In a match in the 12th round of La Liga, Real Madrid drew goalless with their host Rayo Vallecano on Sunday evening.
With this result, Real Madrid’s score reached 31 points, maintaining the top spot in La Liga, while Rayo Vallecano raised their score to 15 points, occupying twelfth place.
The beginning of the match was enthusiastic, and Real Madrid almost opened the scoring in the 3rd minute, when “Arda Guler” fired a powerful shot with his left foot from the edge of the penalty area, but the goalkeeper “Batalla” shone in saving it, preventing an early goal for the Royal team.
A minute later, “De Frutos” tried to respond with a dangerous attack from midfield, during which he bypassed Real Madrid players, but the ball moved away from him, so “Asensio” intervened in time to cut it off.
In the 5th minute, Rayo Vallecano obtained a dangerous free kick near the penalty area after a foul by “Huijsen” against “Isi”. “Unai López” executed it, but it hit the defensive wall and bounced back to “Ratiu”, who shot it over the goal in the 6th minute.
Play continued back and forth between the two teams, as “Chavarría” stopped “Valverde’s” run in the 7th minute with a successful defensive intervention, while “Lejeune” succeeded in the 9th minute in stopping “Vinicius” and preventing him from entering the area.
In the 13th minute, “Huijsen” saved Real Madrid’s goal from a sure goal after clearing a dangerous low cross sent by “Chavarría” towards “De Frutos” inside the penalty area.
Real Madrid tried to regain control through set pieces, and “Arda Guler” executed a corner kick in the 16th minute, which Rayo’s defense cleared before it posed any danger.
In the 19th minute, “Ratiu” almost scored the first goal of the match after advancing from the right side and firing a powerful ball inside the penalty area, but “Courtois” saved it firmly.
Real Madrid responded just three minutes later with a very dangerous chance, when “Vinicius” received the ball inside the area and shot it strongly, but “Batalla” shone again and saved his goal with an amazing reaction in the 22nd minute.
A minute later, “Asensio” rose to a cross from “Carreras” and headed it next to the right post in the 23rd minute, wasting another opportunity for Real Madrid.
In the 29th minute, “Lejeune” intervened again to prevent “Bellingham” from receiving a dangerous pass, before “Carreras” shot a powerful ball from outside the area in the 30th minute, but it went over the crossbar.
In the 35th minute, “Vinicius” tried again with a long-range shot, but the ball passed far over the goal.
The defensive brilliance of “Huijsen” continued in the 37th minute after clearing a cross from “Isi”, before Rayo players protested in the 39th minute demanding a second yellow card for him for delaying the play.
As the end of the first half approached, “Ratiu” shone again inside his penalty area in the 42nd minute when he slid in front of “Vinicius” to prevent him from shooting and send the ball out for a goal kick.
Mutual attempts
At the beginning of the second half, specifically in the 46th minute, “Arda Guler” fell inside the penalty area demanding a penalty kick after a collision with “Ciss”, but the referee ordered play to continue.
Just 4 minutes later, “De Frutos” almost gave Rayo the lead with a shot from inside the area that passed next to the post in the 50th minute, and “Guler” responded to him in the 51st minute with a powerful left-footed shot that passed very close to the goal.
In the 54th minute, “Bellingham” came close to scoring after receiving the ball brilliantly inside the area and shooting with his left foot towards the goal, but “Batalla” continued to shine and saved it with his foot.
“Mbappé” shot his first dangerous ball in the 59th minute, which passed next to the left post.
In the 60th minute, “Unai López” shot from the edge of the area, but “Valverde” blocked the ball with his body.
A minute later, “Isi” tried to surprise “Courtois” with a long shot from midfield after noticing his advancement, but the ball went over the crossbar in the 61st minute.
The 66th minute witnessed Rayo’s most dangerous chance in the match, when “Ratiu” passed a ground ball inside the area to “Álvaro García”, who shot from close range over the crossbar strangely.
Real Madrid responded just two minutes later, in the 68th minute, with a powerful shot from “Valverde” that “Batalla” cleared again brilliantly.
In the 77th minute, “Álvaro García” exploited a long ball behind Real Madrid’s defense and shot it from a difficult position over the goal.
Four minutes later, “Valverde” requested a substitution due to a muscle injury, leaving in the 81st minute, and “Trent Alexander-Arnold” participated in his place.
In the 85th minute, “Pacha Espino” tried to launch towards Real Madrid’s goal, but he was in an offside position after a successful defensive intervention from “Trent” who had recently participated.
“Kylian Mbappé” demanded a penalty kick in the 87th minute, after a violent intervention by “Chavarría”, but the referee signaled to continue play.
The pressure from Real Madrid players continued, searching for a snatching victory goal, but to no avail, the Whites stumbled and lost two points.
