Kylian Mbappe scored twice as Real Madrid survived a tough test in the Spanish Cup on Wednesday. The holders beat third tier Talavera 3-2 to reach the last 16.
The match took place at the small Estadio El Prado. The ground holds only 6,000 fans and sits far from the shine of the Santiago Bernabeu. Still, Talavera pushed Real all the way.
Mbappe gave Real the lead from the penalty spot. Just before the break, Manu Farrando turned the ball into his own net. Real went into halftime with control of the game.
Talavera refused to give up. Nahuel Arroyo scored in the 80th minute to cut the gap. The goal raised hopes of a shock result and set up a tense finish.
Mbappe struck again from outside the box with two minutes left. It looked enough to seal the win. But Talavera hit back once more through Gonzalo Di Renzo in added time. The hosts fought until the final whistle.
In other matches, Villarreal crashed out of the Cup. The La Liga side lost 2-1 away to Racing Santander from the second tier.
Albacete also caused a surprise. They knocked out Celta Vigo on penalties after a 2-2 draw that went to extra time.
Atletico Madrid faced a strong challenge from fourth tier Baleares. The Madrid club won 3-2 in Palma after a hard contest.
Osasuna needed extra time to beat Huesca 4-2 and book their place in the next round.
On Tuesday, Barcelona moved on with a late surge. Andreas Christensen and Marcus Rashford scored near the end in a 2-0 win over third tier Guadalajara.
