Getafe deals blow to Madrid's title hopes

MADRID — Real Madrid fell to a damaging 1-0 defeat to Getafe at home in La Liga on Monday, leaving it trailing league leader Barcelona by four points.

Alvaro Arbeloa's side, beaten by a superb volley from Martin Satriano, suffered a second consecutive loss in the Spanish top flight for the first time since 2020.

Madrid forward Franco Mastantuono was sent off in stoppage time for apparent dissent to make a bad night worse for Los Blancos.

"Obviously, it's a match where we could have done things better, but I think my players tried and we had more clear chances than them,"Arbeloa told reporters.

"However, in football, deserving isn't enough, and Getafe played a great game."

With French superstar Kylian Mbappe in France to treat a knee sprain, Madrid lined up with Gonzalo Garcia in attack alongside Brazil star Vinicius Junior at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Real Madrid was beaten at Osasuna last weekend, allowing rival Barca to overtake it in the title race, and Hansi Flick's side stretched its lead by thrashing Villarreal on Saturday.

Vinicius, in excellent form in 2026 after an inconsistent start to the season, spurned a fine early chance.

The winger burst through on goal but David Soria saved well with his leg.

A brilliant roulette from Arda Guler nearly earned Madrid the breakthrough, but Soria tipped over the Turkish forward's strike.

Getafe was upset by a painful collision between Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger and Diego Rico, in which the German's knee knocked the Spaniard's head.

Uruguayan forward Satriano broke the deadlock with a delicious strike from the edge of the box after compatriot Mauro Arambarri nodded the ball into his path.

Soria, who had a fine game, saved from Vinicius in the second half and the Brazilian called for more support from Madrid's fans.

However the team was not giving it much to get excited about, although Rudiger came close to leveling with a header.

'Nobody throwing in towel'

It was a disjointed display from a Madrid side which visits Celta Vigo on Friday in La Liga, before hosting Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in the Champions League last 16, unsure if top scorer Mbappe will be fit to play.

In stoppage time, Mastantuono was dismissed, seemingly for something he said to the referee, before Getafe was also reduced to 10 men when Adrian Liso kicked the ball away and was shown a second yellow card.

"Nobody here is throwing in the towel, this is Real Madrid, you don't give up until the last game," added Arbeloa.

"Four points is a distance that we can cut back, and we will fight for that."

Jose Bordalas' Getafe rose to 11th and was able to celebrate its first win at the Bernabeu since 2008.

"It's very hard to get points when you come here, I have to congratulate the team for the work in defense, then we got our goal and we could even have scored another in the end," said Getafe defender Kiko Femenia.

Mbappe in Paris

Mbappe was in Paris Monday for treatment on his knee, but no surgery is planned, the Real Madrid superstar's entourage said.

Real Madrid later said the forward has been diagnosed with a knee sprain in the French capital and will follow a "conservative" treatment plan.

Mbappe was "in Paris accompanied by members of the Real Madrid medical staff," the striker's camp said in a statement. "In agreement with the club, he is undergoing further tests on his knee," it continued,"with the aim of optimizing his follow-up care and preparing for his comeback. No surgical intervention is being planned at the moment.

"After tests carried out on our player Kylian Mbappe by French specialist doctors, under the supervision of Real Madrid's Medical Services, the diagnosis of a sprain in his left knee has been confirmed, as well as the suitability of the conservative treatment currently being followed," said the statement.

Mbappe has been struggling with an injury to the external ligament of his left knee since the end of 2025 and missed last week's Champions League play-off second leg against Benfica due to "persistent pain" in training, sources said.

His entourage insisted there was no disagreement regarding the treatment required by the player between his club and the French national team, which will be desperate to have Mbappe fully fit for the upcoming World Cup.

AFP