MADRID — Two weeks in the past, Taty Castellanos had a miss so dangerous in a one-on-one state of affairs in opposition to Barcelona that it compelled him to delete his social media accounts due to the insults he acquired from Girona followers.

The former Major League Soccer scoring chief greater than made up for it in opposition to Real Madrid on Tuesday.

In a turnaround he stated he didn’t suppose was attainable, Castellanos scored 4 instances in Girona’s 4-2 win in opposition to Madrid within the Spanish league.

“It’s a dream to be able to score against Madrid, one of the best teams in the world, but to score four times, I could never have imagined,” the 24-year-old Argentine stated. “It was a dream night.”

Castellanos, enjoying on a one-season mortgage from New York City FC, scored twice in every half to assist the Catalan membership stun the defending league champions.

He had additionally scored 4 instances with New York in an MLS match in opposition to Real Salt Lake final yr. But he had attracted headlines in Spain lately after losing a transparent probability to attain in Girona’s 0-0 draw in opposition to Barcelona at Camp Nou Stadium on April 10, prompting a wave of insults in opposition to him on-line.

PHOTOS: Taty Castellanos scores 4 objectives as Girona beats Real Madrid

“The other day he had a miss against Barcelona and it looked like it was the end of the world for him,” Girona coach Michel stated. “But this is his first season in Europe, coming from a league that is very good but has nothing to do with Europe in terms of rhythm, tactics and situations, so he had to adapt to that and I think that he has been doing that perfectly.”

Castellanos acquired his 4 objectives in simply over an hour of play and from solely 5 makes an attempt. He scored within the twelfth, twenty fourth, forty sixth and 62nd minutes and acquired a standing ovation from the Girona followers at Montilivi Stadium when he was substituted within the 72nd.

Spanish media stated nobody had scored 4 objectives in opposition to Madrid within the league since Oviedo participant Esteban Echevarría in 1947. Robert Lewandowski, who now performs for Barcelona, did it with Borussia Dortmund in a Champions League recreation in 2013.

Girona moved to ninth place with the victory, its second in three matches, and virtually assured its place within the first division subsequent season. The Catalan membership is again within the high flight after a three-year absence. Like NYC, it's managed by City Football Group, the guardian firm of Manchester City.

The loss additional broken Madrid’s hopes of catching Barcelona on the high of the standings. Barcelona can enhance its result in 14 factors with seven matches remaining with a win at mid-table Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday.

“It was a tough night, we played at a very low level in all areas,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti stated.

The consequence may additionally enable third-place Atletico Madrid to chop its hole to Madrid to a few factors. Atletico hosts Mallorca on Wednesday.

Madrid’s focus has been on the Champions League semifinal in opposition to Manchester City and the Copa del Rey ultimate in opposition to Osasuna. Ancelotti did use a few of his common starters, although, together with Vinícius Júnior, who a number of instances exchanged provocations with Girona followers within the stands and gamers on the sphere.

The Brazilian scored Madrid’s first purpose with a header within the thirty fourth minute and arrange Lucas Vázquez’s purpose within the eighty fifth.

After scoring his purpose, Vinícius regarded towards the stands and began laughing. Fans at one level chanted “How bad you are, Vinícius.” The ahead, who's Black, has been focused by racist insults this season.

OTHER RESULTS

Fifth-place Real Betis couldn’t handle greater than a 0-0 draw with fourth-place Real Sociedad at dwelling in a key match within the combat for the ultimate Champions League spot. The consequence saved Betis six factors behind Sociedad.

Cadiz misplaced 1-0 at dwelling to mid-table Osasuna, staying in fifteenth place and solely two factors clear from the relegation zone.

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