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Real Madrid's La Liga Hopes Crushed in 1-1 Draw with Girona

Real Madrid's La Liga title aspirations were dealt a near-fatal blow after a 1-1 home draw with Girona. Federico Valverde gave Madrid the lead in the second half, but former Atletico midfielder Thomas Lemar equalized with a fine strike. The result leaves Madrid six points behind leaders Barcelona with just seven games remaining. Girona's resilient performance earned a crucial point in their battle to avoid relegation.

Key Points: Real Madrid Title Hopes Dashed After Girona Draw

  • Madrid six points behind Barcelona
  • Valverde scores opener
  • Lemar equalizes for Girona
  • Title hopes virtually extinguished
  • Girona boosts relegation fight
2 min read

Real Madrid's title hopes dealt heavy blow afer 1-1 draw at home to Girona

Real Madrid's La Liga title bid suffers a major setback after a 1-1 home draw with Girona, leaving them six points behind Barcelona.

"Real Madrid all-but said goodbye to this season's La Liga title - Xinhua"

Madrid, April 11

Real Madrid all-but said goodbye to this season's La Liga title on Friday night after being held to a 1-1 draw in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium by Girona.

The draw leaves Real Madrid six points behind FC Barcelona in the standings with seven games left in the season, with Barcelona having the chance to extend the lead to nine points with a win at home to Espanyol on Saturday evening, reported Xinhua.

Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa made seven changes to the team that lost 2-1 at home to Bayern Munich on Tuesday in the Champions League, with Eder Militao, Raul Asencio, Jude Bellingham, Dani Carvajal and Brahim Diaz among those coming into the starting 11, while Arda Guler was among those rested with an eye on Wednesday's return leg.

The first half saw chances for both sides with Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius and Federico Valverde all going close for Real Madrid, while at the other end Andriy Lunin did well to frustrate Azzedine Ounahi, while Claudio Echeverri went close for Girona in injury time.

Valverde put Real Madrid ahead in the 51st minute with a shot from outside of the penalty area that Girona goalkeeper Pablo Gazzaniga made a horrible mess of trying to stop, and Mbappe was close to making it 2-0 soon afterwards, but Girona was level just after the hour.

Former Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Lemar was allowed to collect the ball outside of the Real Madrid penalty area, step forward and beat Lunin with a left-foot shot into the corner of the goal.

With the crowd in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium growing increasingly impatient, Arbeloa made several changes but it was to no avail as Girona held on for a point that helps its effort to avoid relegation.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

S
Sarah B
Watching from Delhi. The real issue is the defense. Letting Lemar just walk up and shoot like that? Unacceptable. Lunin did his best, but the backline was sleeping. All hopes on the Champions League now.
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Arjun K
Respect to Girona for fighting hard. They needed the point to survive and they got it. From an Indian football fan's perspective, it's good to see the underdog get a result at the Bernabeu. Makes the league more interesting!
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Priya S
The goalkeeper error for the first goal was comical. Gazzaniga's howler gifted Madrid the lead, and then they couldn't even hold on to it. So many wasted chances by Mbappe and Vinicius. Very frustrating performance.
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Karthik V
I understand resting players for Bayern, but the league should not have been given up like this. The fans at the stadium have every right to be impatient. The team selection showed a lack of respect for the competition. Hope this doesn't affect morale for the UCL.
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Michael C
Valverde's goal was a rocket! But one moment of brilliance isn't enough. The midfield looked disjointed without the usual control. Bellingham tried, but the chemistry was off. On to the next one, I guess.

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