England midfielder Jude Bellingham scored a stylish goal to help Real Madrid beat Malaga in La Liga as returning boss Jose Mourinho racked up a third win in a row.
Bellingham, who scored seven goals in the summer’s World Cup as the Three Lions finished third, got the first of Sunday’s match and his second of the season in the 19th minute.
It came in superb fashion as he collected the ball 35 yards out and quickly dribbled past three players before shooting past Malaga goalkeeper Alfonso Herrero.
Bellingham was heavily involved in Real’s second goal seven minutes later as he headed at goal after Herrero parried a strike. The ball then bounced off the Malaga goalkeeper and over the line, with it credited as a Herrero own goal.
Real made it 3-0 after only half an hour to kill the game as a contest.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, left out of England’s World Cup squad, recorded the assist, with his cross from the right superbly volleyed in by Kylian Mbappe.
Real added a classy fourth goal in stoppage time at the end of the match when a quick break led to Vinicius Jr pulling the ball back from the byeline, with Arda Guler tapping in from close range.
After the match, Mourinho called Bellingham an “incredible player” and added: “He is very demanding of himself and he is also demanding of others. I didn’t want to see him defend almost like a second left-back.”
On the connection between Bellingham, Vinicius Jr and Mbappe, Mourinho said: “Very, very good players want to play together always, because they have the same speed of thought, the same quality and they always have to be compatible.
“It was said that I didn’t want the three, but what I say is that I always want the best. There is empathy and collective work. They are all very good.”
Mourinho returned to the Real Madrid head coach job in the summer, after previously being in charge from 2010 to 2013, winning the Copa del Rey in 2010-11 and La Liga the following season.
Real sit top of the table on nine points, although Barcelona will join them on that total on Monday if they win at home against Rayo Vallecano.
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