Karim Benzema is not happy to return from injury. The Real Madrid striker could not take advantage of the opportunity to score a penalty.
Real dropped points for the first time this season in La Liga on the night of Benzema’s penalty miss. The Spanish champions had to draw 1-1 in the end despite taking the lead early on through Vinicius Jr.’s goal.
Real’s draw saw Barcelona top the league points table after defeating Mallorca the previous night on goal difference. At the end of 7 matches, Real-Barca both teams have 19 points.
Real tried to take control of the match early on at the Bernabeu. The first chance was created in the 6th minute, although the desired goal did not come. After a while, the opportunity came in front of Benzema. He couldn’t even go to the ball with his teammate’s cross.
Although Real dominated possession at this time, the attacks were not very organized. Osasuna also tried to attack. They also took multiple shots targeting the real post. The team pressured Real several times, especially in the counter-attack. But it was not enough to get the goal.
Prior to this match, Real Madrid had not lost any of their last 14 matches against Osasuna in La Liga. Real’s last loss to the team was in January 2011. And Real’s last loss at home to Osasuna was in April 2004.
Real did not lose this time either. However, the regret of the penalty miss will definitely burn Real.
The match they could have won. Benzema returned to the team after recovering from injury with this match. However, Thibaut Courtois, Luka Modric, and Lucas Vazquez were not in the squad. Before the start of the game, a 1-minute silence was observed in memory of the victims of the stampede at the stadium in Indonesia.
In the 38th minute, Benzema took a shot while running on a wonderful cross from Vinicius Jr. Although the shot narrowly missed the target. In the latter part of the first half, Real took control of the match, scoring goals in the process.
Vinicius’ shot from outside the D-box in the 42nd minute. Basically, the Brazilian star wanted to mess up the ball. However, it surprised everyone when it hit the net with the far post, and Real advanced. Even though VAR checked the validity of the goal, the decision did not change.
Despite trying in the first half, Osasuna removed the disappointment of not getting a goal at the beginning of the second half. The visitors equalized the match with a great understanding of the two Garcias. Kike Garcia pounced on Unai Garcia’s cross from outside the D-box to head the ball into the net. A little later, Real got a chance inside the D-box, but the goalkeeper failed to use it. Otherwise, they could have gone ahead in the match.
The referee did not respond to the Real striker’s penalty appeal.
Losing the lead, Real tried desperately to return to the match. ‘Los Blancos’ attacked the Osasuna defense several times in a row. However, breaking through the solid defense of the opponent was not a way to score a goal. Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera blocked Rodrigo’s strong shot from outside the D-box in the 67th minute. A little later, Osasuna put Real under pressure from the counter-attack. No goals came from that attack though.
The drama in the match increased in the 76th minute. David Garcia threw Benzema inside the D-box. Initially, the referee did not respond to the Real striker’s penalty appeal. However, with the help of VAR, David was shown a red card as a punishment for pushing as well as giving a penalty. However, there is still a lot of drama left. Benzema himself hit the crossbar with the penalty shot.
A little later, however, Benzema put the ball into the net, but the goal was ruled out for offside. After that both teams tried for the rest of the match but there was no change in the number of goals. Carlo Ancelotti’s team left the field with the disappointment of a draw at home.
