Real Madrid suffered a blow in their bid to repeat as La Liga champions after falling 2-1 at Villarreal in an entertaining, action-packed match that was also tinged in controversy. The defending champions missed a chance to go top of the La Liga table with a win or draw, Abbeylivenetwork.com reports.
Samuel Chukwueze’s Villarreal were not intimidated in front of a full house at their renovated El Madrigal home, and the Yellow Submarine attacked Real Madrid from the start, coming away with a win that will give them hope of making a real push at a top-four finish and earning a UEFA Champions League berth
Real Madrid, who started the match without a Spanish player for the first time in their competitive history, are guaranteed to remain in second place in the La Liga standings as they get set to watch leaders Barcelona take the field against Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Barcelona will have the chance to take a three-point lead atop the table if they can beat Real’s rivals Atletico.
Yeremy Pino then sent Villarreal into the lead in the opening minutes of the second-half, but Madrid striker Karim Benzema levelled the scores from the penalty spot on the hour mark.
Gerald Moreno restored the lead for Villarreal when he converted from the spot after Madrid’s defender David Alaba handled the ball.
With this result, Madrid remain in second position on same points with Barcelona who will tackle Athletico Madrid on Sunday.
