Due to Raul Garcia's Last Minute Goal, Real Madrid Loses to Osasuna

JAKARTA - Real Madrid failed to leave their rivals, Barcelona, after falling against Osasuna in a Spanish LaLiga match at El Sadar Stadium, Pamplona, Sunday, February 22, 2026 WIB. The goal of substitute Raul Garcia in the last minute was the determinant of Osasuna's 2-1 victory.

Competition in LaLiga is heating up again. That's why Madrid threw away the opportunity to get away from Barca's pursuit. Previously, Madrid had secured the top spot after beating Real Sociedad 4-1. The positive trend was maintained again when Madrid played in the Champions League playoff by defeating Benfica 1-0.

Meanwhile, Barca lost points after being forced to surrender 2-1 when visiting Girona's home. Now, Barca has the opportunity to take the top of the standings with the condition of defeating Levante in the match later tonight at Camp Nou.

The reason is that Madrid, who have 60 points, are only two points ahead of Barca. So Barca must win when playing at home if they want to return to the top.

"It was a very bad game. We actually controlled the game, but we were weak in speed. We should have played better," said Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa when responding to his team's defeat as quoted by france24. Arbeloa seemed disappointed because the team played in a reply performance.

"No one likes to lose, especially us. However, we don't want to be down. The competition is still long," he said.

Arbeloa did not want the players to sink into disappointment because of the defeat. Moreover, Los Merengues will play the second playoff against Benfica at their home in Santiago Bernabeu, Thursday, February 26, 2026 WIB. With a one-goal victory in the first leg, Madrid still has to work extra hard to secure a ticket to the last 16.

"We still have one more game on Wednesday [local time]. A very important game," Arbeloa said again.

Osasuna itself secured a position in the middle of the table and did not need to worry about going down to the relegation zone after getting three points at home. They managed to climb one strip to rank ninth with 33 points.

In that match, Madrid was forced to work hard against Osasuna who played without pressure. The hosts were not afraid to play openly and several times threatened Thibaut Courtois' goal.

Striker Ante Budimir who is the mainstay spearhead of Osasuna has immediately fired the opponent's defense. The Croatian national team player has almost broken the Madrid goal in the early minutes of the match. Only, his kick still went wide and then soared high above the crossbar.

Budimir again almost scored when he received a cross from Ruben Garcia. Under pressure from defender Alvaro Carreras, he was almost breaking the deadlock. However, Courtois managed to make a brilliant save that thwarted Budimir's chances.

After many failed attempts, Budimir finally broke the deadlock from the penalty spot in the 38th minute. The penalty was given after he was brought down by Courtois in the penalty box. The referee originally gave Budimir a yellow card for diving.

However, after reviewing the incident via VAR, Courtois was seen blocking the Osasuna striker. The referee changed his decision and pointed to the white spot. The penalty was taken by Budimir himself who successfully fooled the Belgian goalkeeper.

"I know it's a penalty. That's why I stayed calm (when the incident was reviewed by VAR)," Budimir said in response to the goal he scored. The score changed 1-0 for Osasuna. The score remained until the first half ended.

In the second half, Arbeloa brought on defenders Trent Alexander-Arnold and Brahim Diaz. They were able to liven up Madrid's game and start controlling the match.

Madrid's attempt to equalize the score actually worked when Kylian Mbappe broke into the Osasuna goal. However, the goal was later annulled because Mbappe was in an offside position.

After meeting a stalemate, Madrid's wait to score ended. Forward Vinicius Junior managed to break the deadlock after receiving an assist from captain Federico Valverde in the 73rd minute.

The goal started from Valverde's action who penetrated into the penalty box. He was knocked down by Osasuna players before releasing a cross which was immediately converted by Vinicius Jr into a goal.

This is Vinicius Jr's fifth goal which once again showed the best performance since Arbeloa replaced Xabi Alonso last January.

Madrid actually had the opportunity to turn things around when Mbappe, who is the top scorer in LaLiga, almost broke the Osasuna goal. However, his brilliant header was blocked by defender Javi Galan. Furthermore, Alexander-Arnold's free kick was still wide.

When the match was expected to end in a draw, Raul Garcia who replaced Budimir made a surprise by breaking into the Madrid goal. It started with his brilliant action to successfully escape the defense of Raul Asencio. Raul Garcia then fired a cross shot that defeated Courtois.

The goal created in the 90th minute changed the score to 2-1 for the team coached by Alessio Lisci. The score remained until the end of the match. And for the first time in 15 years, Osasuna was able to beat Madrid in the domestic competition.