Real Madrid's relationship with Getafe is like that of a brother and his much younger sibling. There is affection and respect, though the younger brood has a habit of causing great irritation. Real raise a collective smile when Getafe, a club from a rough overspill full of theirs and Atletico's fans, beat Barcelona. They like the fact that Getafe's president is a paid up Real socio and appreciate Getafe paying ?10 million (Dh48m) for their reserve players, less so when they come back with a point to prove.
And they like it even less when Getafe, who had never troubled the Primera Liga until this decade, travel the short distance north to the Bernabeu and almost win. In a sensational game on Wednesday night, a Real side with 16 wins from their previous 17 league matches were minutes from defeat against their neighbours. Had it not been for the brilliance of Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain, Real would no longer still be in the title race.
Getafe took the lead after 10 minutes through jilted former Real striker Soldado, but Higuain equalised against the run of play just before half-time. As Juande Ramos's side pressed for a winner, Getafe's Uruguayan winger Juan Albin put the visitors back in front with just six minutes left to silence another huge 75,000 crowd. An exceptional Guti free-kick made it 2-2 two minutes later and there was further drama as Iker Casillas saved a weak Getafe penalty. Implausible though it seemed, the most dramatic moment was still to come as Higuain netted a remarkable injury-time winner for his 18th league goal of the season. "A draw would have been like a defeat for us, we had to win, we had to win," enthused Real's Dutch winger Royston Drenthe as scuffles broke out on the pitch. Brothers do fight, after all.
At the other end of the table, Athletic Bilbao registered a much- needed win, coming from behind to beat bottom side Numancia 2-1. @Email:amitten@thenational.ae
