Spanish club Espanyol pulled off a stunning victory over league leaders Real Madrid, who in turn missed an opportunity to move four points clear at the top of La Liga.
After soaking up huge amounts of pressure, the home side caught Carlo Ancelotti’s side on the counter-attack in the 85th minute with Carlos Romero slotted beyond Thibaut Courtois at the back post
Real thought they had taken the lead in the first half when Vinicius Jr curled beautifully into the far corner, but Kylian Mbappe was deemed to have committed a foul to the build up
Real, who face Manchester City in the Champions League play-offs on 11 February, had a concern too on the fitness of Antonio Rudiger after the German defender was replaced with a suspected hamstring injury in the first half.
Ancelotti’s side pushed for an equaliser in the final moments as goalkeeper Courtois came up for a corner, but Espanyol held firm to hand Real their third defeat of the season and end a four-game winning streak.
Second-placed Atletico Madrid enjoyed a 2-0 home win over Mallorca to move within a point of Real, who they visit next Saturday in the Madrid derby.
