Villarreal, Feb 10: Villarreal returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion in La Liga on Monday, thrashing Espanyol 4-1 to hand the Catalan side their heaviest defeat of the season, while Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé continued his scintillating scoring run, prompting fresh comparisons with club legend Cristiano Ronaldo.
At Villarreal, the Yellow Submarine struck twice in each half to end a lean spell that had yielded just one point from their previous three league outings. The victory lifted Villarreal level on points with third-placed Atlético Madrid and seven clear of Real Betis, with a game in hand on both rivals.
Georges Mikautadze set the tone 10 minutes before the break, meeting Tajon Buchanan’s deft header with a stunning scissor kick to open the scoring. Espanyol’s misery deepened six minutes later when José Salinas turned the ball into his own net under pressure. Villarreal maintained their dominance after the restart, with Nicolas Pépé rifling home a low drive from outside the box following some clever footwork, before Alberto Moleiro capped a swift counterattack to make it 4-0.
Leandro Cabrera’s glancing header from a Cyril Ngonge corner two minutes from time provided scant consolation for Espanyol, who have now gone six league matches without a win and had not conceded four goals in a game this season. Despite the slump, the Barcelona-based club remained sixth in the standings.
Elsewhere, attention continued to centre on Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé, whose rich vein of form has drawn inevitable comparisons with Cristiano Ronaldo. Mbappé scored his 23rd league goal of the season in Madrid’s 2-0 win away to Valencia on Sunday, taking his tally to 23 goals in 22 La Liga matches.
Madrid coach Álvaro Arbeloa said the French star had the attributes to follow — and possibly surpass — Ronaldo’s extraordinary legacy at the club. “What Cristiano achieved seemed extraterrestrial,” Arbeloa said. “Mbappé still has a long way to go because Cristiano was here for many years, but if anyone can come close, it’s Kylian.”
Ronaldo, now 41 and playing in Saudi Arabia, scored 451 goals in 438 competitive matches for Madrid between 2009 and 2018. Mbappé, who joined the Spanish giants last season, has already matched Ronaldo’s club record of 59 goals in a calendar year, a mark the Portuguese set in 2013. The 27-year-old has begun 2026 in blistering fashion, netting nine goals in seven matches and amassing 43 goals in 35 appearances for club and country this season.
Mbappé, who has previously described Ronaldo as his idol, also found himself in the spotlight for non-footballing reasons after television cameras caught him appearing to criticise a referee during the Valencia match while disputing an offside decision.
Real Madrid have now won seven consecutive league games and sit just one point behind leaders Barcelona after 23 matches. They next face José Mourinho’s Benfica in the first knockout phase of the Champions League, as Mbappé continues to fuel hopes of another dominant chapter in Madrid’s storied history. (AP)
