Amid several dubious refereeing decisions, Real Madrid defeated Almería 3-2 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on Matchday 21 of the Spanish League.
The visitors, led by Carlo Ancelotti, received a cold shot a minute into the game when Ramazani scored in the visitors' favor through a counterattack.
The Merengue team tried to turn things around in the first half, but Almería had a new surprise in store. In the 42nd minute, Edgar González scored a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area to hang Kepa and extend the Red-Whites' lead.
The addition would shine because of the arbitration controversy. In the 53rd minute, following VAR intervention, the referee decided to award a penalty in favor of Real Madrid for a handball by Kaiky, who had previously been fouled by Rüdiger. Jude Bellingham was responsible for defining the twelve steps to discounting.
In the 60th minute, Sergio Arribas made it 3-1; However, after consulting with the VAR, referee Francisco José Hernández Maeso canceled the goal due to a questionable earlier foul by Lopy on Bellingham.
The controversy did not stop, because in the 68th minute the referee confirmed a goal by Vinícius that had been scored with his arm, again with the intervention of the VAR. Finally, Dani Carvajal made it 3-2 in the 99th minute and secured Real Madrid the three points.
After the game, Ancelotti was asked about the referee's decisions. “I saw them. I think the referee makes the right decisions, not the VAR. The VAR warns and the referee decides. And I think he was right,” the Italian coach explained in a conference.
Carletto was also self-critical of his team's performance. “Everyone wants to play and says they are fine. Then we have to evaluate, and it's clear that we didn't do it well. The first part is to forget, there is nothing to save or salvage,” the DT said.
This puts the Meringues in second place in the Spanish league with 51 points, 1 point behind Girona, who beat Sevilla at home. It should be remembered that Madrid have one game less than the current leaders of the competition.
The next fixture will see Real Madrid visit Las Palmas while Almería Deportivo hosts Alavés.
Did you know…
End of the drought. Jude Bellingham scored again for Real Madrid after five games. The England midfielder had not scored a goal with the Merengue side since December 17th.