Real Madrid Overcomes Almeria Thanks in Part to Bellingham

Jude Bellingham provided a spark for Real Madrid as they staged an impressive comeback to defeat Almeria, who currently sit at the bottom of the La Liga table. The match was filled with excitement and non-stop action.

The visitors, who had yet to secure a victory, surprisingly took a 2-0 lead at the Bernabeu thanks to goals from Largie Ramazani and Edgar Gonzalez.

The England midfielder, Bellingham, found the back of the net with a penalty in the 57th minute. Shortly after, Vinicius Jr. equalized the score ten minutes later.

In a thrilling turn of events, Bellingham made a crucial header in the ninth minute of added time, allowing Dani Carvajal to secure the winning goal with a well-placed poke.

Real briefly took the lead with a dramatic victory, but Girona reclaimed the top spot with a convincing 5-1 win over struggling Sevilla later on Sunday.

Artem Dovbyk, the Ukraine striker, impressed with a remarkable hat-trick for the current leaders, putting him on par with Bellingham as the top scorer in La Liga with 14 goals.

Discussing Real’s victory, Almeria midfielder Gonzalo Melero expressed his frustration, stating “we were unfairly treated” due to a series of video assistant referee (VAR) decisions that did not favour his team.

“It’s unfortunate, but there’s no alternative perspective,” he added. “And that’s not the only one this year. Today’s events exceeded all expectations, leaving us in awe.

“They couldn’t have done anything else to secure a victory in the game.”

Scorer Gonzalez expressed his belief that fairness should be a fundamental aspect of this competition, even though it can be challenging to uphold.

Real Madrid were widely anticipated to easily defeat Almeria, who have only managed to earn one point away from home in their disappointing 2023-24 season.

However, following a goalless draw at home to Girona in their previous match, the Andalusian team surprised the hosts by scoring a goal just 38 seconds into the game.

Impressive display of teamwork as they swiftly gained control of the ball, enabling Lucas Robertone to find an open Ramazani, who cleverly deceived Kepa Arrizabalaga with a well-placed shot.

Gonzalez’s beautifully executed half-volley in the 43rd minute soared past a rooted Kepa, extending Almeria’s lead.

However, Real were given a controversial penalty following a review by VAR, which determined that the ball had made contact with Kaiky’s arm. The referee did not consider Antonio Rudiger to have committed a foul in the lead-up to the incident.

Bellingham confidently converted his first La Liga penalty, expertly deceiving Almeria custodian Luis Maximiano in the process.

Almeria believed they had secured a third goal when Sergio Arribas skillfully placed the ball into the net from Ramazani’s precise cross. However, the video assistant referee intervened and overturned the decision.

Vinicius Jr then equalised with another disputed goal, initially disallowed for handball as the Brazilian seemed to direct it in with his arm.

However, upon further review, the referee changed his initial ruling after consulting the pitchside monitor.

Almeria boss Gaizka Garitano was shown a red card for expressing his disagreement, while Real managed to secure a last-minute victory during the extended injury time.

A Real counter-attack led to a well-placed cross that found Bellingham, who expertly directed his header to the far side of the six-yard box. Carvajal was perfectly positioned to apply a close-range finish.

“I can empathise with Almeria’s frustration regarding the VAR decisions, however, in my opinion, they were fairly assessed,” expressed Real boss Carlo Ancelotti.

“It was an unusual game, with a rather disappointing first half.” I was not impressed with yesterday’s training session, as the team seemed quite fatigued.