Real Madrid and AS Roma are locked in a 3-3 draw in the closing minutes of their second-round match in the league phase of the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. During the contest still underway on Wednesday (14), Dutch forward Donyell Malen scored twice early in the second half to put the Italian hosts ahead 3-1 by the 57th minute, before late strikes from substitutes Carlos Espí and Endrick brought the Spanish club level by the 85th minute.
Both sides entered the halftime locker room tied at 1-1 following opening-half goals from midfielder Marten de Roon for the home team and forward Kylian Mbappé for the visitors. By stepping onto the pitch in the Italian capital, Mbappé reached the milestone of 100 career appearances in the history of Europe’s premier club tournament. The match remained in progress past the 87th minute as both clubs pushed for a decisive fourth goal.
Tactical adjustments by José Mourinho spark late Real Madrid comeback
Trailing by two goals in the second half, Real Madrid head coach José Mourinho turned to his bench to alter the attacking structure of the Spanish team. In the 70th minute, Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva entered the pitch to replace Aurélien Tchouaméni in the center of the park. Seven minutes later, Mourinho made a double substitution, bringing on defender Álvaro Carreras and young forward Carlos Espí in place of Marc Cucurella and Yan Diomande, while Brazilian forward Endrick and Turkish midfielder Arda Güler also joined the second-half attack.
AS Roma head coach Gian Piero Gasperini responded to the pressure by refreshing his defensive line in the 80th minute, introducing Greek defender Konstantinos Koulierakis for Mario Hermoso. However, the visitors broke through two minutes later in the 82nd minute when a cross from the left flank found Endrick inside the penalty area. Goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini parried the Brazilian’s initial header, but Carlos Espí pounced on the loose rebound from close range to cut the deficit to 3-2.
Real Madrid completed the comeback just three minutes later, in the 85th minute, capitalizing on a set piece. Arda Güler delivered an inswinging corner kick toward the near post, where Endrick rose unmarked six yards out to power a header past Gollini and make it 3-3. In the 87th minute, English midfielder Jude Bellingham nearly gave the Spanish side the lead from another corner kick, sending a close-range effort just wide of the post.
Injury substitutions and Donyell Malen double for AS Roma
Before Real Madrid’s late surge, AS Roma had seized control of the match despite Gian Piero Gasperini being forced into two early substitutions due to physical issues. In the 16th minute of the first half, midfielder Manu Koné sustained an injury and was replaced by Niccolò Pisilli sixty seconds later. At halftime, Argentine attacker Paulo Dybala experienced muscular discomfort and stayed in the dressing room, giving way to Rodrigo Mora for the start of the second period.
The halftime change paid immediate dividends for the home side in the 51st minute. Following a Real Madrid turnover during buildup play caused by a misplaced backheel pass from Vinícius Júnior, Rodrigo Mora fed Donyell Malen inside the penalty box. The Dutch striker fired a shot that deflected off midfielder Fede Valverde and beat goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to establish a 2-1 lead.
🚨🚨 DONYELL MALEN HAS MADE IT THREE FOR AS ROMA! 🤯🤯 AS Roma 3-1 Real Madrid. https://t.co/2MnXWO4WBQ
— Tekkers Foot (@tekkersfoot) October 14, 2026
Six minutes later, in the 57th minute, Malen collected another pass inside the area and slotted a low finish into the bottom left corner for AS Roma’s third goal of the night. The assistant referee initially raised his flag for offside on the field, prompting protests from the visiting players. After a review with the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), French referee François Letexier overturned the call and validated the goal, confirming that Valverde had kept Malen onside while waving away Real Madrid’s complaints regarding an earlier challenge on Jude Bellingham.
See also: Mbappé overtakes Vini Jr. in playing time at Real Madrid
Minute-by-minute breakdown of key plays at the Stadio Olimpico
The encounter featured high-tempo exchanges and scoring opportunities at both ends of the pitch from the opening whistle. Below are the primary events recorded up to the final minutes of regulation:
- 1st minute (1st half): Matías Soulé creates space at the edge of the penalty box and fires a shot just wide of Thibaut Courtois’s left post.
- 4th minute (1st half): Mario Hermoso latches onto a rebound and strikes a mid-height shot to the left side that Courtois saves, followed by another stop from the Belgian goalkeeper in the 5th minute on a long-range effort by Soulé.
- 12th minute (1st half): Paulo Dybala receives a pass inside the box and shoots inches past the left post; a minute later, Yan Diomande misses the target at the other end for Real Madrid.
- 17th minute (1st half): Niccolò Pisilli enters the match for AS Roma, replacing Manu Koné after the midfielder suffered an injury in the 16th minute.
- 20th minute (1st half): Marten de Roon takes a pass from Matías Soulé at the top of the area and hits a shot that deflects off the defense into the net to put AS Roma up 1-0.
- 24th minute (1st half): Courtois reacts quickly to block a central strike from Donyell Malen.
- 25th minute (1st half): Kylian Mbappé shoots from the edge of the penalty area, and the ball takes a deflection on its way past goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini to tie the match 1-1 for Real Madrid.
- 32nd minute (1st half): Marc Cucurella finds room in the box and shoots near the left post; in the 38th minute, the defender is penalized by referee François Letexier for pulling an opponent’s shirt.
- 45+2 minute (1st half): Jude Bellingham connects with a first-time shot inside the area that goes narrowly past the right upright right before halftime.
- 46th minute (2nd half): Rodrigo Mora comes on for the injured Paulo Dybala as the second half begins.
- 51st minute (2nd half): Donyell Malen takes an assist from Rodrigo Mora and scores via a deflection to give AS Roma a 2-1 advantage.
- 54th minute (2nd half): Rodrigo Mora attempts a solo run, gets blocked by the Madrid backline, and wins a corner kick for the Italian squad.
- 57th minute (2nd half): Donyell Malen scores into the left corner to make it 3-1, with the goal standing after François Letexier checks the offside position on the VAR monitor.
- 69th minute (2nd half): AS Roma wingback Wesley receives a yellow card for a foul in midfield.
- 70th minute (2nd half): Bernardo Silva replaces Aurélien Tchouaméni in Real Madrid’s first midfield change.
- 72nd minute (2nd half): Rodrigo Mora cuts past a defender inside the box and fires a shot that Courtois gathers cleanly.
- 77th minute (2nd half): Carlos Espí and Álvaro Carreras enter the pitch for Real Madrid, replacing Yan Diomande and Marc Cucurella.
- 80th minute (2nd half): Konstantinos Koulierakis comes on for Mario Hermoso in the AS Roma defense.
- 82nd minute (2nd half): Carlos Espí converts a rebound inside the box after Pierluigi Gollini saves a header from Endrick, narrowing the score to 3-2.
- 85th minute (2nd half): Endrick heads in a corner kick delivered by Arda Güler at the near post to equalize 3-3 for Real Madrid.
- 87th minute (2nd half): Jude Bellingham gets an unmarked header from a corner kick but sends the ball grazing past the post.
Starting lineups, absences, and official match details
The Italian club took the field without starting goalkeeper Mile Svilar, who is sidelined until November after fracturing a finger, and without midfielder Bryan Cristante, who is recovering from a knee injury. On the visiting bench, José Mourinho deployed Real Madrid in a 4-2-3-1 tactical formation while missing injured defenders Éder Militão and Ferland Mendy, as well as forward Rodrygo.
- Date and time: October 14, 2026, at 9:00 p.m. local CEST (3:00 p.m. EDT / 4:00 p.m. Brasília time).
- Venue: Stadio Olimpico, in Rome, Italy (seating capacity for 73,261 spectators).
- Referee: François Letexier (France).
- AS Roma lineup: Pierluigi Gollini; Mario Hermoso (Konstantinos Koulierakis), Evan N’Dicka and Gianluca Mancini; Nahuel Molina, Marten de Roon, Manu Koné (Niccolò Pisilli), Wesley, Paulo Dybala (Rodrigo Mora), Donyell Malen and Matías Soulé. Head coach: Gian Piero Gasperini.
- Real Madrid lineup: Thibaut Courtois; Denzel Dumfries, Antonio Rüdiger, Ibrahima Konaté and Marc Cucurella (Álvaro Carreras); Aurélien Tchouaméni (Bernardo Silva) and Fede Valverde; Yan Diomande (Carlos Espí), Jude Bellingham and Vinícius Júnior; Kylian Mbappé (alongside second-half substitutes Endrick and Arda Güler). Head coach: José Mourinho.
José Mourinho’s return to Rome and Champions League standings
The fixture marks José Mourinho’s return to the Stadio Olimpico, the venue where he managed AS Roma for three seasons and guided the club to the 2021/22 UEFA Europa Conference League title, the third tier of European club competition. Speaking at his pre-match press conference, the Portuguese manager addressed his squad’s mindset: “We put pressure on ourselves because we want to win”. Gian Piero Gasperini also spoke about the home crowd’s reception for their former boss: “The recognition for Mourinho is fitting; the fans held him in high regard. He deserves the tribute he will receive. You can’t stop people having feelings. But ultimately, Roma fans will cheer only for Roma”.
Evaluating the strength of the Spanish opposition before kickoff, Gasperini noted the challenge facing his roster: “Real Madrid are a difficult opponent, given what the club represents globally, in terms of their fanbase and trophy haul. We need to measure ourselves against the reality rather than the reputation. We’ve played against Inter and Como — two of Italy’s best sides — and now we’ll test ourselves against Madrid to see just how competitive we can be”. Prior to Marten de Roon’s opening goal on Wednesday (14), AS Roma had suffered four consecutive UEFA Champions League defeats against Real Madrid without scoring a single goal, losing 0-2 and 0-3 in the 2018/19 campaign as well as dropping two 0-2 results during the 2015/16 tournament.
In the overall 36-team league phase table, Real Madrid began the second matchday in 14th place with 3 points after defeating Inter Milan 2-1 in their tournament opener. AS Roma started the day in 17th position with 1 point following a 1-1 road draw against Fenerbahçe, carrying an unbeaten run of four victories and three draws across all competitions in the 2026/27 season after playing to a 0-0 stalemate away at Como on October 11, 2026, in the sixth round of the Italian Serie A. Following the European clash in Rome, AS Roma is scheduled to return to domestic Serie A action against Genoa on October 17, while Real Madrid prepares to face Sevilla in LaLiga on October 18.