After the introduction of Mbappe, Real Madrid's strength did not significantly increase, but as the season progressed, several star players in the front line of the Galacticos, whose valuations all exceeded 100 million euros, also delivered their expected performances; after winning the previous round of make-up matches, Real Madrid became the leader of La Liga for the first time this season. On the early morning of January 7th, Beijing time, in the third round of the King's Cup, Real Madrid played away against Minera Sports, with Balvede, valued at 130 million euros, contributing a pass and a shot, and the 19-year-old Gulailer scoring twice, leading Real Madrid to a big win with 5 goals.
Minera Sports comes from the Xieyi B League, and has never participated in La Liga or the second division in its history; because the opponent is not strong, Courtois and Rudiger did not enter the squad, and Ancelotti also let Mbappe, Bellingham, and Vinicius sit on the bench. Endrick, Gulailer, and Diaz partnered in the attack; Modric, Balvede, and Camavinga anchored the midfield; Fran Garcia, Diego Aguado, Asensio, and another Aguado formed a defensive line trained by Real Madrid, with Lunin as the goalkeeper.
After the start of the game, Real Madrid achieved a dream start. In the 2nd minute, Endrick made a pass, and Gulailer's shot was saved by Martinez; in the 4th minute, Gulailer passed straight through, and Endrick's counter-offside shot was saved by the onrushing Martinez; in the 5th minute, Diaz crossed, and Minera Sports made an error in clearing the ball, Balvede volleyed into the net, 1:0! This was Balvede's first goal in 20 King's Cup matches.
In the 13th minute, Fran Garcia successfully intercepted on the left flank and crossed, Camavinga rushed forward to head the ball into the net, 2:0! Since joining Real Madrid for three and a half years, Camavinga has only scored his third goal for Real Madrid; his last goal dates back to March 2022. In the 29th minute, Balvede passed directly, Gulailer dribbled horizontally and cut inside to shoot from a distance, and the ball went into the net after a deflection, 3:0! Balvede has contributed 7 goals and 3 assists in 28 games in various competitions this season, which has already matched his contributions from 54 games last season. Seeing that other teammates have scored, both Diaz and Endrick are eager to score, but the two are indeed average in form and wasted many scoring opportunities; especially Endrick, who often fought alone; coupled with Minera Sports' goalkeeper making five saves in the first half, neither of them were able to break their goal drought.
In the second half, Real Madrid continued to expand their lead. In the 55th minute, Modric and Diaz worked together with a wall pass, and Modric elegantly curled a shot into the far corner, leaving Martinez helpless as he watched the ball go into the net, 4:0! Interestingly, this was also Modric's first goal in the King's Cup. In the 58th minute, Ceballos passed directly into the penalty area, and Diaz had a clear chance but pushed his shot too much and it was saved; two minutes later, Endrick held off the defense and passed diagonally, but Gulailer's close-range shot was still saved by Martinez; then Ancelotti brought on Mbappe and Vinicius to find their rhythm in the game.
In the 79th minute, Gulailer took a free-kick that went just wide of the post after bypassing the wall; in the 81st minute, Endrick adjusted from outside the box and shot directly, but Martinez once again denied the Brazilian talent's goal. In the 88th minute, Mbappe advanced and passed diagonally, Fran Garcia crossed from the left flank, and Gulailer completed his brace with an empty-net push, 5:0! Ultimately, Real Madrid won with a big victory and advanced to the next round. The Galacticos will also travel to Saudi Arabia this week to defend their Spanish Super Cup title.