MADRID: Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe netted the opener and set up another goal as the hosts beat mid-table Sevilla 4-2 on Sunday to move up to second place in LaLiga and close the gap on Atletico Madrid to one point going into the winter break.
Mbappe scored with a thunderbolt from outside the box in the 10th minute before Federico Valverde put reigning champions Real two goals ahead from long-range 10 minutes later. Rodrygo fired home the third in the 34th from a cross by Lucas Vazquez.
Sevilla pulled one back a minute later when Isaac Romero headed home but Brahim Diaz restored the home side’s three-goal cushion in the 53rd minute when he finished off a clever move after Mbappe and Vazquez combined to set him up.
Sevilla got a late goal when Dodi Lukebakio was put through in the 85th but Real saw the game out to move two points clear of Barcelona, who are third on 38 points having played a game more than the top two after losing 2-1 to Atletico on Saturday.