Real Madrid cemented top spot in LaLiga with a 1-0 victory over Mallorca in their first match of the year on Wednesday night.
With injuries and suspension hitting the defence, Carlo Ancelotti opted start Aurélien Tchouaméni beside Antonio Rudiger at centre-back, while Vinicius Junior made his return to the side.
Jude Bellingham enjoyed a wonderful first half of the season and he nearly got Los Blancos off to a fine start but his header was saved by goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic in the opening ten minutes.
Los Blancos continued to dominate as the half progressed, with Rodrygo and Vinicius combining to good effort down the flanks although the finish product was not up to standard.
While the home side dominated for most of the first half, they nearly went behind heading to the break but Antonio Sanchez's towering was kept out by the crossbar with Lunin well-beaten.
Ten minutes into the second period, Ancelotti's men were nearly caught out once again on the break Samu Costa pounced on a loose ball but saw his low strike crash against the upright.
Ancelotti changed his approach for the final 25 minutes after withdrawing Toni Kroos for striker Joselu, while Vinicius' return to the field also came to the end when he was replaced by Brahim Diaz.
Los Blancos finally got their reward with 12 minutes to go when defender Antonio Rudiger got on the end of Luka Modric's corner to nod past Rajkovic.
The home side were able to see out the closing stages to claim three points and move three points ahead of second-place Girona.
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