 victory over Mallorca in LaLiga on Saturday, as the club rested key players ahead of their Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City.

Real dominated the game, and Tchouameni scored in the 48th minute with a thunderous shot from far outside the penalty area that beat lunging keeper Predrag Rajkovic.

The victory moved Real to 78 points, 11 ahead of bitter rivals Barcelona, who they will host in a "El Clasico" match at the Santiago Bernabeu next weekend.

Barcelona have a game in hand and will play against relegation-threatened Cadiz later on Saturday. They are two points ahead of Girona, who lost 3-1 to Atletico Madrid.

Mallorca, the Copa del Rey runners-up, are 15th in the LaLiga standings with 31 points, six points clear of the relegation zone.

He used Saturday's match in Mallorca to rest key players such as Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, and Toni Kroos while also starting Nacho and Antonio Ruediger. Tchouameni is suspended for the City match.

Nacho and Ruediger looked solid against Mallorca in a game that Real should have won by a larger margin.

Jude Bellingham had the best chance in a dreary first half, but his shot bounced off the crossbar.

After Tchouameni scored, Real squandered several opportunities to extend their lead, including Brahim Diaz missing a sitter from close range.

"The team has been very solid and very reliable, we haven't always played well but the team has always fought and competed," Ancelotti told a press conference.

"It was important to keep our advantage ahead of the Clasico (next Sunday). Winning here is always complicated."

SportsLigue