Vinicius Júnior started and played well, but it wasn’t enough to avoid the third draw in a row; team from the Spanish capital had two goals disallowed
Real Madrid had a frustrating afternoon at Montilivi. Even with Vinicius Júnior’s good second half, the team only drew 1-1 with Girona, away from home. The result took the team out of the lead in the Spanish Championship and exposed yet another irregular performance by the squad led by Xabi Alonso.
With the third draw in a row, Real stopped at 33 points and saw Barcelona take the lead with 34 after winning four consecutive victories. Villarreal appears in third, with 32. Girona remains in a delicate situation, with 12 points and within the relegation zone.
Vinicius’ presence among the starters, despite rumors of wear and tear with the coach, did not provide stability to the team. Real created little in the first half, with the only highlight being a dangerous header from Éder Militão, and once again showed difficulties in constructing plays.
Girona, on the contrary, was superior in the initial stage. He scored well, played with quality and finished dangerously twice from outside the area. The lead came in the 44th minute, when Ounahi hit a precise shot to open the scoring. A minute before, Real Madrid had already had a goal disallowed by Mbappé due to a handball.
At the beginning of the second half, Girona maintained the rhythm and almost expanded on a play started from the defense. Vanat came face to face with Courtois, who made a great save and avoided the second goal. The move woke up Real, especially Vinicius. The number 7 had a goal disallowed afterwards and, shortly afterwards, he dribbled past Rincón in the area, being brought down. Mbappé converted the penalty and tied the match.
With Rodrygo’s entry, Real gained momentum in the final minutes, but ran into Girona’s marking and their own rush to turn the game around. Vinicius remained the most incisive, but was unable to decide. Endrick again did not leave the bench.
Real returns to the field on Wednesday, at 3pm (Brasília time), against Athletic Bilbao, in La Liga. Girona plays on the same day, at 5pm, against Ourense, away from home, in the Copa del Rey.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
