Pressure increases on Xabi Alonso as Celta Vigo stun 9-man Real Madrid in La Liga

Pressure intensified on manager Xabi Alonso as a 9-man Real Madrid slumped to a shock 2-0 defeat against Celta Vigo in the La Liga on Sunday. As many as three Real Madrid players, two on the field and one on the bench, saw red cards as Celta Vigo pulled off a major upset at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Williot Swedberg gave Celta Vigo an unlikely lead in the 54th minute with a clever finish into the bottom corner, bagging his first goal of the season. He sealed his side's 2-0 victory with a second goal after a stunning finish in the injury time. Real Madrid looked hapless throughout the contest and ended with 9 men on the pitch by the full-time whistle.

After going 1-0 down in the 54th minute, things went worse from bad for Alonso's men in the 64th minute when they were reduced to 10 men after Fran Garcia was shown two yellow cards inside a minute. Real Madrid were down to nine men in the 92nd minute after defender Alvaro Carreras was shown two yellow cards in quick succession.

Carreras was shown a yellow card for dissent before being handed another one for foul and abusive language as he got sent off. The hosts imploded after the defender's dismissal, and Celta Vigo capitalised on the opportunity to make it 2-0 and seal a memorable victory at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Endrick was the third Real Madrid player to be shown a red card in the game despite not coming off the bench. He was shown a red card for his behaviour on the sidelines and will miss Real Madrid's next match against Alaves in the La Liga next week.

Celta Vigo registered their first win over Real Madrid in the La Liga since May 2014, ending a barren run of 22 matches and a long wait of over 11 years. The defeat increased pressure on Real Madrid manager Alonso, who has been facing the heat from all corners for his side's inconsistent run across competitions this season.

After the shock defeat, Real Madrid are now four points behind league leaders Barcelona on the La Liga table, having managed only a solitary win in their last five matches in the league. Barcelona have 40 points from 16 games, while Real Madrid have 36 points from as many so far this season.

"We are all angry, evidently this was not the game we wanted, it was not the result we wanted," said Alonso after Real Madrid's shock defeat against Celta Vigo.

"We have to try and turn the page as quickly as possible. It's only three points. We have the Champions League game against City to react in, and get this bad taste out of our mouths," he added.