Real Madrid made their path to a 37th La Liga title a bit harder. In front of their own fans they lost 0:1 to Getafe. The men of José Bordalás did not bring the most beautiful football as usual, but they arrived at the Bernabéu with a very clear defensive tactical plan.
Getafe CF come from just outside the city of Madrid. What do you need to know about them? They are known as a team that commits a lot of fouls and plays extremely defensive football. Many people even call them the biggest anti football team in Europe. But even with that style you can still win matches.
Since January the team is more interested to follow as a Belgian. Among the Azulones there are now two players loaned from the Belgian Pro League. Both Luis Vázquez and Zaid Romero are trying to relaunch their careers in Spain. In recent months they hardly received any playing time at RSC Anderlecht and Club Brugge. I was curious to see what they would bring.
The visitors concede more than they score. But luckily for them, the home side had to do without their top scorer Kylian Mbappé who was out with a knee injury. The Frenchman has already scored 23 goals in La Liga this season while Getafe had scored only 20 as a team. The difference says it all.
Since the last 16 meetings at the Bernabéu Stadium had all gone in favor of Real Madrid it did not look promising for the visitors. This time, the first chances were like usual for the home side.
In the 13th minute Vinícius Júnior missed a one on one chance after a great save from goalkeeper David Soria. Ten minutes later Arda Güler produced a great move. With a Zidane style move he left the Getafe defence wrong footed. It was a good shot but once again Soria made a strong save. The momentum was for the hosts.
Shortly after that chance the home side was lucky. Not because of an attack from the opponent but because they almost got themselves into trouble when Antonio Rüdiger inexplicably delivered a knee to Diego Rico. To the disbelief of everyone connected with Getafe the VAR did not intervene.
Apart from that moment the home side seemed to control the match but the visitors changed that a bit later.
With a stunning strike it suddenly became 0:1 in the 39th minute. After Rüdiger and Aurélien Tchouaméni failed to clear a bouncing ball around the penalty area Martín Satriano fired a brilliant shot. Thibaut Courtois could not reach it and the ball flew into the top corner. A fantastic goal. For the striker on loan from Olympique Lyonnais it was his second goal for Getafe.
So the home side went into the break trailing. Something they certainly had not expected. The fans immediately made themselves heard and the first whistles followed as the players of Álvaro Arbeloa headed for the dressing room. Remarkably Getafe had only 22 percent possession in the first half.
In the second half the hosts started searching for an equaliser. But Getafe did what they always do so well and defended with the entire team. From the press tribune you could clearly see how effective the defensive tactic becomes when everyone performs their task perfectly.
With the substitution of Rodrygo Los Blancos managed to bring a bit more attacking football but clear chances did not immediately follow. It started to look like the wall of El Geta would not be broken.
Real Madrid grew increasingly impatient especially when some decisions did not go their way. When Tchouaméni suddenly received a yellow card for a tackle on the ball the entire stadium felt wronged. The frustration grew and the Getafe players were more than happy to see it happen.
Rodrygo almost made it 1:1 when he headed the ball towards goal. Substitute Dani Carvajal only had to push it in at the far post but somehow sent the ball wide.
You would expect a late storm from Real Madrid but it never came. Already ten minutes before the end hundreds of supporters could be seen leaving the stadium early.
Those fans who had already left missed a bit of circus at the end. Franco Mastantuono received a straight red card in the closing moments. Not for a tackle but for an inappropriate remark towards the referee. According to Alejandro Ruiz it was a clear red.
Moments later the same referee had to show another red card when Adrián Liso kicked the ball away in the 97th minute to waste time. It was a second yellow card for the 20 year old striker.
The match suddenly ended with 10 against 10 and a victory for Getafe. It was the first time since 2008 that the Azulones managed to win away at Real Madrid. Quite a remarkable upset.
After the match I had the chance to attend the press conference. Coach José Bordalás gladly accepted all the congratulations while Álvaro Arbeloa did not answer every question.
For Los Blancos it means they are now four points behind FC Barcelona and it is already the fourth defeat for coach Álvaro Arbeloa. He would certainly have preferred a different start to his time in charge.
For Getafe it is a fantastic victory. Three valuable points further away from the relegation zone and the men of José Bordalás can continue dreaming about bringing European football back to the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez.
Real Madrid face another difficult test on Friday when they take on the in form RC Celta de Vigo. Getafe will host Real Betis at home.
