Real Madrid published its starting lineup for the 33rd La Liga matchday against Alavés at the Bernabéu in Madrid, a list that named Vinicius Jr and Kylian Mbappé among the 11 starters.
The club’s official XI read Lunin, Trent, Militão, Huijsen, Carreras, Tchouaméni, Valverde, Güler, Bellingham, Vinicius and Mbappé. Real Madrid’s bench listed 12 substitutes: Mestre, Carvajal, Alaba, Camavinga, Gonzalo, D. Ceballos, Fran García, Brahim, Rüdiger, F. Mendy, Mastantuono and Thiago.
Alavés’ starting lineup, as listed by Managing Madrid, was Sivera, Pérez, Otto, Tenaglia, Parada, Yusi, Blanco, Guridi, Ibañez, Martinez and Boyé. Managing Madrid also noted the context: Real Madrid had little to play for in the closing stages of the season, while Alavés were still fighting to avoid relegation.
The match moved early. Al Jazeera’s live coverage reported that Mbappé opened the scoring in the 30th minute, adding to a season in which the broadcaster flagged that he had already scored eight goals from outside the box across all competitions. Later in the game, Al Jazeera reported, Vinicius Jr cut onto his right foot and scored with a low effort into the bottom corner; he then apologised to the Madrid fans after the goal.
Al Jazeera’s live text captured several near-misses and changes: Tchouaméni’s header was saved on the line and Jude Bellingham headed the rebound over the bar, and substitutions saw Franco Mastantuono replace Arda Güler while Brahim Díaz came on for Bellingham. For Alavés, Al Jazeera reported that Guridi and Suárez were replaced by Aleñá and Ibáñez.
There is a clear tension between the lists circulating around the fixture. Managing Madrid’s pre-match lineup included Ibañez among Alavés’ starters, yet Al Jazeera reported later that Ibañez entered the game as a substitute — an inconsistency that highlights how quickly match-day information can diverge between official lists and live coverage.
The choices on Madrid’s sheet underlined a team balancing form and fitness. With 11 starters named and a full 12-player bench ready, the club presented a lineup that mixed established starters with players who can be used to manage minutes as the season winds down. The match kicked off at 9:30 pm CEST at the Bernabéu, and the sequence of goals and changes recorded by live coverage gave supporters material to parse despite the season’s wider certainties.
What matters now is how those minutes will be read back at the club. Managing Madrid’s observation that Real Madrid had little to play for suggests the selection was made with an eye on maintaining momentum rather than risking key players, while Alavés’ selection and in-game changes underscored their fight to avoid relegation. The most consequential question left by the night is straightforward: will the minutes handed to younger or fringe players here serve Real Madrid better in the run-in, or will the side that fielded stars like Mbappé and Vinicius pay a price for rotating personnel when the season resumes?
For Vinicius Jr, who apologised to fans after his goal, and for the rest of the XI named on the official sheet, Tuesday’s selection and the match events will be measured not just in goals but in how they shape the final weeks of the campaign.
