Real Madrid stumble over Catalan low-flyers, Barcelona close in on leaders
Girona gave his compatriot FC Barcelona a very pleasant Sunday. Leaders Real Madrid, who lost 3-2 to RB Leipzig in the Champions League earlier this week, dropped expensive points against the low-flying Catalan: 1-1.
Real Madrid’s lead over their arch-rivals is now just one point.
No Benzema
The La Liga leaders took office without Golden Ball winner Karim Benzema, who was unwell after Saturday’s training session. The absence of the captain made itself felt at Real, who got away very well a few times before half-time against the No. 19 of the competition.
Venezuela’s Yangel Herrera had the greatest chance, and he gave Thibaut Courtois no chance with a flaming shot. The Belgian goalkeeper was lucky that the ball bounced back into the field through the crossbar.
Relief came in the 70th minute. A belch from star Federico Valverde was enough: the Uruguayan fended off his direct opponent, whose cross Vinicius simply pushed in.
Substitute Marco Asensio had the 2-0 on his boot shortly after, but Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga shook off a phenomenal save.
Unlucky handball
Then Asensio became a Schlemiel after all, when he unfortunately got a cross to the body through the body. The attacker seemed unable to do anything about it, but referee Mario Melero López, after studying the pictures, decided to give the visitor a penalty.
Substitute Cristhian Stuani gratefully unwrapped the gift and equalized Girona.
Things seemed to be going well for Real Madrid in the 89th minute as Rodrygo poked the ball past Gazannliga in the third instance. However, the arbitration – assisted by VAR – found that the Girona goalkeeper already had his hand on the ball. So the goal was disallowed.
A premiere for duckweed: red
Real also had ten men in front of goal at the start of the nine-minute stoppage time after Toni Kroos received his second yellow card for stopping a dangerous counter-attack.
For Kroos it was the first red card of his career. The German has already made 426 appearances in the Bundesliga and La Liga.
Barcelona won with the utmost effort in Valencia on Saturday thanks to an injury-time goal from Robert Lewandowski.
Number three Atlético Madrid lost 3-2 at low-flying Cádiz on Saturday and is already nine points behind compatriot Real.
Source:NOS
I’m Maxine Reitz, a journalist and news writer at 24 Instant News. I specialize in health-related topics and have written hundreds of articles on the subject. My work has been featured in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Guardian, and Healthline. As an experienced professional in the industry, I have consistently demonstrated an ability to develop compelling stories that engage readers.
