The task of facing the champions without the suspended Ilaix Moriba and Iago Aspas appeared daunting enough for Celta, yet they had the first chance of the game in the eighth minute when Borja Iglesias sent Williot Swedberg clean through on goal. However, the faintest of touches on the shot by Thibaut Courtois diverted it wide.
Having failed to take their chance, a combination of sloppy play and misfortune saw the Galicians go behind in the 20th minute.
A poor pass from Fran Beltrán ricocheted off Eduardo Camavinga and could have gone anywhere, but it went straight to Kylian Mbappé, who had time to set himself from 25 yards out and curl the ball beyond Vicente Guaita and into the top corner for his sixth league goal of the season.
The hosts saw an Iglesias finish ruled out for offside as Los Blancos preserved the lead going into half time, though wayward finishing from Camavinga and Vinícius Júnior denied them a greater margin.
Within two minutes of the restart, Jude Bellingham became the next visiting player to fail to hit the target from a good position, and soon after, Carlo Ancelotti’s side were made to rue their misses.
Óscar Mingueza combined beautifully down the right with Jonathan Bamba before centering to Swedberg, who didn’t give Courtois a chance this time and steered the equaliser home.
After Vinícius saw a would-be equaliser ruled out for offside and a heroic block from Javi Manquillo kept Celta ahead, Real turned to veteran Luka Modrić for inspiration.
And on the night he broke Ferenc Puskás’ record as the oldest player in Real history, the Croatian needed less than two minutes to thread a perfect pass through to Vinícius, who rounded Guaita and restored Real’s lead.
Celta, who had only lost once at the Balaídos in their last 11, continued to pose a threat through Bamba and Mingueza, while Anastasios Douvikas fired a gilt-edged chance wide in stoppage time.
That miss ensured Real Madrid closed out the win and will take a 42-match unbeaten league run into El Clásico next weekend. Los Celestes, meanwhile, remain without a win over Real in La Liga since 2014.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Vinícius Júnior (Real Madrid)
