Bellingham shines as Real Madrid triumph over Napoli

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Jude Bellingham has scored in both appearances in the Champions League this season
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Real Madrid secured a hard-fought victory against Italian champions Napoli at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

England midfielder Jude Bellingham was the star of the show, contributing both a goal and an assist to lead his team to victory.

The match had its fair share of drama, with defender Leo Ostigard opening the scoring for Napoli in the 19th minute, capitalising on a rebound from Natan’s shot off the crossbar.

However, Real Madrid quickly responded, with Vinicius Jr levelling the score after being set up by Bellingham.

Bellingham’s moment of brilliance came when he carried the ball from the halfway line, breezing through Napoli’s defence before delicately curling a shot into the bottom right corner, giving Real Madrid a 2-1 lead at half-time.

Napoli fought back in the second half, equalising through Piotr Zielinski’s penalty after Victor Osimhen’s shot was initially blocked by Nacho Fernandez. Referee Clement Turpin had initially not awarded the penalty, but a VAR review prompted him to reverse his decision after consulting the pitchside monitor.

The match was ultimately decided by a thunderous strike from Federico Valverde, which rebounded off the crossbar and went in via the back of Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret, securing a 3-2 victory for Real Madrid.

With this win, Carlo Ancelotti’s side now top Group C with six points from their first two games, following their 1-0 victory over Union Berlin in their opening fixture. Napoli, who had previously enjoyed a 14-game unbeaten run at home in the Champions League, sit in second place.