Real Madrid secured their place in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey with a comfortable 1-3 win over Arandina, who reside in Segunda Federación – Group 1, at Estadio El Montecillo on Saturday night.
The visitors dominated the game from start to finish, but had to wait until the 54th minute to break the deadlock, when Joselu converted a penalty after Brahim Diaz was fouled in the box. Just one minute later, Brahim Diaz doubled Real Madrid’s lead with a great finish:
In the 91st minute, Rodrygo sealed the game:
Arandina, who had eliminated Murcia and Cadiz in the previous rounds, showed some resilience and spirit, and even scored a consolation goal late — a goal that they will remember for the rest of their lives. But ultimately, they did not have nearly enough to put up a real fight against even a heavily rotated Real Madrid team.
Carlo Ancelotti gave some rest to key players like Jude Bellingham Antonio Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr, and Toni Kroos, while handing starts to youngsters like Vinicius Tobias, Nico Paz, and Alvaro Carillo. Most notably, Ancelotti handed Arda Güler his much-anticipated debut. and the Turkish international impressed in his first game for Real Madrid. As our writers pointed out, Güler stood out for a variety of reasons:
