The Galicians thought they had broken the deadlock in only the third minute, when Jorgen Strand Larsen cleverly diverted Fran Beltran’s shot beyond debutant Kepa Arrizabalaga.
But the Chelsea loanee’s blushes were spared, as referee Isidro Diaz de Mera was called to the VAR monitor, and subsequently ruled out the goal, with Larsen penalised for pulling the goalkeeper’s shirt in the build-up.
Yet, while fortune may have favoured Carlo Ancelotti’s men in that instance, luck was not on their side when Vinícius Júnior was forced off with an apparent hamstring injury.
Joselu entered the fray to add a completely different dimension to the Real Madrid frontline, but the visitors still struggled to find their flow.
That was until a moment of magic from Rodrygo allowed the Brazilian to weave his way through Los Celestes’ defence, only to be thwarted by Carl Starfelt’s last-ditch block. Los Blancos ended the half strongly, but Jonathan Bamba was inches away from putting the hosts in front with a superb angled effort, which flew narrowly wide of the far post.
Ancelotti cut a pensive figure on the touchline as more goalless minutes ticked by after the restart, and that feeling of unease would have been exacerbated as Larsen blazed a close-range attempt over the bar. But salvation seemed to be at hand for Real, when referee Diaz de Mera awarded a penalty to the visitors.
Rodrygo was hauled down by Celta keeper Ivan Villar, but the keeper redeemed himself with a fine save, and enraged a normally placid Ancelotti on the touchline.
The Italian surely would have reached boiling point had Iago Aspas not miscued his close-range effort from Manu Sanchez’s cross just moments later. However, just when Real Madrid looked to be heading for a disappointing stalemate, Bellingham struck once again.
He showed brilliant determination to outmuscle Joseph Aidoo and head home from a corner, reacting quickest after Joselu flicked on a Toni Kroos corner for his fourth goal in just three outings since joining Los Blancos.
It proved to be the only and decisive goal of the match, as the Spanish giants claimed a seventh consecutive league victory over Celta, who are still waiting for their first win of the season. Ancelotti’s men stay top of the pile, while Rafael Benítez’s side sit 16th heading into this weekend’s round of fixtures.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
