Real Madrid had to settle for a draw against Villarreal in La Liga on Saturday. The meeting at the Santiago Bernabéu ended goalless and that was only the third 0-0, and the first in a league, of the Royal in 127 official duels under Carlo Ancelotti. Villarreal also showed on Saturday why Real Madrid have only won five of their last fourteen encounters.
In an intense first half, Villarreal emphatically made Real Madrid feel uncomfortable. Ancelotti’s team had a hard time entering the game, partly because Unai Emery’s team put a lot of pressure and, thanks to the speed of Arnaut Danjuma and Yeremi Pino, regularly appeared in front of Thibaut Courtois’s goal area.
Real Madrid were somewhat inaccurate in attack and struggled to create any danger anyway. A controversial moment after more than half an hour of play could have thrown the game off balance. After a duel with Raul Albiol, Nacho Fernández went to the ground and the Real Madrid players asked for a penalty. However, referee Jesus Gil Manzano did not want that and so the contact with the shoulder remained unpunished.
Ancelotti intervened at halftime and brought in Eduardo Camavinga, replacing Rodrygo. After only a few minutes, Real Madrid had a view of the 1-0 when Eder Militao did not hit the ball well with the head after a free kick by Marco Asensio. However, Villarreal also bit himself: first via a bet by Danjuma and then via a diagonal bet by Paco Alcácer.
Real Madrid visibly struggled to create any danger: the game lacked depth and often it looked like it was a handball match. Eight minutes before the end, Gerónimo Rulli was nevertheless important when the goalkeeper almost made a save on the goal line after a header from Isco. It is Real Madrid’s first misstep since returning to the Santiago Bernabeu.
| No. | Team | m | W | G | V | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 17 |
| 2 | Seville | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 14 |
| 3 | Atletico Madrid | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 14 |
| 4 | Real Sociedad | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| 5 | Valencia | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 11 |
| 6 | Rayo Vallecano | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
| 7 | Athletic Club | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 8 | Barcelona | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| 9 | Real Betis | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| 10 | Villarreal | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| 11 | Osasuna | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | -2 | 8 |
| 12 | Real Majorca | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | -5 | 8 |
| 13 | Cadiz | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | -2 | 6 |
| 14 | Elche | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | -3 | 6 |
| 15 | Espanyol | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | -3 | 6 |
| 16 | Levante | 6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | -3 | 4 |
| 17 | Celta de Vigo | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | -4 | 4 |
| 18 | Granada | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | -6 | 3 |
| 19 | Alaves | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | -9 | 3 |
| 20 | getafe | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -8 | 0 |