Real Madrid drop points against Elche

Jude Bellingham struck late on to secure Real Madrid a 2-2 draw at Elche on Sunday, keeping his team top of La Liga by a point from rivals Barcelona.

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Xabi Alonso's side struggled against their mid-table opponents in an entertaining battle in which Madrid twice came from behind.

Aleix Febas fired the hosts ahead before Dean Huijsen levelled for the league leaders, with Bellingham stabbing home from close range after Alvaro Rodriguez blasted Elche back in front.

Barca cut Madrid’s lead by two points over the weekend after they thrashed Athletic Bilbao 4-0 on Saturday in their first match back at Camp Nou.

Atletico Madrid, fourth, scraped a 1-0 win at Getafe earlier on Sunday to keep the pressure on the teams above them.

Real Madrid have failed to win any of their last three matches across all competitions.

“It’s football — after going in a good dynamic we've had some results we don't like, but we know what we want,” Alonso told reporters.

“We're not happy because we always want to win”

Alonso gave Trent Alexander-Arnold his first start since August and also benched Vinicius Junior.