Bellingham, Real Madrid rally to score late goal in draw with Elche

Real Madrid drew 2-2 at Elche on Sunday, giving his side the lead in La Liga by a point, thanks to Jude Bellingham’s late strike.

In a fun contest that saw Madrid twice come from behind, Xabi Alonso’s side struggled against their bottom-placed foes.

Bellingham stabbed home from close range after Alvaro Rodriguez blasted Elche back in front before Aleix Febas fired the hosts ahead before Dean Huijsen equalized for the league leaders.

After defeating Athletic Bilbao 4-0 on Saturday in their first game back at Camp Nou, Barcelona extended their lead by two points over the weekend.

Rodrygo Goes received a rare start in the attack from Alonso, while Vinicius Junior was benched. Trent Alexander-Arnold received his first start since August, according to the coach.

Following his summer switch from Liverpool, the England international has not returned to form and had several injuries.

The midfielder sneaking in behind him to break the deadlock in the second half also contributed to Febas’ goal.

Elche establishes the mood.

Elche made a strong impression at the Martinez Valero stadium after his performance against Barcelona a few weeks ago.

After Hector Fort’s excellent save, Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made a fine save to deny Andre da Silva.

The forward was a victim of an unfortunate incident earlier that day at Real Madrid’s annual general meeting when Los Blancos accidentally displayed his picture in honor of former Liverpool striker Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, both of whom passed away in a car crash in July.

After the French forward broke through on goal and stopped the French superstar’s volley in Madrid’s best chance of the first half, former Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena denied Kylian Mbappe.

Elche’s smart move early in the second half gave Madrid the lead.

German Valera’s excellent backheel made it possible for Febas to cross the goal past Courtois and off the post while slipping behind Alexander-Arnold.

Vinicius Jr. and then-new signing Gonzalo Garcia were Alonso’s immediate substitutions. With his equalizer for Real Madrid, Alexander-Arnold found some redemption.

A defender pushed his cross over the crossbar before turning the corner. Bellingham flicked it onto Huijsen’s path to a bash home after Alexander-Arnold whipped it in.

Rodriguez’s powerful drive from the edge of the box gave Elche the lead once more after Courtois was outshot.

However, Madrid equalized a second time three minutes later, with Mbappe only managing to keep the ball in for Bellingham to convert from point blank range.

The England midfielder was in the limelight at home earlier in the week after being offended by Thomas Tuchel, the coach of the national team.

Bellingham’s contribution to both Madrid goals, which showed his game-changing ability in the box despite his otherwise quiet performance, against Elche, was poor.