Valencia vs Real Madrid: Carreras breaks through, Mbappé seals 2–0 away win

Real Madrid kept pace in the LaLiga title race with a 2–0 victory at Valencia on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, turning a tense, low-margin match at Mestalla into three points with two second-half goals. Álvaro Carreras struck in the 65th minute, and Kylian Mbappé added a stoppage-time finish to close it out, leaving Madrid one point behind league leaders Barcelona.

For Valencia, the result deepens the pressure near the bottom of the table after a performance that held shape for long stretches but faded once the breakthrough arrived.

What happened at Mestalla

The first half played like a test of patience. Madrid controlled much of the ball, but Valencia’s compact defending forced play wide and limited clean looks through the middle. The best moments came in flashes—quick combinations and isolated chances—without the consistent final pass that usually separates top sides early.

After halftime, Madrid’s tempo improved and Valencia’s defensive line began to bend under repeated pressure. The match pivoted in the 65th minute when Carreras drove forward and finished after a sequence that included a favorable ricochet, turning a scrappy moment into a lead that changed the psychology of the game.

Valencia pushed for an equalizer late, but the risk of opening up space behind them proved costly. In stoppage time, Mbappé arrived at the right moment to apply the final touch and make it 0–2, ending any comeback hopes.

Why the run of play mattered

Madrid’s win was less about sparkle and more about control. They limited Valencia’s best transition chances and largely kept their goalkeeper untested, which is often the quiet foundation of an effective road result. Even when the attacking rhythm looked flat, the structure behind the ball prevented the kind of chaotic momentum swing Valencia needed.

For Valencia, the frustration is familiar: staying organized for an hour, then conceding once and having to chase the game against a team built to punish spaces late. The match plan kept them alive, but it didn’t create enough consistent threat to make Madrid uncomfortable.

Mbappé’s scoring pace keeps rising

Mbappé’s late goal carried extra weight beyond the result. It was his 23rd league goal, reinforcing his grip on the scoring race and underlining how often Madrid can lean on him when matches remain tight into the final phases.

That matters in a title chase where points are increasingly scarce and where Madrid, dealing with a thinned squad, needs a dependable finisher to turn narrow edges into wins.

Madrid’s lineup strain shows, but the points count

Madrid arrived in Valencia with a squad stretched by injuries and suspensions, leaning on younger and less-used players to fill gaps. The performance reflected that reality at times—moments of hesitancy in the final third, and fewer fluid combinations than Madrid typically produces at full strength.

Still, road wins in this phase of the season are often defined by execution more than aesthetics. Madrid’s ability to keep the match stable, wait for the opening, and then finish late is exactly the kind of trait that sustains a title push when the schedule compresses and the roster is not at full capacity.

Table implications: pressure on both ends

The result keeps Madrid firmly in the hunt at the top while tightening the screws on Valencia near the bottom. Madrid’s margin for error remains thin with Barcelona ahead, but the gap is still within immediate reach.

Valencia’s situation is more urgent: dropped home points against elite opponents aren’t unusual, but the path to safety usually depends on extracting results from games where the margins are similarly small. Matches that stay level for an hour must become points, not “almost.”

Key match facts

Sources consulted: Reuters; ESPN; Sofascore; Sports Illustrated