Madrid denied despite rare Mariano strike
Real Madrid's LaLiga title defence suffered another early setback as it was held to a 1-1 draw at Villarreal despite leading for 74 minutes on Sunday (AEDT).
The champion was without captain Sergio Ramos and star striker Karim Benzema because of injury but was in front after just 107 seconds through Mariano Diaz, back in the line-up for the first time in 18 months.
Mariano's previous start in May 2019 had seen him score twice in a victory over Villarreal, yet his goal, which angered Unai Emery and his players amid confusion over a potential offside, proved only enough for a point this time.
Thibaut Courtois felled Samuel Chukwueze and, after a number of close calls for a defence evidently missing Ramos, Gerard Moreno tucked away the resulting penalty to equalise, keeping Madrid fourth after its humbling at Valencia prior to the international break.
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