Real Madrid had to settle for a 1-1 draw against mid-table Girona in La Liga on Friday, extending the home side’s winless run to three games in all competitions and giving leaders Barcelona the chance to extend their lead at the top.
Federico Valverde gave Real the lead six minutes after the break, but Girona leveled in the 62nd minute through Thomas Lemar.
Barca have 76 points, six ahead of second-placed Real, who have now played a game more. The Catalan team visits Espanyol on Saturday and can be nine points clear with seven games to go.
Real started the evening under pressure, after suffering a defeat in Mallorca last weekend and being seven points ahead of Barça.
Coach Alvaro Arbeloa opted for a full-strength squad despite the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich looming next Wednesday, with his side having to overturn a 2-1 deficit at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. were in the lead, with Jude Bellingham in midfield, as Real monopolized possession. But for all his territorial dominance, clear-cut chances proved few and far between in a tepid first half, with pace and inspiration in short supply.
Girona was content to sit deep and lunge forward when possible. The closest we came before half-time was when Azzedine Ounahi unleashed a fierce effort from the penalty area, after which goalkeeper Andriy Lunin produced a sharp reflex save.
After halftime the match finally came to life.
Valverde broke the deadlock in the 51st minute with a low strike from the edge of the box that should have posed little threat, but Girona keeper Paulo Gazzaniga let the ball squirm through his arms as he fell in an attempt to smother it.
Real’s relief was short-lived.
In the 62nd minute, Lemar burst in from the right and fired a brilliant shot from the edge of the penalty area that flew just inside the right post past Lunin’s desperate dive to level the score.
Real pushed for a winner, but the urgency turned to fear. Attacks were rushed, passes were hurried and composure was missing.
Girona maintained their form with discipline to frustrate the crowd, who booed the players with the feeling that their team’s La Liga hopes were disappearing before their eyes.
The final whistle was greeted with unease around the Bernabeu as Real’s stuttering form saw the title race tilted ever more firmly towards its old rivals Barca.
Published on April 11, 2026
