Real Madrid’s night in Girona ended in frustration and déjà vu, as they had to settle for their third consecutive La Liga draw, winning 1-1, allowing Barcelona to maintain their top spot.
Girona stunned the Spanish giants just before halftime when Azzedine Ounahi scored a brilliant goal, throwing Montilivi into disarray and forcing Real Madrid to search for a response. The hosts were sensing another upset – after all, they had beaten Los Blancos twice since 2017, and for a long time, it seemed history might repeat itself.
Madrid fought valiantly, but luck wasn’t on their side today.
Kylian Mbappé’s goal, which could have leveled the score, was disallowed for handball moments before Ounahi scored the first goal. The Girona roared. Real Madrid crumbled. The pressure on Xabi Alonso’s men intensified.
But the French superstar wasn’t about to sit quietly forever.
A clumsy foul on Vinicius Junior gave Madrid a lifeline, and Mbappé ruthlessly converted the penalty into the bottom corner – his 14th league goal of the season. From that moment on, Los Blancos went on the attack. Vinicius was ruled offside, and Mbappé came agonizingly close to scoring again in stoppage time, but the winning goal failed to materialize.
Xabi Alonso welcomed back defensive pillars Eder Militao and Antonio Rudiger, putting his faith in Vinicius and Mbappé in attack, but Girona’s resistance and Gazzaniga’s heroics in goal were enough to thwart them.
Madrid currently sit second in La Liga, a point behind Barcelona, who had defeated Alavés the day before. It’s another proud evening for Girona against one of the biggest football clubs in the world.
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