Coach Zinedine Zidane's decision to exclude Gareth Bell was not proved right. The result was Real Madrid defeated 1-2 by Lelea at the hands of Valencia. It is the ninth defeat of the first and the session after becoming the coach of Real's Zidane.
Valencia started the day in seventh, just four points behind fourth place and that final Champions League spot, meaning Marcelino's men had more to play for than their rivals in this one.
Real were in third, with even Zidane admitting on Sunday that they had no chance of winning La Liga and adding that it is tough to motivate his players in those circumstances.
The Frenchman made changes to his side as Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez came in alongside Karim Benzema, with Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro returning in midfield.
But Marcelino also picked a strong line-up, with Rodrigo Moreno and Kevin Gameiro up front, aided by Carlos Soler and Guedes on the flanks.
Last ten months ago, Zidane kept Bell out of Champions League final against Liverpool. At that time, the Welsh footballer made a spectacular display as a replacement player, but it was not repeated in this match.
Goncalo Guedes (35th minute) and Ezequiel Garay (83rd) secured one goal each in Valencia. Karim Benzema (90 + 3) did the only goal for Real in the injury time of the game. In spite of this defeat, Real's team retained the third place with 57 points. Barcelona (70) and Atletico Madrid (62) are second and third respectively.
Following a timid second half performance Real Madrid, Ezequiel Garay sealed the game for Los Murcielagos with a thunderous header from Dani Parejo's corner.
Karim Benzema buried a free header from a corner right before full time, but it wasn't enough for Zidane's side as Valencia held on to claims a deserved victory.
