Kylian Mbappe scored twice as Real Madrid ensured they will not lose the LaLiga title in next week’s El Clasico but their 3-2 win over Celta Vigo on Sunday will not have done much to help their confidence.
A failure to win would have meant victory for Barcelona when they meet in Catalonia on Sunday would effectively have been enough to take their rivals’ crown with three matches remaining as they have a far superior goal difference.
But in reducing the gap back to four points, Carlo Ancelotti’s side heads east in seven days, knowing they still have a chance to ramp up the pressure on the leaders.
However, having been coasting a 3-0 up with 21 minutes to go they conceded twice to set the Bernabeu on edge, doing nothing for the criticism which has been aimed at Ancelotti.
Leading through Arda Guler’s 33rd-minute strike the direction of the game swung in the space of 30 seconds late in the first half.
Borja Iglesias’ shot looped up off Aurelien Tchouameni and required Thibaut Courtois to brilliantly claw the ball away from dropping under the crossbar.
In an instant, Real launched a quick counter-attack with Vinicius Junior spinning a pass inside to Jude Bellingham, who spread the ball out to Mbappe in the inside-right channel.
The France international shifted it onto his right foot and took a shot early, giving recovering Yoel Lago no chance to block, and it flew past Vicente Guaita for his 23rd goal of the season.
Mbappe did not have to wait long for the 24th as three minutes after the interval, Guler slid a pass in between Celta’s two centre-backs, and the Frenchman, this time from the left, produced a left-foot finish across the goalkeeper.
The ease of the victory was at odds with the early stages as Real, who named just six outfield players on the bench with Antonio Rudiger, Ferland Mendy and David Alaba, Eduardo Camavinga, Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal all missing, were given a scare.
Visiting defender Marcos Alonso twice threatened at corners. In the fifth minute, he powerfully nodded over, and two minutes later, his header was tipped around the post by Courtois.
Tchouameni should have given the hosts the lead when heading over from six yards but Guler made no mistake with an angled shot after exchanging a short corner with Lucas Vazquez and cutting in on his left foot.
Mbappe then took centre-stage with goals on either side of the interval and the hosts looked comfortable.
But from a wrongly-awarded 69th-minute corner substitute Pablo Duran’s backheel was only just prevented from creeping in at the far post by Vazquez, who was powerless to stop Javi Rodríguez ramming home the rebound from close range.
Seven minutes later veteran Iago Aspas picked out Williot Swedberg, whose run had not been tracked, and he coolly beat Courtois one-on-one.
Aspas’ vision saw him then play in Duran, whose shot crept under Courtois, and only the backspin on the ball, as it caught the goalkeeper’s body, prevented it from rolling across the line.
