"Finally cooked", "This match will give him a lot of confidence" - Fans praise Real Madrid man's performance in 3-2 win over Union Berlin

Real Madrid fans have praised Joselu Mato's performance in his team's 3-2 win over Union Berlin in the UEFA Champions League on December 12 (Tuesday).

The Spanish forward joined Real Madrid this summer on a season-long loan deal from Espanyol, which also includes an option to buy. From 2009 to 2012, Joselu was a part of Real Madrid Castilla, where he made 73 appearances for the side and also played a couple of matches for the Santiago Bernabeu outfit.

This season, due to Vinicius Jr's injury issues and Karim Benzema's departure, the Spanish forward has been making regular appearances for Los Blancos. In 21 appearances across La Liga and UEFA Champions League, Joselu has bagged eight goals and two assists.

Recently, while playing against Bundesliga side Union Berlin, the Spaniard scored twice to help Real Madrid finish the group stages with a flawless record. He scored Los Blancos' first goal in the 61st minute as he outmuscled Paul Jaeckel to find the back of the net with a header.

After a few minutes, Joselu handed Carlo Ancelotti's side a lead by scoring off Fran García's cross (72'). Joselu had nine touches in the opposition box with a passing accuracy of 79%. He also had six attempts, with the two on target ending up in the back of the net.

The LaLiga giants eventually won the match as Dani Ceballos scored the third goal (89') to secure the victory after Alex Kral's late equalizer. After the match, football fans praised the former Newcastle United striker on X (formerly Twitter) for his spectacular performance.

"Joselu finally cooked", one fan tweeted.

"I’m so happy for Joselu. This match will give him a lot of confidence," another user wrote.

Here are a few more reactions:

Los Blancos topped Group C of the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League with a perfect record, winning all six matches, scoring the most goals (16, and conceding the fewest (seven). Napoli has also qualified for the Round of 16, while Union Berlin has been eliminated from this year's competition.

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Real Madrid boss heaps praise on Joselu Mato for performance against Union Berlin

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has heaped praise on attacker Joselu Mato after he guided Los Blancos to a 3-2 victory over Union Berlin at Olympiastadion Berlin.

Carlo Ancelotti hailed the Spanish forward by stating that he was an elite finisher. He also said that the La Liga giants failed to capitalize on his qualities in the first half.

Ancelotti said in the post-match press conference (via ManagingMadrid):

"This type of match is to vindicate themselves. They played a complete game and showed the quality they have. Joselu is a great finisher and we have to take advantage of his quality as we did in the second half, but not in the first half. In the second half he scored a goal.”

Next up, Real Madrid will host Villarreal at Santiago Bernabeu on December 17 (Sunday). They currently sit second in the league table with 39 points from 16 matches — two fewer than surprise leaders Girona