´It´s a penalty here and on the moon´ – Arbeloa fumes at late decision in draw with Girona

Alvaro Arbeloa criticised officials once again after Real Madrid’s winless run in all competitions extended to three matches following their 1-1 draw with Girona on Friday.

Madrid had taken the lead at Estadio Bernabeu through Federico Valverde in the 51st minute, only for Thomas Lemar’s excellent finish to restore parity 11 minutes later.

Los Blancos were dominant from there but were unable to create many clear-cut chances, though they felt they should have had a penalty for a foul on Kylian Mbappe late on.

As Mbappe bundled his way towards goal, he was caught by the elbow of Vitor Reis and was left with a bloodied face. However, referee Javier Alberola didn’t deem it a foul, and VAR wasn’t used, much to the annoyance of the home support.

It was a result that handed Clasico rivals Barcelona the chance to move nine points clear at the top of LaLiga, with Hansi Flick’s side taking on Espanyol on Saturday.

However, Arbeloa could not look past the incident that involved Mbappe in the 88th minute, claiming that the foul on the Frenchman was an obvious one to spot in real time.

“It’s a penalty here and on the moon,” Arbeloa said after the game. “And it’s just one more. Another one.

“It’s what we have, it’s what it is. Neither I nor anyone else understands it. VAR intervenes when it’s convenient, and when it’s not, it doesn’t.

“I already said it yesterday, and you know my opinion. These events confirm it. It’s a clear foul. Kylian was called for a foul in the first half that was even less.

“We’ve had many problems with referees. With this one, in Mallorca… It’s the same old story.”

FP: @RealMadrid 1-1 @GironaFC_ES
51′ @FedeeValverde
62′ Lemar
@Emirates pic.twitter.com/lKCv9yP7tE

— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) April 10, 2026

It was a game where Madrid had their chances. They registered 22 shots to Girona’s 10, hitting the target nine times while the visitors only did so twice.

Los Blancos also won the expected goals (xG) battle by 2.22 to 0.52, but were unable to get the right result ahead of the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich on Wednesday, a tie they trail 2-1.

Madrid have also conceded at least one goal in their last eight LaLiga matches, their worst such run since another eight-game streak under Zinedine Zidane in September 2019.

However, it was concerns at the other end that frustrated the Madrid fans, most notably Mbappe and Vinicius Junior, who were unable to break down Girona’s stern defence.

Mbappe had five shots, though only two of which were on target, while Vinicius only completed two of his eight attempted dribbles, though he did create three chances for his team-mates, a total only bettered by Brahim Diaz’s seven for Madrid.

Arbeloa, however, leapt to the defence of his two players, saying: “I can’t worry about the two players with the stats they have.

“They’re among the top four or five in the world. We need to improve many things collectively, because we struggle against teams that wait for us.

“We continue to struggle, and it has more to do with our collective performance than individual performance. Let’s hope things go better on Wednesday.”