Real Madrid experienced a stroke of luck in the 30th round of La Liga, as Barcelona failed to capitalize on the defending champion’s loss to Valencia.

The Catalans settled for a draw against Betis, breaking their impressive nine-game winning streak in the league. Instead of the anticipated six-point lead over their fiercest rival, they now find themselves just four points ahead.

This four-point advantage clearly positions Barcelona as the frontrunner for the title, while Atletico could reduce the gap to Real Madrid to three points today if they triumph over Sevilla at the “Sánchez Pizjuán”.

Real struggled to find the net against the “bats,” with the standout performer for Valencia being goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.

The Georgian, who is set to join Liverpool in the summer following a transfer agreed upon last August, put on a spectacular display at the Bernabeu, indicating that the future English champions are gaining a top-tier asset and legitimate competition for Alisson Becker.

Mamardashvili was impressive in Madrid, even saving a penalty from Vinicius Junior when the score was still 0:0. Just two minutes later, Valencia took the lead with a goal from Muktar Diakhaby.

“I asked Vinny if he wanted to bet 50 euros that I would save his penalty. He accepted, so I guess I won the bet,” Mamardashvili remarked, aiding Valencia in celebrating their first away victory of the season.

Real has certainly complicated the championship race, and they will likely have their final opportunity to revive their title hopes on May 11th when “El Clasico” unfolds at “Montjuic”.

Until then, both teams face four remaining rounds of La Liga, a clash in the King’s Cup final, and a two-legged quarterfinal showdown in the Champions League, with a possibility of reaching the semifinals.

“It’s evident to everyone that we’ve made things more difficult with this loss. Defending the title will be much harder, but we must fight until the end as we have fewer options,” Carlo Ancelotti stated.

Real generated ample chances to secure three points against Valencia but were thwarted by Mamardashvili, who recorded eight saves.

“Our execution was lacking. The effort was there, and we didn’t underestimate our opponents… We didn’t deserve to lose, but that’s football,” the Italian highlighted.

He also addressed Vinicius’ missed penalty:

“Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe, and even Vinnie—we’ve missed quite a few penalties. I let Vinnie take it out of confidence, but it didn’t work out. We’ll determine who takes the next ones,” Ancelotti concluded.

Real Madrid will host Arsenal on Tuesday for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

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