Ten men? Penalty against us? So what? Madrid smash Sociedad and get a new superb tandem!

Florentino Perez will be fuming! Real Madrid were at war with the La Liga referees, and we can only imagine what will happen after this round!

Los Blancos' opener was disallowed, their defender Dean Huijsen was sent off, and Real Sociedad were awarded a penalty. And still, Madrid won!

Kylian Mbappe and Arda Guler showed they'd be an essential tandem in Xabi Alonso's team's pursuit of the La Liga title, as the Frenchman broke the deadlock and assisted for the Turk's goal, all before the break.

Although Huijsen was dismissed shortly after the half-hour mark, Sociedad managed to net only once over Mikel Oyarzabal from the spot in the 56th minute, as Alonso's men managed to defend the lead and keep the perfect score at the beginning of the La Liga season.

The visitors started the game as strong as it gets, scoring the opener just two minutes into the game. Still, Arda Guler's goal eventually didn't stand due to offside in the build-up play. Nevertheless, it did not dishearten Xabi Alonso's crew, which continued attacking and broke the deadlock ten minutes later, this time for real.

Sociedad's Mikel Goti sent a poor back pass, Kylian Mbappe anticipated his move well, stole the ball, and finished his solo effort perfectly, putting his team up front!

In the span of four minutes - between the 26th and 30th - Eder Militao threatened twice after set pieces, but the home team's custodian Alex Remiro pulled off astonishing saves to stop the Brazilian both times.

And when everything seemed to go ideally for Alonso and his men, Madrid were left with ten men on the pitch! Dean Huijsen fouled Mikel Oyarzabal as the last defender, trying to stop Sociedad's fastbreak, and was consequently sent off.

However, that didn't affect Madrid's performance at all, as Los Blancos scored the second just a minute before the break! This time, Guler's goal stood, while Mbappe recorded an assist after a marvellous solo effort.

Sociedad did make six attempts in the first half, but none of them went on target.

Obedient son and Mbappe’s Portuguese citizenship

Despite the convincing lead, Madrid were still a man down and the home crew was a dangerous rival, as always, so Alonso decided to leave Brahim Diaz in the locker room during the break and replace him with Fede Valverde, who, although also a midfielder, had much better defensive skills than the Moroccan.

Still, the visitors held out in the second half for just eleven minutes. Dani Carvajal handballed in the box, the ref Jesus Gil Manzano pointed to the spot, and Oyarzabal was impeccable, closing the gap with almost 40 minutes to go!

Following that goal, Alonso's men tried to slow down the pace as much as possible, each manager made several subs, and the game entered a low-rhythm phase. And the former Bayer Leverkusen coach's strategy worked out ideally, as Madrid managed to defend their lead until the end of the game, without allowing the rivals to threaten.

Thanks to this victory, Los Blancos pulled away at the top of the table as the only crew with a perfect score in the opening four La Liga rounds, at least until Athletic Bilbao play their clash against Alaves (19.30)

LA LIGA - MATCHDAY 4

Friday

Sevilla - Elche 2-2 (1-0)

/Romero 28, Fernandez 85 - Silva 54, Mir 70/

Saturday

Getafe - Oviedo 2-0 (2-0)

/Martin 45+4, Mayoral 45+9/

Real Sociedad - Real Madrid 1-2 (0-2)

/Oyarzabal 56 pen - Mbappe 12, Guler 44/

19.30: (1.57) Athletic Bilbao (3.90) Alaves (6.30)

22.00: (1.90) Atletico Madrid (3.50) Villareal (4.10)

Sunday

15.00: (1.75) Celta (3.95) Girona (4.85)

17.15: (3.45) Levante (3.40) Betis (2.25)

19.30: (2.50) Osasuna (3.15) Rayo Vallecano (3.00)

22.00: (1.23) Barcelona (7.50) Valencia (13.0)

Monday

22.00: (2.25) Espanyol (3.20) Mallorca (3.40)

***odds are subject to change***