Real Madrid was held to a 0-0 draw against Real Betis on Sunday, leaving them nine points behind Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table.
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois fired Real Betis forward Ayoze Perez’s initial shot over the bar before striker Karim Benzema disallowed a goal for Real Madrid when his free kick clipped Antonio Rudiger’s arm in the back of the net. touched the
Claudio Bravo made a save on Benzema after half-time, and Courtois denied Borja Iglesias at the other end with a point-blank stop, before Real Madrid forward Rodrigo Goes headed Federico Valverde’s cross off target. Probably the best chance of the game being missed.
- Is the LaLiga title race over as Real Madrid continues to lose ground?
Real Madrid will fight until the end of the season — the club’s high standards demand nothing less — but this draw has increased Barcelona’s lead at the top of LaLiga to nine points, and it is hard to imagine a scenario in which The team loses that advantage under Barca’s skilful, if unspectacular, manager Xavi.
Real Madrid’s performance here was not bad. Real Betis are a good team and the Estadio Benito Villamarin is an intimidating arena, but Madrid were the better side, winning possession, creating more chances and ending the game with an expected goalscoring ratio of 1.21 to Betis’ 0.41. They were disappointed by some poor finishing in the Betis goal and a solid performance by veteran Claudio Bravo.
As Madrid chased down a winner, however, the limits of their squad were on display. Coach Carlo Ancelotti appeared reluctant to introduce offensive options off the bench, with defenders Dani Carvajal and Nacho and midfielder Dani Ceballos, with youngster Álvaro Rodríguez eventually being called up in the 87th minute.
A 0-0 draw here is no embarrassment, but in the context of a title race where Madrid just can’t drop any more points, it’s a bitter blow.
- Rodrigo almost made up for Madrid’s low-level attack
It was another game that raised doubts about Karim Benzema’s ability to return to the level of out-of-this-world performances that earned him the Ballon d’Or last year. Yes, he was a little unlucky in that his free kick clipped Rudiger’s arm into the net, but otherwise, it was a disappointingly quiet night for the 35-year-old.
Madrid’s best in the attack was Rodrigo, enjoying the rare opportunity to play his favorite role – inside, behind a center-forward, with the freedom to move, and Valverde covering on the right. It’s a role that gets the best out of his intelligent movement, close control, and ability to pick on players. He was only disappointed by a bad miss in the second half.
Vinicius Junior looked dangerous at times but was distracted at others, with Betis embroiled in brawls with players and the referee, while late substitute Alvaro barely had time to make an impact. Madrid’s failure to score here adds to the case for top-class additions to their attack this summer.
- Betis impressed without best players, ready for Champions League
Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis are a proper team, and at the start of a big week for the club – they face Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Europa League on Thursday – they showed here why they are serious contenders to finish in LaLiga top four.
With arguably their most talented players – creative midfielders Nabil Fekir and Sergio Canales – both absent, they still managed to push Madrid to their limits and could have come away with all three points, be it some trademark saves from goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. Wasn’t for.
Betis are now fifth, three points behind Real Sociedad, but with the Basque side showing signs of tiring, Betis has the squad to go all the way, even with the twin demands – for now – LaLiga and European football. A top-four finish is in full sight to secure a Champions League spot.