Real Madrid stumbled in their pursuit of La Liga leaders Barcelona, falling 2-1 to Athletic Club Wednesday night after Kylian Mbappe missed a crucial penalty and Federico Valverde’s late error proved costly.
The defeat at San Mames left Madrid four points behind Barcelona, though with a game in hand, following a match that turned on several key moments. Athletic Club broke the deadlock shortly after halftime when Thibaut Courtois parried a cross into Alex Berenguer, whose deflected shot found its way into the net.
Mbappe’s struggles from the penalty spot continued as he missed his second spot kick in three games, though Jude Bellingham appeared to rescue a point when he calmly converted the rebound from Mbappe’s saved effort. However, Athletic Club immediately responded when Gorka Guruzeta dispossessed Valverde and raced through to score the winner.
The champions created little in a first half marked only by Mbappe having a goal disallowed for offside. Madrid’s injury-depleted defense held firm until the break but couldn’t maintain their resistance against Athletic Club’s sustained pressure in the second period.
Bellingham continued his impressive scoring form with his equalizer, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Madrid from suffering a setback in their title defense.
