Dani Carvajal marked his farewell appearance for Real Madrid with a brilliant assist as Los Blancos cruised to a 4-2 victory over Athletic Club in their final LaLiga game of the season.
2025/2026 La Liga
4-2
Match Report
After a turbulent final month of the campaign, Real looked determined to end the season on a positive note at the Bernabéu, as the club prepared to bid farewell to legendary right-back Carvajal. The Spaniard, making his 451st and final appearance for Los Blancos, rolled back the years in the opening quarter-hour, curling a sublime pass into the path of Gonzalo García, who took one touch to compose himself before finishing confidently beyond Álex Padilla.
That early breakthrough set the tone for the hosts, as Thiago Pitarch went close to doubling their lead, only for Padilla to thwart the midfielder’s effort. At the other end, Athletic struggled to create anything of note in the final third, with Gorka Guruzeta directing a header wastefully off-target. Having lost just one of the last seven H2Hs (W5, D1), Real added a second goal before HT, as Jude Bellingham finished emphatically from Pitarch’s looped pass to score for the second time in three matches.
Undeterred, the visitors immediately pulled one back in first-half stoppage time through Guruzeta, who volleyed home from Iñaki Williams’ inviting delivery to give Los Leones a lifeline. Any hopes of a comeback were quickly extinguished by Los Blancos at the start of the second period, though, as Kylian Mbappé bagged his 25th LaLiga goal of the season via a clinical low finish from the edge of the box.
Athletic refused to lie down without a fight, and Ernesto Valverde’s men remained a threat, with Guruzeta and Adama Boiro both going close. Those chances proved to be the visitors’ best opportunity of finding a route back into the contest, as Real cruised through the closing stages, adding a late fourth through substitute Brahim Díaz’s close-range finish. And although Los Leones scored a consolation goal themselves after Urko Izeta’s towering header in the box, Real ended the season with a third straight league win, finishing eight points behind champions Barcelona. As for Athletic, they missed out on a sixth consecutive top-half finish, having lost eight of their final 12 LaLiga matches.
Match Events
0' The match is about to start!
3' Guruzeta fires a shot from the edge of the box which goes a whisker wide of the right post
3' Yellow Card! Thiago Pitarch booked for his blatant foul
13' GOAL! Gonzalo fires into the net as Carvajal assists! Real Madrid 1-0 Athletic Club
24' Thiago Pitarch strikes a low shot towards the middle of the goal, Padilla denies his effort
41' GOAL! Bellingham produces a wonderful volley into the net! Real Madrid 2-0 Athletic Club
45' GOAL! Guruzeta beats Courtois with a brilliant shot into the net! Real Madrid 2-1 Athletic Club
46' Navarro makes space inside the box for a shot, but his effort goes just wide of the right post
48' Alaba latches onto a loose ball inside the box but slams it high over the bar
51' GOAL! Mbappé producing a precise strike to beat the goalkeeper! Real Madrid 3-1 Athletic Club
54' Mbappe bursts into the box, cuts inside his man and sends an effort well wide of the right post
58' Alex Padilla blocks Jude Bellingham's effort from the edge of the box
62' Mbappe strikes low from a narrow angle inside the box, but it is saved by the keeper
69' Last moment at Bernabu! Alaba comes off the pitch
72' Huijsen, Ceballos and Guler on, Alaba, Bellingham and Gonzalo off
82' Captain Carvajal is subbed off, and it is his time to say goodbye
87' Valverde gets to a rebound and thunders a shot towards the goal, but it is saved
88' GOAL! Real Madrid 4-1 Athletic Club
90' GOAL! Real Madrid 4-2 Athletic Club
Line-ups
Real Madrid XI: Alaba, Courtois, Carvajal, Mbappe, Valverde, Bellingham, Álvaro Carreras, Gonzalo García, Raúl Asencio, Franco Mastantuono, Thiago Pitarch
Subs: Rudiger, Ceballos, Brahim, Lunin, Fran García, Tchouameni, Camavinga, Güler, Manu Serrano, Dean Huijsen, Álvaro González
Athletic Club XI: Iñigo Ruiz de Galarreta, Y.Álvarez, I.Williams, Gorka Guruzeta, Dani Vivian, Robert Navarro, Aitor Paredes, Álex Padilla, Unai Gómez, Adama Boiro, Mikel Jauregizar
Subs: Laporte, Lekue, Gorosabel, Vesga, Unai Simón, Jesús Areso, Beñat Prados, Nico Serrano, Alejandro Rego, Urko Izeta, Maroan Sannadi, Elijah Gift