Valencia stunned Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu, claiming a dramatic 2-1 victory thanks to Hugo Duro’s injury-time header in the 95th minute.
The result dealt a major blow to Madrid’s La Liga title ambitions and marked Valencia’s first win at the Bernabéu since 2008.
Mouctar Diakhaby opened the scoring for Valencia in the 15th minute, capitalizing on André Almeida’s precise cross to nod the ball past Madrid’s debutant goalkeeper Fran González.
Despite dominating stretches of the game, Madrid missed a golden opportunity to equalize when Vinícius Júnior’s penalty was comfortably saved by Giorgi Mamardashvili after Kylian Mbappe was fouled in the box.
Vinícius redeemed himself shortly after halftime, firing a powerful shot into the roof of the net to bring the match level. Mbappe came close to giving Madrid the lead but narrowly missed the target in a frustrating outing for the French star.
With the match hanging in the balance, Rafa Mir delivered a perfect cross for Hugo Duro, who calmly headed Valencia’s winner, sending the visiting fans into ecstasy.
Real Madrid remains three points behind league leaders Barcelona, who are set to play Real Betis later. The defeat highlights Madrid’s struggles from the penalty spot this season, missing five of 16 attempts across all competitions—a club-high since at least 2013-14.
Valencia’s win is a significant moment for the team as they build confidence in their season. Meanwhile, Madrid must quickly regroup ahead of their Champions League quarter-final clash against Arsenal at Emirates Stadium on Tuesday.
