GIRONA, Spain: Real Madrid closed the gap on La Liga leaders Barcelona to two points with a stylish 3-0 win at Girona early this morning thanks to goals from Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler and Kylian Mbappe.
Second-placed Real have 36 points and have played one game less than Barca, who drew 2-2 at Real Betis.
Girona, meanwhile, suffered their sixth defeat in 16 league matches and remain in eighth place with 22 points, two points shy of a European spot.
Bellingham opened the scoring in the 36th minute when he grabbed a rebound and shot from the middle of the penalty box before passing to Guler with a beautiful pass to double the lead 10 minutes after the break.
The England midfielder, who scored for the fifth consecutive La Liga game, was brilliant but had to be sent off after being tackled shortly before Mbappe made it 3-0 with a shot from a difficult angle in the 62nd minute to complete the victory.
Real boss Carlo Ancelotti told reporters Bellingham was fine but they were also missing defender Ferland Mendy with a muscle problem ahead of the Champions League clash at Atalanta early on Wednesday morning.
“Bellingham is fine, he can play. We have a muscle problem with Mendy but the rest are just tackles, nothing more,” said the Italian manager.
Girona are struggling without key players due to injuries and now face a tough match at home against Liverpool in the Champions League early Wednesday morning and away against Mallorca next Saturday in La Liga.
“Our team is suffering from a lot of injuries. It’s affecting our performance. We still have a few months to improve,” Girona defender Miguel Gutierrez told Movistar.
Girona are 30th in the Champions League table, three points behind Real who are 24th and the last place to qualify for the play-offs.