Ounahi scored before halftime, giving Real Madrid their third consecutive draw in the Spanish league
Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw away at Girona, a result that extends their winless run in LaLiga to three matches and sees them surrender top spot to Barcelona. Xabi Alonso’s side again mixed long spells of sterile dominance with a late reaction that was not enough to turn one point into three, despite Kylian Mbappé converting a second-half penalty to rescue the draw.
The visitors thought they had made the ideal start when Mbappé bundled the ball into the net in a crowded box, only for the effort to be ruled out by VAR after replays showed a slight touch on his arm as he controlled under pressure. That reprieve for Girona proved costly for Madrid just before the interval: a swift counter down the right was recycled to the edge of the area, where Azzedine Ounahi arrived unmarked and rifled a precise first-time shot beyond Thibaut Courtois to make it 1-0 on the stroke of half-time.
Alonso reacted at the break by introducing Eduardo Camavinga and pushing Jude Bellingham higher, trying to inject aggression into a midfield that had looked static and predictable. The change tilted the game firmly into Girona’s half, with Éder Militão and Antonio Rüdiger stepping up to compress the pitch while Vinícius Júnior began to win more one‑v‑one duels on the left. Girona still threatened on the break, Courtois had to produce a trademark reflex stop in a one-on-one to prevent a second goal, but gradually the pressure told.
The equaliser arrived midway through the second half when Vinícius burst into the box and drew a clear trip from Hugo Rincon, leaving Mbappé to send the goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot with a low strike into the corner. Alonso then threw on Rodrygo and later Gonzalo, effectively turning his centre-backs into auxiliary forwards in the closing minutes as Madrid besieged the Girona area.
A late Mbappé effort skimmed just wide and a potential second penalty on Rodrygo went unpunished, leaving Madrid with a draw that felt like a missed opportunity as much for their blunt attacking structure as for the refereeing calls that went against them.
