Real Madrid opened their UEFA Champions League campaign with a numbers-heavy, style-light win at the Bernabéu. Inter owned the ball for 64% of the match and fired 21 shots, yet the scoreboard read 2-1 to José Mourinho’s team. The difference sat where it often matters most, in chance quality and the first-half punch. Madrid produced 2.91 xG to Inter’s 1.78 and turned their best openings into a 2-0 cushion inside 23 minutes.

Kylian Mbappé struck first after 14 minutes from a Brahim Díaz pass, then Federico Valverde doubled the lead nine minutes later, a clean left‑foot finish that capped Real’s most efficient spell. Inter responded after the break and got a goal back on 77 minutes, Carlos Augusto finishing low from a Lautaro Martínez assist. The visitors piled on crosses and corners, but Madrid’s penalty-box defending and recovering shape did enough to close it out. On Sofascore, the home side finished with a higher team average despite having far less of the ball, a tidy snapshot of how this one played out.

Fast start at the Bernabéu

The tone was set before the half-hour. With only 30% first-half possession, Real Madrid still generated 1.56 xG to Inter’s 0.78 and led 2-0 at the break. They hit the target four times from six first-half shots and created four big chances while allowing none. Brahim Díaz was a live wire between lines, producing an assist and a team-high three big chances created before leaving on 79 minutes.

Inter were not silent. They launched 11 first-half shots, hit the woodwork once and forced Thibaut Courtois into three saves. But their best looks were contested or from range, and Madrid’s centre-backs cleared lines early and often. By halftime the defending count already leaned toward Real, a theme that would only grow.

Why Madrid won with less of the ball

Inter finished with more of everything in possession, including 621 passes to Madrid’s 353, plus 54 final-third entries to 27. They also swung in 30 crosses, completing 10, and earned 11 corners to Madrid’s four. That volume did not translate into superior chances. Real led shots on target 8 to 7, posted the better xG on target (1.84 to 0.77) and created twice as many big chances, eight to four.

Two columns tell the story. First, clearances and penalty-box control. Madrid racked up 33 clearances to Inter’s 16 and survived long spells of service into the area by staying compact and winning second balls. Second, mistakes. Inter registered two errors leading to goals, a costly contrast to Madrid’s zero. When Sofascore’s event data tilts that way, the scoreline usually follows.

Inter’s push and the turning points

Cristian Chivu looked for a reset at the interval, bringing on John Stones for Benjamin Pavard at the restart. A triple tweak arrived on 60 minutes, with Piotr Zieliński and Petar Sučić joining Ange-Yoan Bonny to add carry and crossing threat. It worked well enough to tilt territory and keep Madrid in their box for stretches. Inter created four second-half big chances, matched Madrid 10-10 on shots and finally scored on 77 minutes, when Lautaro slipped Carlos Augusto in for a right‑foot finish.

Madrid leaned into pragmatism from there. The second half featured 22 Madrid clearances, seven Courtois goal kicks and four saves, numbers that show a side living without the ball but not panicking. The visitors kept probing, put up seven accurate crosses after the break and tested the box from both flanks. But offsides (four for Inter), waste in front of goal and those early concessions left too much to chase.

Brahim, Mbappé and the supporting cast

Beyond Valverde’s finish, Madrid’s frontline supplied the threat that forced Inter to retreat. Mbappé scored with his first big look and finished with four shots on target from four attempts, plus a key pass and a 7.7 Sofascore Rating. Vinícius Júnior added relentless carry, leading Madrid’s progression by running 298 metres with the ball and pushing play forward 232 metres, good for a 7.3. Brahim Díaz was Madrid’s creative spark, recording an assist, four key passes, a hit on the woodwork and a game-high expected assists figure of 1.05, earning an 8.2.

Inter’s best outfield ratings came from the left channel. Carlos Augusto produced the goal, three key passes and a 7.4. Lautaro Martínez created that strike, supplied two key passes, and kept Madrid honest with four shots and 39 accurate passes for a 7.3. At the back, Alessandro Bastoni logged 97 touches and 79 of 82 passes, while Yann Bisseck completed 57 of 59 passes and made three tackles. In goal, Josep Martínez posted six saves and a 7.5, but those two decisive first-half moments still carried the day.

MVP spotlight: Federico Valverde

Wearing the armband, Federico Valverde put in the all‑around performance that wins knockout‑style nights. He earned an 8.4 Sofascore Rating, the highest on the pitch, and scored what stood up as the match winner with a left‑foot strike on 23 minutes. The Uruguayan did not waste a pass, completing 38 of 39 (97%) and finding teammates equally well in both halves of the pitch.

Valverde added substance without the ball too. He won two of three tackles, made an interception and a clearance, and lost possession just once across 50 touches. He recorded two shots, one on target, with 0.35 xG and 0.27 xGOT, which pairs nicely with a midfielder’s workload. Madrid’s midfield needed calm and control to survive Inter’s 64% possession. Valverde provided both, plus the key finish.

What the team stats tell us

– Possession and passes favored Inter, yet Madrid’s shot quality and accuracy told a different tale. Real led shots on target 8-7 despite taking five fewer shots.
– Big chances were decisive. Madrid created eight and scored two of them. Inter created four and scored once.
– Territory and delivery belonged to Inter. They produced 10 accurate crosses and 11 corners, but Madrid answered with 33 clearances and 14 total tackles.
– Goalkeeping was a wash on volume. Courtois made seven saves to Josep Martínez’s six, each with three high‑value stops. Inter’s two errors leading to goals weighed heavier than anything between the posts.
– In the halves split, Madrid’s first‑half efficiency (2-0 from 1.56 xG) set the platform. The second half was level on shots and closer on xG, but Inter’s late goal changed only the mood, not the result.

A tidy Champions League win, then, built on sharp finishing and sturdy box defending. It was not pretty, but it was very Bernabéu: punish the key moments, trust the structure and lean on leaders who rarely blink.

Player of the Match

By Sofascore Rating, the best player was Federico Valverde with an 8.4. The fans agreed. Valverde also topped the vote with 16200 of 35177 cast. Rating leader and fans’ pick were the same player here.