Vinicius misses penalty as Valencia upsets Madrid
Vinicius Junior missed his second penalty in less than a month as defending Spanish champion Real Madrid lost 2-1 at home to Valencia, giving up valuable ground in LaLiga's title race.
Madrid dominated possession throughout the game but wasted too many chances, with Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili putting in a brilliant performance between the posts, including making a fine save to keep out Vinicius's first-half penalty.
Vinicius, who also missed a spot-kick when Madrid eliminated Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League's Round of 16, had a weak kick blocked by Mamardashvili's legs after Cesar Tarrega had fouled Kylian Mbappe in the ninth minute.
Defender Mouctar Diakhaby then opened the scoring for Valencia with a header from an Andre Almeida corner in the 15th minute.
Vinicius atoned for his penalty miss by scoring the equaliser from a corner in the 50th minute and Madrid pushed for the winner in the second half.
However, Valencia held on and took advantage of a quick counter-attack five minutes into second-half stoppage-time, as Hugo Duro's header stunned Santiago Bernabeu.
Vinícius José Paixão de Oliveira Júnior
Real Madrid CF
