It's cold at the top, Real Madrid demonstrates its tremendous power in Europe

Lucas Vázquez sent a header into the net as time expired for Real Madrid to conclude 2023 with a 1-0 victory against Alavés on Thursday and go into the holiday break as leader of the Spanish League. Vázquez created one of the few Merengue options after finishing off a corner kick from Toni Kroos without a mark, which hit the ball into the goal in the second minute of stoppage time.

The meringues assumed the lead by having 45 points, the same as Girona, who hours before tied 1-1 with Betis on the visit. The meringues are leaders by tiebreaker criteria. Barcelona, who beat Almería with difficulty on Wednesday, is third with 38 points, while Atlético de Madrid has 35 in fourth position, although on Saturday they will resolve a pending duel with Sevilla.

Deportivo Alavés stagnated in 16th position with 16 units. The last game of the year was a challenge for the whites, who from the 54th minute faced the duel with 10 players after the expulsion of defender Nacho Fernández, after the intervention of video referee (VAR) to assess a foul he committed in midfield. Madrid barely generated any chances to open the scoring with half a dozen shots, the most notable being a long-range shot by Federico Valverde in the first half and a raid into the area by Rodrygo Goes in the second half.

Vázquez has been replacing the injured Dani Carvajal for a couple of weeks; In the final seconds he celebrated his first goal of the season. For Madrid, not everything was happy after Rodrygo left the field with medical support in the final moments due to an ankle injury. Last day the Whites lost defender David Alaba for the rest of the season due to a rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Girona looks even

Germán Pezzella scored a goal in the 88th minute with which Betis tied 1-1 at home with the surprising Girona, who were looking for their fourth consecutive victory of the season. Artem Dovbyk opened the account for the Catalan team with a penalty in the 39th minute, reaching 10 goals in the championship. Girona will not be able to celebrate the end of the year festivities at the top as they are left with 45 units, the same as Real Madrid, which is the leader by tiebreaker criteria.