Cristiano Ronaldo was on the scoresheet as Real Madrid got their Primera Division campaign off to a winning start tonight, but they were given a few scares along the way before seeing off Deportivo La Coruna 3-2 at the Bernabeu.
Manuel Pellegrini selected seven of the club's eight summer arrivals in his starting XI, including superstars Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema, but it was one of their existing and less heralded players, Lass Diarra, who earned Madrid the spoils.
Diarra fired home a low 25-yard shot on the hour mark to secure victory for Madrid after battling Depor had twice drawn level to cancel out goals by Raul and Ronaldo, the visitors scoring through Riki and Juan Carlos Valeron.
It was not the most convincing of performances by Madrid, who spent more than 250million euros on new talent this summer, but they will settle for the win, especially having lost 2-1 against the same opponents on the opening game of last season.
Usain Bolt, fresh from his record-breaking exploits in the 100m and 200m at the athletics World Championships, was presented to the crowd prior to kick-off, and the Jamaican sprinter would have been impressed at how quickly Madrid flew out of the blocks.
However, the first-minute move that saw Kaka break through on goal before dragging his shot wide of the far post proved to be something of a false down for Madrid, who looked disjointed in the opening stages.
Despite that though, it took the new-look Madrid just 26 minutes to break the deadlock when two of their new boys combined to give old warhorse Raul the simplest of finishes.
Kaka's through-ball put Benzema in behind the Depor defence and, although the Frenchman's low drive was deflected onto the near post by Daniel Aranzubia, the rebound fell kindly to captain Raul to slot into an empty net.
That was just the boost Madrid would have wanted after an uncertain start, and Ronaldo should have made it 2-0 three minutes later when he climbed highest in the box to get on the end of Xabi Alonso's curling free-kick, but the £80million man failed to keep his header down.
Ronaldo really should have made the most of that chance, and his disappointment would have been compounded 60 seconds later when Depor equalised from an almost identical situation.
Juca launched a free-kick into the box and Riki, the former Madrid youth-team player, got in between two defenders to direct a header past Iker Casillas from seven yards.
That was an unexpected setback for Madrid and one that certainly did not fit with the script on what was supposed to be a memorable season opener for the new 'Galacticos'.
However, that goal did serve to spark Madrid into action and they then enjoyed a purple patch that resulted in Ronaldo putting the home side back in front and a host of near-misses.
Ronaldo's goal, like two of his previous three since his summer move from Manchester United, came from the penalty spot after Raul had been sent sprawling by Aranzubia.
The pressure was on Ronaldo, under the spotlight after a fairly low-key pre-season, but the FIFA World Player of the Year showed no signs of nerves as he drilled his spot-kick just inside the post.
Madrid should really have extended their lead before half-time, with Raul denied by Aranzubia following a fine run by Ronaldo, Ezequiel Garay seeing a header cleared off the line and Kaka firing just over from the edge of the box.
And those failures came back to haunt Madrid at the start of the second half as Depor drew level through Valeron just seconds after the interval.
Andres Guardado's cross to the edge of the box found Valeron unmarked and the 34-year-old had all the time in the world to control the ball and drill a low shot past the unmoved Casillas.
Valeron then missed a much easier chance 12 minutes later to put Depor ahead, the former Atletico Madrid player volleying Guardado's cross wide from six yards.
That looked a certain goal, but Madrid survived and within three minutes they were back in front thanks to Diarra, whose low 25-yard shot crept inside the far post.
With so much attacking talent on show, few would have expected holding midfielder Diarra to earn Madrid the points, but that proved to be the case as Depor could find no way back for a third time.
And it was Madrid who looked more likely to add to the scoreline in the final half-hour, with Benzema again seeing a shot deflected onto the woodwork by Aranzubia and Ronaldo being denied by the Depor custodian following a darting run.
Gonzalo Higuain, last season's top scorer who found himself on the bench at the start of the game, also had a chance but he blazed over from close range.
