"A third-division team that came up from below the '59 steps' pushed Real Madrid to the very end. Real barely survived, and Toledo almost made history."
Real Madrid beat CF Talavera (Spain third division) 3-2 after a hectic match in the Copa del Rey round of 32 of the 2025-2026 season at Estadio El Prado in Talavera de la Leina, Toledo, Spain, on the 10th (Korean time). Just before the end of the match, goalkeeper Andriy Lunin stopped Talavera's all-out attack and narrowly averted a "major upset."
From the start the atmosphere was different than expected. Talavera boldly confronted them from the early minutes, and despite controlling possession Real was repeatedly blocked in front of goal. Talavera goalkeeper Jaime González made a string of saves, including stopping Kylian Mbappé's first shot, and the small stadium of 4,000 to 6,000 seats began to withstand the "visit of giants."
Real created the opening at the end of the first half. In the 40th minute from a corner kick, Talavera defender Marcos Moreno headed the ball away, it struck his arm and a penalty was awarded. Kicker Kylian Mbappé calmly converted it to make it 1-0. And just one minute later, a ball pushed by Mbappé from the flank struck defender Manuel Parando's body and was deflected into the net as an own goal.
The first half ended with Real leading 2-0, but the content was far from one-sided.
In the second half Real took stronger control, but the score did not ultimately widen. González's saves continued and it was 2-0 until the 35th minute of the second half.
Meanwhile Talavera changed the game with a single counterattack. In the 35th minute of the second half Molina opened the way for Parando, who had cut into the right line, and when Parando delivered a low, fast cross the substitute Nahuel Arroyo finished at the far post. 1-2, the home fans came back to life.
Real responded immediately. In the 43rd minute of the second half, Mbappé received a pass from Aurélien Tchouaméni and struck a low shot from distance that slipped under the goalkeeper to make it 3-1. It seemed the contest was over. But Talavera did not give up until the end.
In stoppage time, a free kick after Jude Bellingham's foul reopened the door to a miracle. Navarro's kick struck the underside of the crossbar, and Gonzalo Di Renzo hammered in the rebound. There was little time left, but Talavera created one final chance.
Just before the end of the match, Navarro met Molina's cross with his head in the box. The ball looked like it would roll over the goal line, but Lunin reflexively punched it away and saved Real. Talavera's "giant killing" stopped a few centimeters short, and Real barely grabbed a ticket to the next round.
The statistics back up the flow of the day. Talavera had 16 shots and an expected goals (xG) of 1.61, which was not insignificant. Real recorded an xG of 2.93 but the victory was far from "comfortable."
Real won, but faces were not bright. Ninety minutes being chased to the end by a 19th-place third-division team was both relief and a warning for the giant. Talavera lost, but the resistance and courage they showed in Toledo that night will linger longer than the result.
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