Real Madrid signs its debacle against Valencia and leaves LaLiga on a 'platter' for Barça (1-2)

Finally, the Real Madrid has reached its hour. An inevitable fall that has been building for weeks culminated this Saturday at the Santiago Bernabéu. Against Valencia, the merengue team has practically signed its sentence in LaLiga after suffering a humiliating defeat against a 'che' team that stood up from the beginning and was the rightful winner of the contest (1-2).

The team led by Carlo Ancelotti once again demonstrated that they are a team without work and without ideas, with a disastrous collective level that will most likely leave them without titles at the end of the season. The merengues again showed a thick and dull game, and Carlos Corberán's team overwhelmed them, achieving a miraculous victory in the 90+5 minute to leave the whites with 63 points, three less than Barça with one game more, and forcing them to say goodbye to the title race.

Valencia made a splash in the first half

The merengues dominated possession during the first 45 minutes, but could not translate this superiority into dangerous chances and, despite not having the ball too much, they were dominated by a determined 'che' team looking to leave Chamartín with three points in their pocket.

However, as is customary week after week, the refereeing tried to impede this mission. In the 9th minute, Kylian Mbappé entered the visiting area and found himself one-on-one with Mamardashvili, but was intercepted by a great recovery from Tárrega. The Frenchman fell dramatically and Cuadra Fernández awarded a penalty to the whites.

From the VAR room, they called him to review the action since it was the Parisian forward who struck the defender's leg and not the other way around, but incomprehensibly, the referee maintained the initial sanction. In this situation, it was the football gods who ensured justice, as the poor penalty kick from Vinicius Jr. was repelled by the Georgian goalkeeper.

The response from Carlos Corberán's team was swift, and one minute after the missed penalty by the Madrid '7', Diakhaby connected with a corner kick in the heart of the area and sent a powerful header into the back of the net past Fran González, who debuted under the three posts of the merengue team conceding a stunning goal.

Diakhaby himself was close to starring in the 'blooper' of the match at the 20th minute when he scored an own goal in a ridiculous manner with a cross shot, but fortunately for him, the play was preceded by an offside from Mbappé, which is why the goal did not count.

The whites continued to besiege the 'che' area, but the imprecision of their forwards and a couple of merit interventions from Mamardashvili prevented them from leveling the score, so both teams went to the locker rooms amidst the boos of a Bernabéu fed up with their team's mediocrity.

The referee tried to give Madrid a hand... but Vinicius made a fool of himself

Controversy quickly made its presence felt in Chamartín. In the 9th minute, Cuadra Fernández awarded a penalty in favor of Madrid for an action in which Kylian Mbappé fell inside the area after a body duel with Tárrega. From the VAR room, they called the referee to review the play, as the replay clearly showed that it was the Frenchman who struck the defender's leg, and as a result of that stumble, he ended up tripping.

Despite this, the main referee, in an unusual and incomprehensible manner, maintained his initial decision after checking the VAR, and Vinicius Jr. prepared to take the nonexistent penalty. The Brazilian, who had just missed a shot from the penalty spot against Atlético de Madrid in the return leg of the Champions League round of 16, took a run-up and shot to the left of Mamardashvili, but the goalkeeper guessed his intentions and stopped his shot, preventing the whites from committing injustice and taking the lead on the scoreboard.

Madrid signed its debacle in the second half

Upon returning from the locker rooms, Carlo Ancelotti's team stepped up in search of a victory that would allow them to remain in the title race for LaLiga. Just as the second half began, the referee spared Sadiq from expulsion for a harsh tackle on Valverde, where he dug his studs into the right foot after arriving late to the cut.

A few minutes later, Mbappé tried again from outside the area, but his shot was blocked by Mamardashvili. However, the whites would find some relief in the subsequent play. Luka Modric crossed the ball from the corner and it was flicked on by Bellingham to connect with Vinicius at the far post, anticipating Jesús Vázquez to send it home and sign the 1-1.

Valencia came close to taking the lead in the 64th minute with a header from Tárrega that was saved by Fran González, and the whites were close to going ahead in the 70th minute after Valverde shot point-blank from a cutback by Mbappé, forcing the 'che' goalkeeper to make the save of the match with a miraculous punch to prevent the fall of his goal.

The whites continued to press but their attacks were fruitless and barely generated danger in their rivals' field. Corberán's team exposed all the shortcomings of a team without ideas that relies entirely on refereeing help and certain individual sparks to stay afloat, and in the 90+5 minute, they worked the miracle with a header from Hugo Duro to bury the merengues, who continue their fall into hell.

Madrid leaves LaLiga 'served' to Barça

With this defeat, Real Madrid have 63 points, four behind FC Barcelona, ​​who suffered an unexpected setback against Betis this afternoon at the Estadi Lluís Companys (1-1). The Merengues are in free fall, with three defeats and two wins in their last five matches, and the final whistle is beginning to loom on the horizon.

The Catalans, meanwhile, maintain their brutal run of results and remain unbeaten in 2025. In the domestic competition, the Catalan side has nine wins and two draws, earning 29 points out of 33. After Real Madrid's humiliation against Valencia, they are one step closer to their 28th LaLiga title.

Technical sheet of the match:

• Real Madrid, 1: Fran González; Lucas Vázquez (Güler, min. 85), Tchouameni, Rüdiger, Fran García (Alaba, min. 77); Valverde, Modric (Camavinga, min. 77); Brahim (Rodrygo, min. 57), Bellingham, Vinicius (Endrick, min. 77); Mbappé.
• Valencia, 2: Mamardashvili; Aarons (Duro, min. 74), Mosquera, Diakhaby, Tárrega, Jesús Vázquez; Barrenechea, Javi Guerra (Pepelu, min. 74); Diego López, Sadiq (Rafa Mir, min. 59), André Almeida (Pérez, min. 74).
• Goals: 0-1, Diakhaby (min. 15); 1-1, Vinicius Jr. (min. 50); 1-2, Hugo Duro (min. 90+5).
• Referee: Cuadra Fernández.
• Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu.