Real Madrid fall to Espanyol, giving Atletico a chance to reduce the gap at the top of the league

Real Madrid lost to Espanyol, allowing their rivals Atletico Madrid to reduce the points gap over the team that beat their guest Real Mallorca on Saturday, in the 22nd round of the Spanish League.

Real Madrid missed out on strengthening their lead after losing to Espanyol by a single goal, their third defeat this season.

In the 85th minute, a goal was scored for Espanyol by Carlos Romero, who received a pass from Moroccan Omar El Hilali and put the ball into Courtois' net, ending the score at 0-1 in favor of Valencia.

Espanyol surprises Real Madrid with the lead goal #Spanish_League #Real_Madrid pic.twitter.com/sWwvDTnBHr

— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) February 1, 2025

With this result, Real Madrid's balance freezes at 49 points, one point behind Atletico Madrid, which will face Real Madrid in the next round.

Espanyol, who are threatened with relegation, rose to 17th place with 23 points.

Atletico Madrid beat its guest Real Mallorca 2-0, raising its score to 48 points in second place, one point behind the leader Real Madrid.

On the other hand, Mallorca's balance froze at 30 points in seventh place, ten points behind the first four places in the standings.

Watch Griezmann's amazing goal #LaLiga #AtleticoMadrid pic.twitter.com/7meU6gfJy8

— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) February 1, 2025

Atletico Madrid took the lead through Samuel Lino in the 26th minute, before Antoine Griezmann added the second goal in the third minute of stoppage time in the second half.

In other matches, Villarreal beat its guest, Valladolid, 5-1, and the match between Getafe and Sevilla ended in a goalless draw.