Off to the quarterfinals with controversy! Refereeing errors save Real Madrid against Celta (5-2)

Real Madrid's crisis continued after the tough 'manita' in the Super Cup final against FC Barcelona. Carlo Ancelotti's men advanced to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey with suffering against a Celta de Vigo clearly harmed by the refereeing in the first half that, despite this, managed to force extra time. Both the main Munuera Montero and the person in charge of the VAR, Hernández Hernández, overlooked a clear penalty by Lunin on Swedberg before the first 'merengue' goal.

Then, the strike of Kylian Mbappé and Vinicius Jr. seemed to resolve the matter for the locals, who returned to a Santiago Bernabéu very angry with the squad and their coach. 'Carletto' was, along with Aurélien Tchouaméni, the most whistled by the Chamartín stands before the start of the match and, in the case of the Frenchman, there were whistles from start to finish every time he touched the ball. However, the team once again showed a pitiful image, with very little football and individual sparks as their only offensive weapon.

After the debacle in the Clasico, Ancelotti made six changes. In addition to the early entry of Lunin (goalkeeper of the Cup) for Courtois, the coach gave Ferland Mendy, Fede Valverde, Jude Bellingham, Eduardo Camavinga and Rodrygo Goes a rest. Raúl Asencio, Fran García, Dani Ceballos, Luka Modric and Brahim Díaz returned to the starting eleven, with 'Vini' and 'Kiki' as the only references in the area. Despite the adjustments, the Whites did not show much improvement in their performance. On the contrary, they suffered more than expected against a very humble Celta, who despite the refereeing errors held out until extra time.

Mbappé put Madrid ahead with a goal marred by controversy

The Whites took control of the match from the start, although they only managed to challenge goalkeeper Villar on a couple of occasions in the first half hour of the match, with shots from Tchouaméni and Brahim. In the 36th minute, Celta dared to look into the rival area after Starfelt's solitary header hit the crossbar just after the 6th minute. After a cross from Carreira that did not find a receiver, Swedberg was quick to capture a ball and enter the area.

The Swede's control went a little long and Lunin came out to close in, but he did not manage to capture the ball. On the contrary, the Ukrainian goalkeeper ended up knocking down a Swedberg who was already stumbling. The Swede fell spectacularly, with a somewhat exaggerated movement that led Munuera Montero to let the play continue. Lucas Vázquez came out playing with Dani Ceballos, who extended the midfield for Mbappé.

The Frenchman, as in his best days with PSG and the French national team, stepped on the accelerator to leave his marker strewn about, arriving in the area on the left to unleash a left-footed shot that Villar could not stop. All the Celta players asked for the possible penalty to be reviewed, but Hernández Hernández, from the VAR, validated the goal of the '9' even though the images were clear. It was a very clear penalty by Lunin, but the referees took the easy way out. Keep going and victory for Madrid at half-time.

Vinicius extended the lead at the start of the second half

As soon as the match restarted after the break, Madrid scored their second goal and sealed the match. A quick exit from Mbappé allowed Brahim to set up Vinicius, who appeared on the run to finish past Villar. In 48 minutes, Los Blancos were 2-0 up, heading for the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey. Celta tried to react by bringing on Durán and Sotelo for Swedberg and Fran Beltrán, but Los Blancos seemed to have the match totally under control.

Madrid squandered the lead with two absurd errors

However, in the 83rd minute, the Galicians pulled one back through Jonathan Bamba. Pablo Durán took advantage of a bad pass back from Camavinga to Tchouaméni to set up the Ivorian, who finished unmarked against Lunin. And, to complete the 'merengue' disaster, a penalty by Asencio on Bamba allowed the former Barça defender, Marcos Alonso, to tie the game in the 90+1' and force extra time.

Two shots from Valverde and Endrick rescued Madrid in extra time

In the first half of extra time, very little happened. Madrid, still in shock from the draw, barely got close to Villar's goal with a couple of rough approaches. Endrick was the one who tried the most and, only in the 108th minute, was he able to give the home side the lead again with a furious shot from the edge of the area. Fede Valverde did the same with another shot in the 112th minute and, towards the end, Endrick again, with a backheel, sealed a very deceptive 'handball'. Before the three goals, there was a clear penalty from Rüdiger saved by an offside. Madrid, despite its miseries, is in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey.

Match details: Real Madrid 5-2 Celta de Vigo

• Real Madrid, 5: Monday; Lucas Vázquez, Asencio, Rüdiger, Fran García (Bellingham, min. 90+2); Tchouaméni, Ceballos (Camavinga, min. 70), Modric (Valverde, min. 79);Brahim (Arda Güler, min. 70), Vinicius (Rodrygo, min. 105) and Mbappé (Encrick, min. 79).
• Celta, 2: Villar; Marcos Alonso, Starfelt, Javi Rodríguez (Manquillo, min. 94); Moriba, Fran Beltrán (Sotelo, min. 56), Mingueza, Carreira (Cervi, min. 75); Hugo Álvarez (Bamba, min. 67), Borja Iglesias (Fer López, min. 75) and Swedberg (Durán, min. 56).
• Goals: 1-0, Kylian Mbappé (min. 37); 2-0, Vinicius Jr. . (min.48); 2-1, Jonathan Bamba (min. 83); 2-2, Marcos Alonso (min. 90+1, p.); 3-2, Endrick Felipe (min. 108); 4- 2, Fede Valverde (min. 112); 5-2, Endrick Felipe (min. 119).
• Referee: Munuera Montero. He cautioned Asencio for Real Madrid for a penalty foul in stoppage time. Also Iván Villar, Marcos Alonso, Borja Iglesias and Starfelt for Celta in extra time.
• Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu.
• Incidents: Match corresponding to the round of 16 of the 2024-25 Copa del Rey.