Real Madrid drop points in 1-1 draw at Girona, their third consecutive Liga stalemate, leaving them second behind Barcelona
REAL MADRID were held to a 1-1 draw at Girona on Sunday, their third consecutive La Liga stalemate.
The result leaves Xabi Alonso’s side second in the table, one point behind rivals Barcelona who beat Alaves on Saturday.
Azzedine Ounahi fired the hosts into a surprise lead before half-time with a fierce strike from inside the area.
Kylian Mbappe earned Madrid a point from the penalty spot after Vinicius Junior was fouled by Hugo Rincon.
The French forward smashed his penalty into the bottom left corner for his 14th league goal this season.
Madrid thought they had taken an early lead when Mbappe flicked home from close range.
However, the goal was disallowed as the ball bounced off his hand before he scored.
Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga made a fine save to keep out Eder Militao’s first-half header.
Thibaut Courtois produced a stunning stop to deny Vladyslav Vanat as Girona threatened to double their advantage.
Vinicius curled narrowly over and Mbappe whipped a shot inches wide in stoppage time as Madrid searched in vain for a winner.
“We are up there, it’s all very even, it’s a long season and we have to continue,” said Madrid coach Alonso.
“I liked the reaction from the players. It was not enough to turn it around but we were close.”
Gazzaniga admitted his team were frustrated despite earning a valuable point against the title contenders.
“The truth is we wanted three points, you could see the team trying to get them,” the Girona goalkeeper told Movistar.
“We had more chances, but thinking about it calmly, a point against an opponent like this is good.”
Madrid travel to face Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday for their fourth consecutive away league match. – AFP
