Real Madrid misses opportunity to regain top spot in La Liga, furious with referee's decision

The evening was ripe with opportunity as Real Madrid CF faced Real Betis at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Saturday night. However, Los Blancos could only manage a goalless draw and failed to capitalise on the fact that three of their closest La Liga rivals have dropped points. They have called out the match referee for failing to award a penalty kick after Zouhair Feddal handled the ball in the box.

League leaders FC Barcelona lost 3-1 away at Levante earlier this weekend. They stayed at 22 points and Real Madrid could have leapt over them with 24 points if they managed to win against Betis. The draw only allowed then to sit level with Barcelona at 22. The Catalans stay on top of the table thanks to superior goal difference.

Meanwhile, championship contenders Atletico Madrid and Sevilla also dropped points. They each came away with 1 point after scoring a goal each in their duel. Atletico and Sevilla are tied at 21 points after the draw and are now sitting at 3rd and 4th position respectively. There is only one point separating the top four teams in La Liga although Barcelona and Real Madrid have a game in hand against Atletico and Sevilla.

Nevertheless, the next closest challengers are not so far away either. Early leaders Granada now sit at 5th place with 20 points. Just below them in the 6th position is Real Sociedad with 19 points. The 2019/20 La Liga season is so competitive that only 5 points separate the top 11 teams.

Because the competition is very tight, Real Madrid players know that missing an opportunity to gain the top spot in a match that they dominated on paper is a big deal. They should have taken advantage of the 63% possession that they enjoyed and they should have scored from the 22 shots that they fired. Seven out of those shots were on target and an early one from Eden Hazard even went in. Unfortunately for them, the shot was ruled out due to offside.

While they have definitely had issues both in front and at the back, they also feel that the referees have robbed them of as much as seven points this season. In the Betis game, a clear handball in the box was not given as a penalty in favor of Madrid. According to AS, two similar incidents have already taken place this season.

In their 2-2 draw against Villareal, Vinicius Jr. was brought down in the box by Raul Albiol's wayward leg. Brahim Diaz was also brought down in the box in their game against Mallorca, thanks to a tug n his shirt. On both occasions, the referees ignored evidence which could be clearly seen in replays.

It's still early in the season but it remains to be seen if these issues will make a big difference when it comes to the crucial closing stages of the season.