"It gives me pure joy" - Twitter explodes as Real Madrid suffer shock 2-1 defeat to Villarreal

Football fans have taken to Twitter to mock Real Madrid after they succumbed to a surprise 2-1 defeat to Villarreal in La Liga today (January 7).

Real Madrid played their first La Liga match of the new calendar year against Villarreal today. They went into the game looking to build on their 2-0 victory over Real Valladolid last week.

However, things did not go according to plan for Los Blancos as they suffered a 2-1 defeat at Villarreal's hands. They thus missed out on the opportunity to reclaim their place at the top of the league table.

Yeremy Pino put the Yellow Submarine in front with a goal just two minutes into the second half. While Karim Benzema equalized for Real Madrid with a penalty at the one-hour mark, Carlo Ancelotti's men could not build on it.

Just three minutes after Benzema's equalizer, David Alaba was penalized for a handball in the penalty box. Gerard Moreno made no mistake from the resulting spot-kick and scored the winner for Quique Setien's side.

Los Blancos' 2023 thus got off to a poor start as they suffered what was their second La Liga defeat of the season. The loss to Villarreal could ultimately prove to be a huge blow to their hopes of winning the title.

Former Barcelona manager Setien has done the Blaugrana a huge favor by beating their arch-rivals with Villarreal. Xavi and Co. now have the opportunity to go three points clear of Ancelotti's side.

Barcelona are scheduled to face Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid away from home on Sunday, January 8. It remains to be seen if they can take advantage of Real Madrid's defeat to Villarreal.

Meanwhile, Benzema and Co. will look to bounce back when they face Valencia in the Supercopa de Espana on Wednesday, January 11. They are also scheduled to lock horns with Villarreal again in the Copa del Rey the following week.

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Here's how Twitter reacted to Real Madrid's shock defeat to Villarreal in La Liga: