Real Madrid carried their El Clásico momentum straight into Santander, sweeping aside Racing Santander 3-0 at El Sardinero on 1 November 2026 to record a sixth straight win in all competitions. Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring from a contentious penalty, Jude Bellingham doubled the lead on his 50th goal for the club, and Yan Diomande added a stunning volley — all before half-time.
The scoreline was settled within 36 minutes. José Mourinho’s side were ruthless in the first half, rained 22 shots on the Racing goal and then managed the game expertly after the break, with Thibaut Courtois producing one world-class save to preserve the clean sheet.
Mbappé breaks the deadlock from the spot
The tone of the afternoon was set in the 11th minute in a moment that will be argued about all week. Matteo Prati was adjudged to have brought Mbappé down inside the box after minimal contact, and the referee pointed to the spot without consulting the pitch-side monitor. Mbappé sent Julen Agirrezabala the wrong way, stroking the penalty into the bottom-left corner.
Racing, who had not hosted Real Madrid at El Sardinero for 14 years, were furious with the decision — and the sense of injustice only grew. Just minutes earlier, Arda Güler had shot narrowly wide from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s pass, and Agirrezabala had kept out a Bellingham header from a Güler cross on the goal line. The early goal forced the hosts to open up, and Madrid feasted on the space.
Bellingham brings up fifty in a Madrid shirt
On 21 minutes, Güler slipped a perfectly weighted pass in behind the Racing defence, Bellingham raced clear from halfway, rounded Agirrezabala and rolled the ball into an empty net. It was his 50th goal for Real Madrid — a landmark reached in style — and it doubled a lead that already felt commanding.
Bellingham was everywhere. He was denied by two more Agirrezabala saves, set up Mbappé for the shot that crashed back off the post before the hour, and even had a second goal chalked off for offside in a performance that earned him man-of-the-match billing across the Spanish press.
Diomande’s volley, the goal of the game
If the first two goals were efficient, the third was pure quality. Racing half-cleared a corner on 36 minutes, the ball dropped to Yan Diomande at the edge of the penalty area, and the winger unleashed a right-footed volley that flew into the top-left corner. Agirrezabala stood no chance. At 3-0 before half-time, with Madrid posting 3.45 expected goals, the contest was over.
The second half was about management. Racing’s one clear opening came on 71 minutes when the referee awarded them a penalty for an apparent Aurélien Tchouaméni handball — only for VAR to intervene and overturn the decision, ruling the contact accidental after the ball deflected off the midfielder’s own poor touch. Racing coach José Alberto and the home crowd made their feelings known, but it was the correct call.
A sombre afternoon at El Sardinero
Before kick-off, the stadium observed a minute’s silence for the victims of the rail accident at Urda in Toledo, with Madrid’s players wearing black armbands. The respectful pause framed a strange afternoon for the hosts: outplayed by a team finding its rhythm at exactly the right moment.
Madrid finished the match with 22 shots to Racing’s ten and seven efforts on target to the hosts’ one — a dominance that flattered Racing more than it did the visitors.
What it means for the title race
Mourinho made only two changes from the side that won El Clásico — a sign of how settled this team has become. It was also the first time this season that Trent Alexander-Arnold, Bernardo Silva and Arda Güler started together, and the trio’s early understanding hinted at why the coach trusted them: Güler’s chance creation was the creative engine of the first-half blitz, and the balance behind the front three never once looked strained.
The win leaves Real Madrid third on 27 points — one behind Atlético and three behind Barcelona, with the two rivals facing each other on Sunday. Six wins in a row, three of them by a three-goal margin, suggests Mourinho’s machine is clicking into gear at the perfect time.
Madrid’s reward is no rest: they travel to AEK Athens in the Champions League on Wednesday before visiting Valencia at the Mestalla on Saturday. But after a week that began with the El Clásico victory over Barcelona, this was exactly the professional, unsparing follow-up the season demanded.
Coverage: Managing Madrid, TBGAME.
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