Real Madrid player ratings vs Stuttgart: Antonio Rudiger to the rescue! Blancos labour to victory despite Kylian Mbappe and Endrick grabbing Champions League debut goals
Getty/GOALThe defending European champions scraped a 3-1 win after turning in another middling performance at Santiago Bernabeu
Things haven't quite clicked for Real Madrid yet this season, but the wins keep coming. Los Blancos were poor yet again on Tuesday, this time against Stuttgart in the Champions League, yet still scraped a result with a 3-1 win over the German side.
Kylian Mbappe and Antonio Rudiger grabbed goal, to redeem an otherwise markedly disappointing night for Carlo Ancelotti's men, who still look a very beatable side, and a late Endrick strike eventually made things look far more comfortable than they really were.
Stuttgart enjoyed the better of the play early on, forcing Thibaut Courtois into four big saves. The visitors came even closer after 28 minutes, when Deniz Undav's deflected strike pinged off the bar. Madrid thought they had a penalty shortly before half time after Rudiger was brought down in the box, but it was overturned after the referee deemed he went down too easily.
Madrid caught the visitors napping 30 seconds into the second half, however, as Aurelien Tchouameni found Rodrygo, who squared the ball for Mbappe, who couldn't miss from close range. Stuttgart were good value for their equaliser, though, as Undav headed home at the back post.
The defending European champions bounced back from that disappointment, though, as Mbappe constantly threatened across the front line, while Jude Bellingham's twists and turns created chances. It was Rudiger who grabbed the eventual winner, though, as he directed a header into the bottom corner. A stoppage-time speculative hit from Endrick then made it three as the Brazilian became the youngest Champions League scorer in Madrid history.
GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from Santiago Bernabeu…
