Mbappe was initially shown a yellow card for catching Antonio Blanco high on the shin with a late challenge, but that was upgraded to red after the video assistant referee (VAR) invited referee Cesar Soto Grado to watch the incident again on the pitchside monitor.

The incident occurred four minutes after Eduardo Camavinga gave Real Madrid the lead with a curling left-footed strike from just outside the penalty area.

Thibaut Courtois produced six saves to thwart Alaves, who were themselves reduced to 10 men when Manu Sanchez caught Vinicius Jr high on the leg in the 70th minute.

Vinicius and Jude Bellingham started on the bench, perhaps with a view to the 3-0 deficit they will look to overturn against Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti introduced his two stars as his side looked to kill off the hosts, but they mustered just one shot on target in the second half compared to Alaves’ five.

Victory keeps Los Blancos in touch with Barcelona, who beat strugglers Leganes 1-0 on Saturday.

Mbappe will miss Real’s home fixture against Athletic Bilbao next Sunday through suspension.

Real Madrid will travel to Barcelona on 11 May in a match that could determine the title race.

Real Madrid’s home victory over Villarreal on Saturday evening had temporarily moved them level with Hansi Flick’s side.

However, the visitors – who suffered a shock defeat by Osasuna last weekend – always looked in control after Lewandowski nodded them in front early on from Raphinha’s curling delivery.

The 36-year-old’s second, a close-range finish, came after more good work from the Brazilian.

And his and Barca’s third came as he reversed a shot past home goalkeeper Antonio Sivera from Eric Garcia’s pass.

The Poland forward has now scored 12 goals in 11 games in all competitions for Barca, who are averaging over three goals a game in the Spanish top flight this term.

“I had some good passes and they made it easier for me to score,” Lewandowski said on DAZN.

“We played well from the first minute and we wanted to attack and score goals. We were more in control in the second half.

“We have a very good group. I think we can play better but we have improved all the things we lacked.”

The hosts, who threatened sporadically, thought they had pulled a goal back on the stroke of half-time but Toni Martinez’s goal was ruled out for an offside in the build-up.

Lucas Vazquez gave the La Liga champions the lead inside 57 seconds before Frenchman Mbappe found the net with a fine finish after being set up by Jude Bellingham.

Rodrygo added a third just after the restart, but Carlos Benavidez pulled a goal back for the visitors in the 85th minute.

Deportivo’s Kike Garcia then added a second a minute later to ensure a nervy finish, but Carlo Ancelotti’s side were able to hang on.

Mbappe’s strike means the 25-year-old now has seven goals in nine appearances this season for Real, including six in his past seven.

He and Bellingham had also combined in the 23rd minute but the forward had his strike into the bottom corner ruled out for offside.

Mbappe signed a five-year deal at Real Madrid in July after the expiry of his Paris St-Germain contract.

Barca went in front when Robert Lewandowski latched on to Gundogan’s pass to dink the ball over the onrushing Antonio Sivera.

Gundogan then fired in to double the away side’s lead after the break, before Samu Omorodion’s header for Alaves made it 2-1.

Substitute Victor Roque sealed victory when he converted Hector Fort’s cross, only to be sent off nine minutes later.

The 18-year-old Brazilian picked up two yellow cards in quick succession, but Barcelona were able to see out the final 18 minutes with 10 men for their third successive win in La Liga.

Barca remain third in the table, seven points behind leaders Real Madrid.

A 1-1 draw between Girona and Betis earlier in the day meant Real knew they would go first with victory.

But they struggled to create chances and their cause was not helped when defender Nacho was dismissed in the 54th minute for a bad foul on Samu Omorodion.

But two minutes into added time Vazquez rose to head in a Toni Kroos corner.

La Liga top scorer Jude Bellingham was unable to add to his 13 league goals so far in this campaign but it did not matter as Carlo Ancelotti’s side end 2023 in first place, going above Girona on goal difference.

Girona had looked on course to take another important win thanks to Artem Dovbyk’s first-half penalty, but German Pezzella equalised with two minutes left.

Samu Omorodion’s goal after 18 seconds had given the visitors a shock lead.

Lewandowski headed the hosts level from Jules Kounde’s cross and then scored the winner from the penalty spot after Raphinha was fouled.

The result leaves Barca third in the table, four points behind surprise leaders Girona and two adrift of second-placed Real Madrid.

Lewandowski’s goals were his sixth and seventh in the Spanish top flight this season, ending a run of six games without a goal for the 35-year-old, his worst sequence at club level since February 2011 with Borussia Dortmund.

However, they masked a disjointed performance from Xavi’s side, with Omorodion’s goal the fastest conceded by Barcelona in a home league match this century.

The hosts, who were playing in a half-empty Barcelona Olympic Stadium, with the Nou Camp under renovation, were also fortunate not to fall further behind with Omorodion missing a glorious close-range chance to double Alaves’ lead.

“We need to be conscious about our moment and be self-critical, we are not playing good football lately and need to improve mightily going forward,” Xavi told Movistar Plus.

“The international break has arrived in good time and will do good for us, so we can reflect and work hard to correct our mistakes. I’m optimistic and I think we have enough talent and grit to come back much better in two weeks.”

Inaki was involved in all two goals on the night as his side downed Deportivo Alaves to continue their fine form after the international break.

The 28-year-old was played through on goal by Mikel Vesga in the 18th minute with the Ghanaian not flopping his lines as he scored to give Bilbao the lead.

He continued to work hard in the game and was rewarded once again in the second period of the game when he assisted Oihan Sancet for the second goal of the game.

His assist making it 2-0 also saw Bilbao put the game beyond the reach of Alaves, who were playing at home.

Inaki was voted the Most Valuable Player (MVP) at the end of the game.

The two-goal involvements on Friday night means Inaki has contributed directly to five goals in six games this season, scoring three and providing two assists.

The forward has also started all games in the league this season for Ernesto Valverde’s side so far this campaign.

Barca were looking to bounce back against their Copa del Rey extra-time defeat to Athletic Club but were made to do so without Ansu Fati, out with another injury.

A win would have taken Xaxi Hernandez’s side into fifth and in with a chance of Champions League qualification next season, but they struggled to create much beyond a Luuk de Jong volley early in the first half, though they retained the ball for much of the first half.

In the second half, Alaves – celebrating their 101st anniversary – continued to stifle their more glamorous opponents as Barcelona delivered a succession of crosses without forcing anything particularly dangerous.

Barcelona had a scare when Tomas Pina had a decent penalty shout turned down, and Joselu flashed a header wide in a five-minute spell.

With the game looking destined for a draw Ferran Torres picked out De Jong for a simple finish with three minutes of normal time remaining.

The win leaves Barcelona in fifth, one point off Atletico Madrid in fourth, and Alaves remain 19th, in the relegation zone. Both sides remain in their own kind of danger.

The visitors held on at times but took their chance when it mattered and fully deserved their point in front of a sparse crowd in the Catalan capital.

Sergio Aguero was in from the start as interim boss Sergi Barjuan went for a mix of youth and experience with his first-team selection.

It was a tough night for him with an early end; after shooting wide from distance just after the 20-minute mark, he was forced off with an innocuous-looking injury just before the break.

Barcelona, who sacked Koeman last week, dominated the ball for long spells and were able to get round the Alaves defence consistently, but there weren’t many clear cut chances created.

Memphis Depay was a threat from the left, and he cut inside to sting the palms of Antonio Sivera from distance, but it didn’t get much better than that for the hosts before the break.

At the other end, Alaves attacks were few and far between, but they arguably should have gone ahead when winger Edgar Mendes headed wide from a perfectly-weighted free-kick.

The second half exploded into life. First, Depay curled the opener in from the edge of the area four minutes in, before Alaves hit back moments later to restore parity moments later.

Depay had two golden opportunities to put Barcelona ahead again soon after. Gavi unlocked the visiting defence before the Dutchman’s chipped effort came back off the post, and then Sivera outwitted him one on one.

But as the game went on, the Dutchman went missing, and his dimmed spark summed up what was a tough night for his side.