Real Madrid must defeat Valencia to put the pressure on Barcelona, but their chances of doing so don’t look good as they have fallen behind in this La Liga clash at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Real Madrid had a golden opportunity to take the lead after 13 minutes when Kylian Mbappe was fouled inside the penalty area, but Vinicius Junior’s tame effort was saved by Giorgi Mamardashvili.
🦇 ¡Detuvo el penalti Giorgi Mamardashvili!#LALIGAHighlights | #LALIGAEASPORTS | #DesenlaceLALIGA pic.twitter.com/x5EbLeLRZi
— LALIGA (@LaLiga) April 5, 2025
Giorgio Mamardashvili SAVES Vinicius Jr’s penalty 🇬🇪 pic.twitter.com/ejYZaJLBr8
— LFC Transfer Room (@LFCTransferRoom) April 5, 2025
VINI JR.’S PENALTY IS SAVED 😨 pic.twitter.com/v7pVXXNvwE
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) April 5, 2025
And they were made to pay 120 seconds later as Valencia took a shock lead as Mouctar Diakhaby headed past Fran Gonzalez, who is making his Real Madrid debut despite Andriy Lunin having been passed fit, from Diego Lopez’s wonderful corner.
🚨🇪🇸 GOAL | Real Madrid 0-1 Valencia | Diakhaby
DIAKHABY OPENS THE SCORING FOR VALENCIA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!pic.twitter.com/7cAYDoyeNs
— Tekkers Foot (@tekkersfoot) April 5, 2025
It’s a wonderful moment for Diakhaby, who suffered a terrible knee injury when he last faced Real Madrid 13 months ago. But he almost went from hero to zero minutes later as he bizarrely turned the ball into his own net, but after a VAR check, it was ruled out for offside. As such, Valencia have retained their lead, and Los Blancos are still chasing the game.
