Barcelona have had a pretty good weekend after returning to Camp Nou in dominant fashion with a win over Athletic Club and watching their biggest rivals fail to win once again.
Real Madrid have dropped points for the second La Liga game in a row thanks to an entertaining 2-2 draw away to newly-promoted Elche on Sunday night, with Los Blancos having to come from behind twice to rescue a point on the road.
But Xabi Alonso’s side could have easily found themselves on the losing side as Elche, just as they did against Barça three weeks ago, played a very competitive game against one of the top sides in the country. Eder Sarabia’s side came out to attack and created huge chances in the first half, and could have easily scored once or twice before the break.
Barça loanee Iñaki Peña had a great night in goal and was named as the game’s MVP, and has a pretty strong case for a foul when he was kicked in the face by Vinicius in the buildup to Madrid’s second equalizer, which was cleared by VAR. Another Barça loanee, Héctor Fort, started at right-back and had a solid hour, including a couple of duels won against Vinicius.
Madrid remain top of the table but have seen their five-point lead shrink to just a single point, and they have a couple of tough challenges ahead in the next few weeks against Athletic and Celta Vigo. Barça also face big tests at home against Atlético Madrid and away to Real Madrid, but the leaders look vulnerable right now and the title race is starting to become a lot of fun.
