Real Madrid played host to struggling Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu. The match fulfilled their round 12 fixture of La Liga 2022/23 and took place on Sunday, 30 October 2022, at 4:15 p.m. GMT.

At the end of the first half, both teams had yet to score and went into the break 0-0. The second half, however, saw a goal for each side to share the spoils 1-1.

After just two minutes, Real Madrid should have scored when Modric met Carvajal’s low cross in the Girona box. The Croatian captain could have done better but sent his effort wide. On the other end, Girona created a similar opportunity but shot equally wide.

In the 19th minute, Girona missed a brilliant opportunity. Carvajal went down but play continued. The Girona captain, Valery, headed a cross that missed the post by two inches. Real Madrid didn’t seem to be connecting and resorted to outside shots, but it was all to no avail.

In the 24th minute, Rodrygo tried a shot from inside the area this time, but his effort was only good enough for the post, to keep Madrid jinxed. More shots came from outside the box. Still, no luck.

In the 39th minute, Girona had its own taste of hard luck. Real Madrid found its defence in sixes, and Yangel Hererra fired a cut back by Valery, onto the crossbar. The ball ricocheted in front of the line and bounced away to relieve the home side. The first half ended in a goalless stalemate.

The early minutes of the second half saw half chances here and there, for both teams, but no real threats. On the 70 minute mark, however, Madrid went ahead. Valverde was able to beat his man in the box, and played the ball across the Girona defence. Vinicius was there and poked in the cross for the lead.

Girona pulled the goal back, ten minutes later. Marcos Asensio handled in the box and VAR obliged. The resulting penalty was played by Christian Stuani who sent Courtois the wrong way.

In the dying minutes, Rodygo thought he had snatched all three points, but the goal got discarded for a foul. The Brazilian kicked the ball out of Paul Gazzaniga’s hands to score and had it ruled out. 1-1, it ended after 90 minutes.

Real Madrid reclaim their top spot with only one point over bitter rivals, Barcelona. The Los Blancos have notched 32 points and have a +19 goal difference after 12 games. Girona moves to 16th with 10 points and a -4 goal difference.