Real Madrid More Difficult to Chase Barcelona After Being Held by Girona

JAKARTA - Real is increasingly difficult to chase Barcelona's leadership after drawing 1-1 against Girona in a Spanish La Liga match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Saturday, April 11, 2026 early morning WIB.

The disappointing results were again picked up by Madrid. Failing to get full points in the domestic competition and losing painfully when playing in the Champions League which makes Madrid threatened again without a title this season.

In the previous season, Madrid failed completely which led to the dismissal of coach Carlo Ancelotti. Ancelotti's position was then replaced by Xabi Alonso who had to build a squad from scratch even though the player material did not change much. Only the club was less patient so that it failed in the Supercopa Espana, Alonso was even dismissed in the middle of the competition. Moreover, they then lost their position at the top of the standings after being pushed by Barca.

Alonso's position was replaced by coach Alvaro Arbeloa who previously managed Real Madrid Castilla or Madrid's youth team. However, Arbeloa also seemed to fail to unite the big players so that Los Merengues were more difficult to keep up with Barca's competition. Especially in the last few weeks when Madrid lost points in crucial matches.

They are threatened with failing to survive in the Champions League after being forced to surrender 2-1 in the first big match of the quarterfinal against Bayern Munich. Ironically, the defeat occurred at home, which made Kylian Mbappe et al have to work hard to catch up with the goal deficit and win the second match held at Bayern's home in the middle of this week.

In La Liga, Madrid was also abandoned by Barca after losing 2-1 to Mallorca. Madrid actually had the opportunity to cut the points gap with Barca when hosting Girona. Instead of winning, they even drew so that their competitors were left behind.

Now, Madrid with 70 points is six points behind Barca. If they win against Espanyol in the derby tonight, Barca will be nine points ahead and closer to winning the La Liga title for the second time in a row under Hansi Flick.

Meanwhile, Girona is more comfortable in the middle of the table after stealing points in this away game. Michel Sanchez's team got 38 points and ranked 12th. Their points are the same as Athletic Bilbao, but Girona is still behind in goal difference.

In that match, Madrid actually came down with the best strength. Arbeloa played Mbappe's trident which was supported by Vinicius Junior and Brahim Diaz.

Meanwhile, Jude Bellingham is also back as the first choice along with Eduardo Camavinga and captain Federico Valverde. Behind is also Eder Militao even though goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is absent again because he has not recovered from an injury. His position was replaced by Andriy Lunin.

However, they still struggled to face Girona who strengthened the defense. Even though they dominated the game, Madrid was unable to dismantle the guest team's defense throughout the first half. At least there were two opportunities obtained by Mbappe and Valverde. It's just that the opportunity can be thwarted by goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga.

Likewise when the match entered the second half. Madrid's attacks always failed, including Bellingham's attempts. After many times not getting results, Valverde finally broke the deadlock in the 51st minute. Receiving the ball from outside the penalty area, he then fired a hard shot that Gazzaniga failed to save.

Score 1-0 for Madrid. The advantage made the Los Blancos players more aggressive by creating opportunities through Mbappe. Only the kick from the French national team captain still did not produce results. Likewise, Vinicius Jr's attempt was again thwarted by the goalkeeper.

When Madrid continued to apply pressure, Lunin's goal was conceded. With the same scenario as Valverde's goal, midfielder Thomas Lemar successfully defeated Lunin with a hard shot from outside the penalty box in the 62nd minute. The goal silenced the Madrid fans because it changed the score to 1-1.

Madrid actually tried to play more aggressively. Only their efforts did not bear fruit. The draw score lasted until the end of the match. This result is clearly a bad capital for Madrid who will face Bayern in the second edition of the big match in the middle of this week.