Jude Bellingham’s amazing scoring run continued, but it was not enough to give Real Madrid a vital victory after they were held to a 1-1 draw with Real Betis on Saturday at the Estadio Benito Vilamarin.
Carlo Ancelotti’s team had a wonderful opportunity to open up a three-point lead at the top of LaLiga before Girona’s all-Catalan encounter with Barcelona on Sunday, but Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis proved difficult to break down.
Brahim Diaz had a goal disallowed in the first half, while Rodrygo had strong demands for a penalty turned down after collapsing within the box, with VAR siding with referee Cesar Soto Grado’s on-field ruling.
Ayoze Perez threatened to open the scoring for the hosts before his teammate Willian Jose saw his shot rebound against the crossbar, as an intriguing opening half laden with chances ended goalless.
The tense action resumed after the break, and the deadlock was finally broken—and it had to be Bellingham.
Bellingham recorded 11 goals in 13 La Liga games after his 103 million-dollar move to the Santiago Bernabeu, firmly establishing himself at the top of Los Blancos’ goalscoring records.
The Englishman supplied a superb moment just when Madrid needed it the most.
Brahim provided a sumptuous assist for the 20-year-old to go one-on-one with Rui Silva, and he made no mistake, coolly slotting past the Betis goalkeeper to open the score.
Real Madrid’s Rodrygo came close to increasing the lead, but his attempt grazed the post and went wide.
Betis equalized in 66 minutes. Aitor Ruibal hadn’t scored a league goal since the 2020–21 season, and he may never score a better goal in his career than his ferocious attempt.
The full-back, 27, picked up the ball a long way from goal and went for glory, striking the ball sweetly with his right foot.
Andriy Lunin, the Ukrainian goalkeeper, dived at full stretch, but there was little he could do as the ball soared past him into the top corner, sending the Benito Vilamarin crowd into raptures.
Real Madrid pushed for a late winner, and Ancelotti brought in Dani Ceballos and Joselu to shake things up.
The game deserved a spectacular finish, and it almost got one when Isco’s header hit the post before Joselu came within seconds of winning in the last seconds of regulation time.
Real Madrid’s 14-game unbeaten record in all competitions is still intact, and they currently sit at the top of the La Liga table.
