Real Madrid come back to salvage precious point at Valencia
While Real have staked their claim for the title in recent weeks, closest rivals Girona refuse to go away, making this another crucial clash for the visitors. However, after an innocuous start to the game, they found themselves two goals down in a matter of minutes.
The opener came rather fortuitously, as Fran Perez’s skewed shot from Dimitri Foulquier’s cross found Hugo Duro in loads of space just outside the six-yard box. Given the speed at which the ball came to him, Duro still had a lot to do, but he reacted quickly to direct the ball into the bottom corner.
Los Blancos were perhaps unfortunate to fall behind, but Los Che’s second strike was of their own doing. Dani Carvajal’s pass towards Andriy Lunin lacked plenty of power, allowing Roman Yaremchuk to intercept and go around his Ukrainian countryman before slotting into an empty net.
The visitors initially offered nothing offensively, but after Federico Valverde had tested Giorgi Mamardashvili with a low drive, Carlo Ancelotti’s men halved the deficit on the stroke of half time.
Valencia’s decision to forbid part of a Vinicius Junior documentary to be filmed at the Mestalla made the headline this weekend - the Brazilian was subject to racist abuse on his last visit here - and the forward provided the perfect response, tapping home Carvajal’s deflected cross.
After the interval, both sides had fantastic opportunities to find the back of the net again. First, Jude Bellingham worked himself some space in the penalty area, only to see his shot kept out by Mamardashvili’s left leg before Diego Lopez’s first-time attempt was blocked to safety by Lunin.
Brahim Díaz then directed an effort narrowly wide of the post, but he proved decisive shortly after. It was his perfectly weighted ball that found Vinicius unmarked at the back post, allowing the forward to head into an empty net and complete the comeback - even if a lengthy VAR review threatened to end the celebrations.
Following a small lull in proceedings, the action - some of it unwelcome - returned. A few minutes before the end of normal time, Aurelien Tchouaméni and Mouctar Diakhaby were involved in a sickening, albeit totally accidental, collision that left the latter needing to be stretchered off the field.
Then, in the first minute of stoppage time, Valencia were awarded a penalty for a foul from Fran Garcia on Duro, only for it to be overturned by referee Jesus Gil Manzano following a trip to the pitchside monitor.
In one last twist, Manzano blew the final whistle just as Diaz crossed for Bellingham, who headed into the corner. Unsurprisingly, Madrid were livid, with the Englishman even receiving a red card for his protests after FT.
The result means Girona have the chance to move within four points of Ancelotti and Co. if they win away at RCD Mallorca on Sunday. While Valencia may well have taken a point prior to kick-off, they will be disappointed to secure it in the manner they ultimately did.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)
