Real Madrid beat Roma 4-3 with three late goals

Real Madrid scored three goals in the last six minutes to beat Roma 4-3 in the Champions League on Wednesday, in a match that gave Jose Mourinho a memorable reunion with his old club. The same day brought bad news off the pitch, as Vinicius Junior was handed a four-match suspension that rules him out of the Clasico.

A match that turned late

Roma, playing their first home Champions League match in more than seven years, led twice and looked to be winning, according to a report carried by The Express Tribune. Marten de Roon opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a shot from 25 yards. Kylian Mbappe levelled five minutes later in his 100th Champions League appearance, after Mario Hermoso misjudged an interception.

Mbappe’s 72nd goal in the competition moved him into the all-time top five, ahead of Real legend Raul. At 27, he is the youngest player to reach 100 appearances.

Donyell Malen then scored twice in six minutes early in the second half, the second after a VAR review for offside, and Roma seemed in control. But Real came back through set-pieces:

1. Carlos Espi scored a close-range rebound after a header from a corner.
2. Two minutes later, Endrick powered home a header from another corner.
3. In the 90th minute, former Roma defender Antonio Rudiger finished from close range, again from a corner, to complete the turnaround.

Real Madrid have six points from their first two league-phase games. Roma have one. Mourinho was honoured with banners and chants from the home crowd, having taken Roma to the Conference League title and a Europa League final in two and a half years there.

Vinicius banned

The Spanish federation’s disciplinary committee on Wednesday banned Vinicius for four matches after his red card for hair-pulling against Villarreal last week. He was suspended for two games for “behaving violently… (while) not being in a position to challenge for the ball” and for two more for “protests” to the officials. He will miss these La Liga matches:

• Sevilla on October 18
• Barcelona on October 25 (the Clasico)
• Racing Santander on November 1
• Valencia on November 7

The 26-year-old was sent off after a VAR review, about 20 minutes after coming on as a substitute. The decision also chalked off a goal he had scored after the incident, and he had to be held back by team-mates as he argued with the referee. Madrid still won 1-0. Mourinho, who is fourth in the table and six points behind leaders Barcelona, refused to take part in the post-match press conference. Vinicius apologised on social media: “I am sorry to the team and the fans.”

He has scored once in nine appearances this season, and was dropped to the bench for the Villarreal game. The Clasico at Camp Nou will be Mourinho’s first since he returned as Madrid coach this summer. Hansi Flick’s Barcelona, back-to-back Spanish champions, have won all 10 of their matches across all competitions.

Elsewhere in Europe

• Bodo/Glimt 1, Dortmund 0: Fredrik Sjovold scored in the 52nd minute to hand Dortmund their first defeat of the season since the German Super Cup. “We deserved to lose,” coach Niko Kovac told DAZN. Dortmund join Manchester City, Inter Milan and Sporting as big names beaten on the artificial turf of Bodo’s 8,200-capacity ground, the smallest in this year’s competition.
• Aston Villa 6, Fenerbahce 0: a record European win for Villa, with Nicolas Jackson scoring twice and Ross Barkley getting a double. Johan Manzambi scored on his Champions League debut on his birthday, and Mason Greenwood was booed by the home crowd.

Why it matters

Madrid’s win keeps them near the top of the league phase, but the ban leaves Mourinho without his winger for four league games, including the match against the leaders. Read our earlier reports on PSG’s win over Manchester City and on Barcelona’s win at Galatasaray.

This article draws on reporting by The Express Tribune and AFP.