La Liga: Held to a draw in Elche, Real Madrid nevertheless regains its top spot

 

Defeated by Liverpool and held to a draw by Rayo Vallecano just before the international break, Real Madrid hoped to bounce back on Sunday evening at Elche in Matchday 13. Facing an opponent also struggling – Eder Sarabia's men were on a five-game winless streak in La Liga – Los Blancos lined up in a 3-4-3 formation with an attacking trio of Bellingham, Rodrygo, and Mbappé, who had gone two games without scoring for the club. Under pressure after FC Barcelona's 4-0 victory against Athletic Bilbao, the Madrid side needed a win to reclaim first place.

Real Madrid were rattled and deservedly surprised.

In the opening minutes, Xabi Alonso's men struggled to inject any pace into the match. Troubled by the home side's intensity and guilty of some technical errors, Real Madrid failed to create any clear-cut chances, apart from Kylian Mbappé's off-target shot (11th minute). Elche , on the other hand, played with gusto and understandably put Real Madrid under pressure. Watched by Valverde, Camavinga, and Vinícius Júnior – all substitutes at kickoff – the Merengues even came close to conceding. After another turnover by Carreras, Rafa Mir, found in the box, took his chance, but was denied by a decisive Courtois (17th minute). Struggling and lacking inspiration as a team, Real Madrid then relied on set pieces to create opportunities, but Asencio's shot went wide (20th minute).

The only bright spot in an otherwise uneven start came when Güler, too, sparked an early attack, but his effort grazed the crossbar (25th minute). Active in midfield, the Turk then released Mbappé, but the latter lost his one-on-one duel with Iñaki Peña (30th minute). The former Barcelona goalkeeper proved decisive again just seconds later, saving the Real Madrid number 10's shot (33rd minute). Despite a noticeable increase in intensity, the visitors had numerous scares defensively – such as André Silva's shot, saved by Courtois (38th minute) – and deservedly went into halftime without a goal. After the break, Xabi Alonso kept his starting lineup, and Rodrygo, set up by Mbappé, had a shot of his own (47th minute), but the scoreline remained unchanged. At least not in favor of Real Madrid…

Bellingham limits the damage

Unfazed and far from intimidated by their opponents, Elche took the lead. A moment of brilliance from German Valera found Aleix Febas on the left side of the box, who curled a low, right-footed shot across goal, finding the far post (1-0, 53rd minute). This opening goal prompted an immediate reaction from the Madrid manager, who brought on Vinícius Jr., Valverde, Camavinga (58th minute), and then Gonzalo Garcia (64th minute). However, these changes did little to alter the course of the match. Unable to create any real danger, with Mbappé largely ineffective and Vinícius playing an individualistic game, and defensively fragile – as Trent Alexander-Arnold's performance only confirmed – Real Madrid couldn't find a way through.

It wasn't until the final minutes of the match that the visitors finally responded. From a poorly executed Elche set piece, deflected by Bellingham, Huijsen flicked the ball on to equalize from close range (1-1, 78th minute). This goal, however, didn't fully awaken a Real Madrid side still lacking inspiration. Worse still, a dazzling run from substitute Alvaro Rodriguez, a product of the Madrid youth academy, saw Real Madrid concede again (2-1, 84th minute). Stunned, Courtois' teammates nevertheless responded immediately. After a shot off target from Bellingham, Mbappé fought back and found the England international, who finished from close range (2-2, 87th minute). In stoppage time, Gonzalo Garcia, alone in front of goal, missed a golden opportunity to win the game… (90+4th minute). With this result (2-2), Real Madrid confirm their poor run of form, but take back first place from Barça while their opponent of the evening climbs to 11th place.