MADRID (AP) — It was a matter of pride for Real Madrid. He has virtually no hope of winning La Liga. But the last thing he wanted to do wa...
MADRID (AP) — It was a matter of pride for Real Madrid.
He has virtually no hope of winning La Liga. But the last thing he wanted to do was hand the title to Barcelona in advance.
And he needed a goal in stoppage time to achieve his goal on Wednesday.
Jacobo Ramón scored in the fifth minute of added time as Madrid came from behind to beat Mallorca 2-1 and delay Barcelona's title celebrations.
Madrid needed a win to prevent Barcelona from securing their 28th La Liga title in advance. The Catalan club remains four points ahead and can still lift the trophy this Thursday with a victory against city rivals Espanyol.
Mallorca took the lead on Wednesday with an 11th-minute goal from Martin Valjent and held on until Kylian Mbappé beat a pair of defenders to equalize in the 68th.
Ramón scored the winning goal from inside the box in the fifth minute of stoppage time to prevent Barcelona from winning the title.
Mbappé remains in the race to become La Liga's top scorer, reaching 28 goals, three more than Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski. The French star scored a hat trick in Madrid's defeat to Barcelona on Sunday, as the Catalan side all but secured the title by coming from behind to win 4-3 in the final Clásico of the season.
Madrid has virtually no chance of defending its league title. It must win its final two matches and hope Barcelona doesn't pick up two points from its remaining three games.
"When we wear this badge, we must always fight until the end," said Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. "Although there's still a long way to go, we'll keep fighting until it's mathematically impossible."
Madrid lost all four matches against Barcelona this season, being outscored 16-7. It was the first time Barcelona won every Clásico in a season that featured at least three matches between these rivals.
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti received a largely indifferent reaction from fans at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on Wednesday after taking charge of the Brazil national team.
Ancelotti was announced as the new manager on Monday, and some Madrid fans criticized him for negotiating with the five-time champions while the La Liga season was still underway.
There were no significant boos or cheers when Ancelotti's name was announced over the loudspeakers at the Bernabéu before the match. Most fans applauded and chanted his name along with the announcer, following stadium tradition.
"Every time I sit on the bench at the Bernabéu, it's something special. So, it was a special night, like all the others," Ancelotti dismissed.
The 65-year-old Italian leaves after four mostly successful years in his second spell with Madrid, which won both the Champions League and La Liga last season. The Merengues only won the UEFA Super Cup this season.
Ancelotti also managed the club from 2013 to 2015. He helped Madrid win three Champions Leagues, three Club World Cups, two La Liga titles, two Copa del Rey titles, three UEFA Super Cups, and two Spanish Super Cups.
Madrid still has one last game at the Bernabéu, against Real Sociedad on the final day.
Former Real Madrid player Xabi Alonso is widely expected to take over as manager after confirming he will leave Bayer Leverkusen, but the Spanish club has yet to make any announcement regarding Ancelotti's successor.
Madrid, still without some regular starters due to injuries, struggled early on against Mallorca but created several scoring opportunities throughout the match.
Fight to avoid relegation
In a tight fight against relegation, Leganés edged closer to relegation after a 3-0 loss to fifth-place Villarreal. The club, owned by former Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow, remained in 18th place, four points behind Alavés, the first team currently safe.
Alavés widened the gap on Leganés—one of the promoted teams last season—by beating Valencia 1-0 at home. Valencia sits in eleventh.
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