Rayo Vallecano continues to make Real Madrid struggle in this confrontation. Under the leadership of coach Inigo Perez, the southern suburbs of Madrid entered the match with incredible confidence, discipline and determination.
Although rated lower in terms of personnel quality, Rayo is not inferior. The midfielder duo Ciss - Unai Lopez were active, while goalkeeper Batalla played brilliantly, continuously blocking dangerous shots from Vinicius and Bellingham.
Up front, Isi Palazon and Alvaro Garcia are the spearheads in the fast counter-attacks. Garcia created the most obvious chance in the second half, but his cross-angle shot was still not dangerous enough to beat Courtois.
On the opposite side, Real Madrid will take the field with a squad of many young players, when Xabi Alonso rotated his personnel after the defeat to Liverpool in the Champions League.
The trio of Bellingham - Mbappe - Vinicius are still the focus of the attack, but all three play under their power and cannot make a difference.
Alonso's late changes to the pitch with Alexander-Arnold, Rodrygo and Ceballos all too ineffective. Real Madrid's attack lacks innovation and accuracy in finishing.
In the end, Real Madrid agreed to share points with Rayo in a goalless match. This is also the 4th time in the last 6 matches Los Blancos have not been able to win at Vallecas.
This draw left Real Madrid only 6 points ahead of Barcelona but playing 1 more match, and Alonso clearly has reason to worry.
Meanwhile, Rayo Vallecano continues to be an interesting phenomenon of the season. Despite only finishing 12th, they have held Real Madrid and Barcelona to a draw at the Vallecas Stadium.
