Kylian Mbappe scored twice as Real Madrid held off a spirited Celta Vigo fightback to move back to within four points of La Liga leaders Barcelona before El Clasico next weekend.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side took the lead in the 33rd minute when a short corner was worked to Arda Guler, whose curling shot found the top corner via a slight deflection.
Mbappe doubled the advantage six minutes later with a thumping finish high past Celta goalkeeper Vicente Guaita at the end of a swift Madrid counter.
The France striker got his second three minutes into the second half as he ran on to Guler’s excellent through ball to slot left-footed into the bottom corner.
But the visitors kept going and Javi Rodriguez pulled one back with a little over 20 minutes remaining with a close-range finish after Madrid failed to clear a corner.
What had looked like being a comfortable win suddenly became very tense when Celta legend Iago Aspas’ pass matched his brilliant vision to set-up fellow substitute Williot Swedberg to make it 3-2 on 76 minutes.
Pablo Duran so nearly equalised two minutes later after being sent clear by another wonderful bit of skill from Aspas, but home goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was able to recover after the initial shot squirmed under his body.
With the away side pushing for an equaliser, there were chances at both ends in a frenetic finale, but Los Blancos stood firm to claim a crucial three points.
Victory means defending champions Madrid head to Barcelona next Sunday knowing a fifth straight league win would leave them just a point behind their fierce rivals with three games remaining.
Meanwhile, Celta stay seventh as they continue to fight for a European place.
