6 min

Diomande's first goal sinks Villarreal as Vinicius sees red for hair-pulling

Sifat Jasim

Sun, Oct 11, 2026

Diomande's first goal sinks Villarreal as Vinicius sees red for hair-pulling

Yan Diomande's first goal gives ten-man Real Madrid a 1-0 win over Villarreal, as VAR sends off Vinicius and Mourinho skips his press conference.

A hard-earned 1-0 at the Bernabéu

La Liga returned after a three-week international break, and Real Madrid made hard work of it. In the end Villarreal were beaten 1-0 in matchday 8, and the goal came from Yan Diomande. Mourinho handed him a start ahead of Vinicius, who began on the bench. Diomande finished off a good move that Valverde started down the right. VAR checked it before it stood, and the young Ivorian broke down in tears after scoring his first goal in our colours. That is a moment to remember.

The starting XI was Courtois, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, Rüdiger, Cucurella, Tchouaméni, Valverde, Güler, Bellingham, Diomande and Mbappé. Mbappé had two clear chances in the first half and hit the post as early as the 7th minute. The first half finished goalless and the Bernabéu whistled the team off at the break. There had already been jeers around the 36th minute. The win keeps us six points behind leaders Barcelona, and it was far from pretty. The team was hanging on at the end.

Vinicius: a goal, then a red card

Vinicius came off the bench and put the ball in the net, and for a few seconds the stadium was celebrating a second goal. Then VAR official Alejandro Muñiz Ruiz called referee Isidro Díaz de Mera to the monitor, pointing to possible violent conduct in the build-up. The replay showed Vinicius pulling the hair of Villarreal's Nathan Saliba. The goal was ruled out and Vinicius was sent off with a straight red around the 71st minute. The federation has since released the VAR audio.

The match report says Vinicius pulled an opponent's hair with the ball in play and not in dispute between them. It also notes an aggressive attitude and loud protests, but it does not quote any specific words. Spanish press point out that this detail matters for the sanction. Going by the report's wording, a two-match ban is being talked about, and there are questions over whether he will be available for the Clásico. Nothing has been decided yet. After the red, three people had to lead him away, while Rüdiger stepped in between him and the referee.

Later, Vinicius posted on Instagram. He celebrated the win and apologised for leaving his teammates with ten men.

Reactions

Mourinho cancelled his post-match press conference. According to reports, he did not want to risk missing the upcoming games against Sevilla and Barcelona.
Tchouaméni said he does not understand what is going on with referees, and that includes the red card.
Villarreal coach Íñigo Pérez felt his side deserved more and called it frustrating to leave with nothing. Defender Foyth said that when a team asks for something on every play, the referee, being human, can make mistakes.

Next up is a trip to Roma on Wednesday, with El Clásico against Barcelona coming later this month.

A special night for the Under-20 champions

Before kick-off, our Under-20 Intercontinental Cup winners presented their trophy to the Bernabéu crowd. It was an emotional night for centre-back Joan Martínez, who looked to the sky after recently losing his grandmother. Our thoughts are with him. Eleven students from the Foundation's schools in Cambodia also walked onto the pitch with the players. The stadium's new VIP Sky Bar was opened for the first time on the night too.

Around the club

Arda Güler has been named the Mahou Five-Star Player of September.
The club confirmed that Racing de Santander vs Real Madrid will be played on Sunday 1 November at 4:15 pm.
In the women's game, Athenea was sent off in the 91st minute for pulling the hair of American player Cooper.
On the basketball side, Real Madrid host Manresa on Sunday, and Sergio Llull was chosen as the Most Healthy Player of the 2025-26 season.
Barcelona president Laporta claimed Madrid are losing prestige and credibility at home and abroad.

Sources

Sifat Jasim

Membership reopens in March 2027.

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