Barcelona's Defeat Becomes Real Madrid's Best Momentum

GIRONA, MONDAY – The defeat experienced by Barcelona at the Montilivi Stadium, Girona, on Tuesday (17/2/2026) early morning WIB, created momentum for Real Madrid to accelerate their team towards the championship. For the first time in the last eight weeks, Madrid topped the standings with a two-point lead over Barcelona in second place.

The 1-2 defeat to the host Girona caused the defending champion to fail in maintaining the top position in the standings. This loss also marked the second blow for Barcelona, which had just suffered a heavy 0-4 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals, Friday (13/2/2026).

Two consecutive defeats have cast a dark cloud of the threat of finishing the season without a major title over Barcelona. However, Barcelona still has the opportunity to change its fortunes in the remaining 14 matches of La Liga and one match in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.

In the match against Girona, Barcelona immediately took control of the game. With a ball possession dominance of up to 70.6 percent and a high defensive line, Barcelona confined Girona's defense and created numerous opportunities, but poor finishing prevented Barca from taking the lead in the first half.

Blaugrana recorded 2.04 expected goals (xG) or had two significant chances to score two goals in the first half. One of those chances was created by Raphinha, but the ball hit the goalpost.

Another significant opportunity arose for Barca when Lamine Yamal was awarded a penalty kick. This time, Yamal failed to score, resulting in Barcelona missing the chance to apply psychological pressure on the home team.

On the other hand, the success of holding Barcelona to a draw in the first half encouraged Girona's players to start testing the visitors' defense with quick attacks. Girona maintained discipline in playing a low defensive block while looking for gaps to launch quick strikes towards the goal defended by goalkeeper Joan Garcia.

Barcelona took the lead first with a header goal from Pau Cubarsi in the 59th minute. However, Girona immediately responded with an equalizing goal two minutes later, scored by Thomas Lemar.

The equalizing goal from Lemar encouraged the Girona players to boldly push forward to apply pressure. Goalkeeper Joan Garcia had to make three crucial saves to block shots from Joel Roca, Viktor Tsygankov, and Ivan Martin within four minutes to prevent Barcelona from conceding further goals.

The host finally secured victory through a goal by Fran Beltran in the 86th minute. Effective play in both defense and attack when opportunities arose was the key to Girona's victory.

Although they were outmatched in terms of ball possession and the number of shots, Girona significantly excelled in the accuracy of their shots on target. Barcelona took 27 shots, with only four on target. In contrast, Girona made 13 shots, nine of which were on target.

"We played very poorly in the second half. Our defense was very weak. We are going through a tough moment. It is a long road to fight back and reclaim the top position," said Hansi Flick, the manager of Barcelona.

Barcelona's poor defense must be addressed immediately as it has led to two consecutive defeats. On the other hand, the effectiveness of the finishing also poses a significant challenge for Flick. Moreover, Barca's goal machine, Robert Lewandowski, is currently out of form.

Cubarsi wants his colleagues to evaluate the causes of these two consecutive defeats and rise from the downturn. For Cubarsi, Barca still has a chance to secure the main title at the end of the season.

"We are lacking a little in everything. We need to evaluate ourselves. We need to improve in various aspects and take collective action," said Cubarsi.

When Barca stumbled, Madrid demonstrated its consistency in La Liga. In the week of (15/2/2026), Madrid won 4-1 against Real Sociedad. This victory marked the eighth win since mid-December 2025.

Madrid continues to lurk behind Barcelona and is currently gaining momentum to lead the standings. The consistent performances of Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior are key for Madrid to consistently achieve victories in the domestic league.

If Madrid and Barcelona can consistently secure three points in every match, their paths will be determined on May 11. At that time, Barcelona will host Madrid at Camp Nou Stadium. The winner of that match will become the champion of La Liga this season. (AFP)