November 06, (THEWILL) – Real Madrid missed the chance to extend their lead at the top of La Liga on Sunday, after being held to a 0-0 draw at home by Rayo Vallecano. Despite having 22 shots on goal, Madrid were unable to break down a stubborn Rayo defence at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The draw means Girona are now rather shockingly the League leaders, sitting atop the standings after 12 games, with two points more than Madrid and four clear of defending champions, Barcelona.
Madrid started brightly and could have gone 1-0 up early on when Federico Valverde raced through on goal, but was denied by Rayo keeper Stole Dimitrievski. Joselu also went close for the hosts, heading just wide from a Luka Modric set piece.
The home side continued to dominate in search of an opener, with Fran Garcia and Joselu both forcing good saves from Dimitrievski. However, Madrid were unable to make the breakthrough before half-time.
After the break, Vinicius Junior did manage to find the net but his effort was ruled out for offside after a VAR review. Substitute Rodrygo Goes also went close late on but was just off target.
In the end, Madrid were frustrated by an organised Rayo outfit determined to keep them at bay. The draw leaves the La Liga title race fascinatingly poised heading into the remainder of the season.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
