Real Madrid 1-1 Girona: Valverde 51; Lemar 62
Real Madrid took another hit to their La Liga title hopes on Friday night after they were held to a 1-1 draw by Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu, extending their winless run to three matches across all competitions.
The result leaves Madrid trailing leaders Barcelona, who could open up a nine-point lead at the top if they win against Espanyol. With only seven games remaining, the margin for error is rapidly thinning.
Coming into the match on the back of defeats to Mallorca in the league and Bayern Munich in the Champions League, pressure was already mounting on Alvaro Arbeloa’s side. Despite naming a strong lineup featuring Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham from the start, Madrid struggled to create clear-cut chances early on despite their dominance.
The hosts controlled possession in the opening stages but were nearly caught out when Azzedine Ounahi forced a sharp save from Andriy Lunin, while Claudio Echeverri fired wide soon after. At the other end, Bellingham failed to connect cleanly with Brahim Diaz’s delivery, and Vinicius missed a headed opportunity with the goal at his mercy.
Girona remained compact and disciplined and frustrated Madrid for much of the first half. Goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga also played his part, producing a fine save to deny Federico Valverde before the break.
Madrid eventually found a breakthrough six minutes into the second half. Valverde fired from distance but Gazzaniga messed up a routine save, allowing the ball to slip through his grasp and into the net.
But the lead lasted just over ten minutes. Thomas Lemar brought Girona level in the 62nd minute when he cut inside from the edge of the box and then drilled a low shot beyond Lunin.
From there, Madrid pushed forward but lacked sharpness. Mbappe saw an effort saved, while Vinicius was again denied by Gazzaniga. There was a late penalty appeal by Madrid, claiming that Mbappe had been tripped in the area, but it was waved away to ramp up the frustration at the Bernabeu.
