2014-05-04

Cristiano Ronaldo scored in injury time but could not force a winner to close the gap on Atlético Madrid

9.56pm BST

That's that folks. And that's the first time the top three have all dropped points on one weekend. Thanks for all the emails, tweets and opinions. Enjoy the rest of your bank holiday. Bye!

9.54pm BST

90 + 5 mins Di María, on the left once more, whips the ball to the back post. Morata gets to the ball before everyone else but he can just steer his effort inches wide of the post. And that is that.

9.52pm BST

Di María picked the ball up wide on the left. He sent the ball into the box and Ronaldo did a spinning back-heeled volley past Alves and into the Valencia goal from a few yards out What a finish that was and what a finish we have here.

9.50pm BST

Cometh the hour ...

9.48pm BST

90 mins There are five more minutes separating Valencia from three incredible points.

9.48pm BST

89 mins Vezo replaces Parejo. Madrid continue to push and press but are getting no closer to scoring.

9.46pm BST

88 mins Di María takes. Valencia clear. Madrid put the ball in once more. Alves jumps on it.

9.45pm BST

87 mins A few minutes ago Ronaldo wanted a penalty after being fair-shouldered in the box by João. Never in a month of Sundays. Meanwhile, it's a corner to Madrid on the left, which will be taken once Parejo hobbles off the pitch.

9.43pm BST

85 mins Off goes Benzema, on comes Morata. He gets into the thick of the action right away, blasting the ball miles over the bar from just outside the box. Ronaldo, who was screaming for the ball outside him, looks at him like he would with a man who has stolen his wife.

9.41pm BST

82 mins Di María runs down the left and sets up Benzema, near the box. His attempt to put pressure on the Valencia defence is waste almost immediately and the visitors can take some air into their lungs once again.

9.39pm BST

81 mins Parejo is in good company then.

2 - Only Daniel Parejo and Lionel Messi have scored and assisted in a single league game away from home at the Bernabeu this season. Stars

9.38pm BST

80 mins Alves gets a yellow card for time wasting.

9.38pm BST

79 mins Another corner to Madrid on the left. Di María takes once again. This time it lands on the head of an unmarked Ronaldo but from a few yards out, he can but head it over the bar. For a man of his heading ability, that is another poor miss.

9.36pm BST

78 mins Ronaldo sets Bale lose on the Valencia defence. He strides forward but is stopped in his tracks by the torso of Costa. The free-kick is right on the edge of the D. Up steps Ronaldo and he absolutely belts one at Alves who pulls off another great save, diving to his right.

9.34pm BST

76 mins Corner to Madrid on the left. Di María swings it to the back post. Casemiro rises above the rest but he cannot control his header and it goes well over the bar.

9.33pm BST

74 mins It has worked once already today.

Valencia have lost three headed goals in the last three games. Way forward for #Madrid?

9.31pm BST

72 mins Madrid push forward. Ronaldo gets the ball outside the box. Surrounded by Valencia players, he shoots and unsurprisingly his effort is blocked. The ball filters to Marcelo on the left and he sticks one in the mixer. The Valencia defenders win that and clear the danger for now.

9.29pm BST

71 mins On comes Casemiro for Isco.

9.29pm BST

70 mins Keita picks up a yellow card for a late tackle on Carvajal.

9.27pm BST

68 mins While I was typing all that, Ronaldo missed another one-on-one with Alves and Alcácer came on for Jonas.

9.25pm BST

After the Madrid goal, Valencia looked to attack and João sent Feghouli scuttling down the right side. He put a ball across the box but there was nobody in there to get on the end of it. Valencia worked the ball to the right once more and to the feet of Feghouli once more. He cut the ball back into the Madrid box. This time there was a man on the end of it and this man was Parejo who side-footed it past Diego López from about 12 yards out.

9.23pm BST

Man. Alive.

9.19pm BST

This had been coming. After an extended bout of Madrid pressure, Di María picked the ball up outside the box on the right-hand side. He curled a wonderful cross to the back post where it was met by the head of Ronaldo, who had freed himself from the grasp of João. He simply knocked it back across goal to Ramos, who was waiting in the middle, and he nodded it home from about 2 yards out.

9.17pm BST

Ramos to the rescue!

9.16pm BST

58 mins From our man on/in the ground.

Starting to get noisy in here too...

9.15pm BST

57 mins Corner to Real. Isco sends it over. Once in the box, it hits Varane, who knew very little about it, and bounces the wrong side of the Valencia post.

9.14pm BST

56 mins Alves has denies Ronaldo again! This time he dives to his right to stop the Madrid man's palm-stinging effort that was destined for the bottom corner of the goal. Madrid do nothing with the subsequent corner.

9.12pm BST

54 mins Vargas breaks down the left. He looks one way and tries to play Bernat in on the other. Carvajal stops him in his tracks with a wonderful tackle.

9.10pm BST

52 mins Di María twists and turns his way into the Valencia box and then from about 2 yards away belts the ball at the arm of João. He throws his arms up in the air when the referee tells him where to stick his claim for a penalty and then gets booked for protesting too much and/or having a swipe at a Valencia player in frustration.

9.08pm BST

50 mins Ramos runs the ball out of the defence before playing to Alonso. He sends it on to Ronaldo who tries to pick out Marcelo but instead sends it right out of touch for a Valencia throw.

9.06pm BST

48 mins Di María's first contribution is to send a weak cross from the left into the Valencia box. It is cleared easily enough by the away side.

9.04pm BST

46 mins What an important 45 minutes this is for Madrid and the title race. Could we really have a weekend in which the top three sides fail to win? Isco, meanwhile, tests Alves from outside the box. The keeper saves easily enough.

9.03pm BST

45 mins We are back. And we are back with Di María, who replaces Illarra. No changes from Valencia.

8.49pm BST

Well, well. This should be an interesting second-half. Join me again in a few.

HT. 0-1. Weird, slightly flat atmosphere. Madrid have had plenty chances but Valencia scored one, hit bar, missed another clear one...

8.47pm BST

A long ball from the back found Vargas. He, in turn, found the impressive Feghouli. He moved inside the box before sending an absolute belter of a shot to the top corner. Diego López tipped that over for a corner with a sprawling and sensational save. From that, the ball was whipped into the box by Parejo where, with the Madrid defence all at sea, Mathieu was allowed to get his head/shoulder on the ball and give Valencia the lead.

8.45pm BST

Do not adjust your computer screens.

8.43pm BST

41 mins Ronaldo picks the ball up near the halfway line, turns and aims for goal. Off he sprints and no one for Valencia can get near to him. He runs across the pitch to the left-hand corner of the box where he unleashes a stinging shot with his left foot. Alves has to dive to tip away. Benzema and Bale do nothing with the follow-up.

8.41pm BST

38 mins Oh my, Valencia miss another good opportunity on goal. And once more Parejo is the guilty party, for he fails to anticipate, control and poke home a cross from Vargas when he was but a few yards out from goal and free of the Madrid defenders' attentions.

8.38pm BST

35 mins What's the deal with Benzema? Sometimes he looks like not even a ten-meter thick wall loaded with lasers and snipers could not stop him. Other times, he looks more disinterested than a teenager at a family dinner.

8.35pm BST

32 mins Bale sends Benzema through on goal on the left-hand side. He stutters his way towards goal but some superb defending from the Valencia lot pushes the striker out wide and he absolutely skies his effort over Alves' bar from an impossible angle.

8.32pm BST

30 mins [Insert generic description of Madrid attacking, but not scoring, here]

8.30pm BST

28 mins Another great run from Marcelo on the left this time he was picked out from afar by Varane but he is pulled up for being offside.

8.28pm BST

26 mins Bale gets the ball wide on the right. He cuts inside and spots a wonderful run by Marcelo. He compliments the run with a great cross-field pass but Marcelo mucks it all up by cutting the ball back from the line to a Valencia defender. Meanwhile, Alves has pulled off another good save from Ronaldo in a similar position to his early effort and Madrid have wasted a few corners.

8.26pm BST

24 mins Ronaldo, deep in the Valencia half, receives the ball with his back to goal, turns exquisitely and is turfed right out of it by Fuego. The referee waves play on and Madrid continue to pressurise the Valencia goal. It all ends with Isco booting the ball on a road to nowhere.

8.24pm BST

22 mins This.

Amazing how many professional footballers can't take throw-ins. And how many referees don't notice.

8.23pm BST

21 mins Madrid have wrestled back possession and control of the game after that spell of pressure from Valencia. Bale tries to set Ronaldo free down the right but Bernat I think has a few yards on him and he snuffs out any danger.

8.21pm BST

19 mins More on the Diop story.

To those interested in source of problem in Spain look at Marca site just now http://t.co/kP7OR7nBa8 Diop story well down the page #racism

8.20pm BST

17 mins Valencia win a throw wide on the right and the ball is sent down the flank to Feghouli. The Madrid defence has gone on holidays and that means Parejo has all the time and space he could ever want to head in Feghouli'e excellent cross. However, instead of heading the ball back across the goal, or down, he heads it right at Diego López who touches the ball onto the bar. What! A! Miss!

8.17pm BST

15 mins Isco and Marcelo combine on the left to win a corner for Madrid. Isco takes. Valencia clear.

8.15pm BST

13 mins Marcelo picks the ball up wide on the left. Up he looks and Benzema he spots in space wide on the far side. He picks him out as delicately as you would a pear in a fruit shop. The Frenchman sends the ball into the box but there is no man in white to convert his cross.

8.12pm BST

10 mins Carvajal concedes a free-kick near the half-way line and Valencia enjoy an extended spell of possession for the first time in this game. They try to press but Madrid push them back and back. The ball is eventually played to Alves and he kicks long. Madrid regain possession from that as there was a Valencia player offside.

8.11pm BST

9 mins Eeeeeeeeeep!

83 - Valencia have lost more games against Real Madrid than against any other side in their top-flight history. Classic.

8.10pm BST

7 mins More excellent work from Bale. He forces Bernat off the ball in the box, works his way to the end line and then sends over a clipped ball for Benzema at the back post. It is a touch behind him and this means the striker fails to get the requisite power on it to trouble Alves. Something tells me Alves will be kept busy tonight.

8.07pm BST

5 mins Real Madrid get two corners in quick succession but fail to do anything with either of them.

8.06pm BST

4 mins Madrid slice through Valencia for the first, and surely not the last, time today. Carvajal picked the ball up wide on the right and played it to Ronaldo. On the edge of the box, he one-twoed with Bale and was put through on goal. With the whole feckin' thing to aim at, he somehow hit the chest of Alves.

8.04pm BST

2 mins Nothing to see around here just yet so here is an email from Matt Dony: "Yes, it really is sad to see the fall of Valencia. In those heady days of the early 00's, they played such attractive football in the Champions' League. Baraja, Aimar, even Carew looked like a top striker. That particular wave of Spanish dominance holds a special place in my football heart, and sealed a fondness for Real (Cemented by McManaman's volley in the 2000 final vs Valencia.) See also (to a lesser extent) Deportivo La Coruna. Ah, isn't the past always better?"

8.02pm BST

1 min Off we go then. Valencia get us going. They are playing right to left in the first-half. You'd expect them to do the opposite in the second half but anything is possible in football. Before we get going, there is a moment's reflection and a huddle from Valencia. Do those huddles actually work?

7.58pm BST

OK, the players are on the pitch and we are almost ready to rock. Madrid are in their traditional white and Valencia are in their, em, eye-catching orange. The Santiago Bernabéu is oddly quiet this evening. Madrid looked confident in the segregated tunnel. Valencia looked like they were on a first date with a rather imposing person, who frightens them almost as much as they excite them.

7.45pm BST

An email! Thanks the Lord. "In all likelihood, the title will come down to whether Atlético can Barcelona at Camp Nou or not," states Edouard Mattille. "And the question will inevitably be about how hard Barcelona will play, considering a draw would give Real the title. Always an awkward situation. Of course Real will have to get the work done here today as against the other teams, but considering their form and what is at stake that should be a given."

What does anyone else reckon will be the outcome of the title race?

7.39pm BST

Simple, right?

7.36pm BST

What does that result mean for the title race is what you are wondering, right? Wonder no more. Sid Lowe has the answers.

Lots asking: head to head would decide in event of a tie ... AtM beat RM, FCB beat RM, At-FCB not decided yet. Three way, not decided yet

A three-way tie is no genuinely possible. In fact, I think all three teams on 91 points is now reasonably likely. (FCB would win league)

Erm, I think. I'm getting confused now. Yes, because to make it 3 x 91 points, they would have beaten AtlM. So 3-way h-to-h 3 wins, 1 draw

Sorry, that's nonsense. If RM win all their games they get to 94 points, not 91. That's more likely ... sorry. I need a lie down! RM faves?

Apologies. If it's any consolation, I'm as confused as any of you are.

Current points and [max points]. Atlético 88 [94], Barcelona 85 [91], RM 82 [94]. So, basically, Atletic have to win at Camp Nou.

But the head to head thing I explained was right! [Phew].

7.30pm BST

In case you missed it earlier, here is our report from the match between Atlético Madrid and Levante, where Atlético squandered the chance to all but seal the league title when they slipped to a surprise 0-2 defeat. Unfortunately, some absolutely idiotic morons decided that the best way to react to the result was by racially abusing Papakouli Diop. Jesus wept.

Sickening scenes at Levante v Atletico match. Fans doing monkey gestures clearly visible towards Papakouli Diop https://t.co/M7u8wXtTgO

Levante's Diop: "I went to take a corner and part of the Atlético support began doing monkey chants" http://t.co/Rg0ks2UEME

#Diop claims some #Atlético support abused him racially throughout game. "They called me a monkey so I danced like one to draw attention"

7.19pm BST

Real Madrid: Diego López; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Alonso, Illarramendi, Isco; Bale, Cristiano, Benzema. Subs: Casillas, Coentrão, Khedira, Casemiro, Nacho, Álvaro Morata, Di María

Valencia: Alves; João, Costa, Mathieu Bernat; Fuego, Keita, Parejo, Feghouli, Vargas, Alcácer. Subs: Guaita, Barragán, Vezo, Míchel, Fede, Jonas, Araújo.

7.00pm BST

Here is a no-particular-order, randomly chosen, universal list of things that make people all around the world go sad:

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