Without Benzema, or Toni Kroos, Real Madrid falls against Rayo and lets the lead slip away
Without Karim Benzema or Toni Kroos, Real Madrid stood up in Vallecas knowing that Barcelona could take the leadership away from him and everything that was not winning the derby would prevent him from continuing in first place.
Despite this, Ancelotti’s team was overwhelmed by Rayo from the start and, With almost no time for some fans to sit in the stands, he received the first blow.
Four minutes later, a good move from the left by Fran García and Álvaro García ended with a cross from the winger that Santi Comesaña picked up the edge with his left foot to launch a shot at Thibaut Courtois’ long post.
Lightning, far from settling for that goal, he put Real Madrid under suffocating pressure that made him make mistakes in defense, such as one by Militao at 13 minutes that allowed Álvaro García to have a one-on-one with Courtois that the Belgian goalkeeper cleared for a corner.
Isi Palazón also tried his luck twice in the first half but a shot went over the crossbar and another repelled it with a save Courtois, who saved his team until after 35 minutes Luka Modric tied the score. It was after a penalty by Fran García on Marco Asensio that the referee decreed after consulting the VAR.
Until then, all of Real Madrid’s offensive baggage had been an individual play by Rodrygo Goes down the left wing that ended with a high shot.
The equalizing goal gave Real Madrid wings, which in just six minutes turned the score aroundr after a corner kick by Asensio that Militao headed into the back of the net after escaping from Florian Lejeune.
The joy did not last long for the white team because after a poorly defended action between Militao and Carvajal, Álvaro found himself with a ball on the left side of the area to launch a powerful shot against which Courtois could do nothing.
The second half began as the first began, with Real Madrid playing at the mercy of the pace that Rayo wanted to impose without Modric, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Fede Valverde managing to dominate their team’s play to create excessive danger over Stole Dimitrievski’s goal.
The party returned to give a new turn of script at 64 minutes when Carvajal committed a penalty by touching the ball with one hand in an action that had to be reviewed by the VAR. Oscar Trejo shot from eleven meters and Courtois saved but the shot had to be repeated because Carvajal was inside the area before the shot. At the second, the Argentine was right.
Iraola did not see that goal from the benchwho was sent off for his repeated protests midway through the second half, just when his best team was on the pitch.
In search of fresh air, Ancelotti brought in Eduardo Camavinga and Mariano Díaz in search of a goal, but neither of them had a prominent role in the final minutes. in which Real Madrid took a step forward and was able to equalize with a shot from Rodrygo, almost on the goal line, which he sent over the crossbar.
In added time, already desperate, Courtois went up to finish off the last corner kick, although that siege of Real Madrid did not bear fruit due to the good work of the Rayista defense.
With this result, Real Madrid is left with 32 points relegated to second place and gives the lead to Barcelona, which adds 34, while Rayo, with 21, sees the European zone only two.
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