More bad news for Real, especially with Juventus to come on Wednesday. Toni Kroos is off with an injury. Replaced by Asier Illarramendi.

Valencia have come here to win. There's no doubt about it. Andre Gomes can't find Pablo Piatti with a through ball as Real are nearly exposed on the break again.

Gomes then surges through midfield but is scythed down by Alvaro Arbeloa - yellow card.

Will Barca be watching this in the dressing room with a post-match horchata?

At the moment they are five points clear, with two games to play.

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The goal hasn't knocked anything out of Real though. Cristiano Ronaldo with an overhead blocked in the box before Toni Kroos thunders over from outside the penalty area on the rebound.

Ronaldo punches the air in frustration.

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Talk about against the run of play! Jose Luis Gaya curls in a cross and Paco Alacacer grits his teeth, launches himself ahead of Pepe and stabs home beyond Iker Casillas as Valencia counter.

Pretty it ain't but sensational stuff as the home crowd are stunned.

Come on now, are you serious? Cristiano Ronaldo now with a header that cannons back off the bar, from a James Rodriguez outswinging corner. How many times?

Gareth Bale hits the bar again but it's offside anyway. A bit of a let-off for both him and Valencia in truth - that would have gone down as a glaring miss, about eight yards from goal.

Good pressure from Real though, who are growing into it.

Jose Luis Gaya is showing is years there with a foul on Isco that puts him in the book. Round two v Gareth Bale should be interesting now.

What would that goal have done for Gareth Bale's confidence? He's come under a lot of criticism. Some perhaps deserving of the world's most expensive player, some perhaps not.

But that free-kick would have sparked a few flurries of word-eating. Until the next time of course.

Gaya v Bale round one - free-kick Real Madrid. The 19-year-old left-back came through Bale on the edge of the box.

The Welshman is standing over it... perfect territory... And it crashes back off the bar! Agonisingly close for the Welshman!

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Gareth Bale on the right wing, Cristiano Ronaldo on the left, James Rodriguez through the middle with Javier Hernandez up top. Can you spot the odd one out?

Did the whistle go? Real Madrid stopped and Paco Alcacer was in - he looped the ball over Iker Casillas but judging by his reaction, he thought play had been called back.

That is a real let off for the home side - they wanted a free-kick for a foul on Pepe in the build-up.

Gareth Bale now gets a little shove from Jose Luis Gaya, the Valencia left-back.

It'll be really interesting to see who comes out on top in a sprint between those two. Gaya is rapido.

First moment of interest from Gareth Bale - the Welshman pokes in a cross from the right-wing with the outside of his left foot - it's too high and is cleared.

Pablo Piatti swings in a Valencia corner but the referee blows up for shoving in the box. A real sharp start from the away side. Carlo Ancelotti's eyebrow is pacing around the technical area already.

I do like the yellow and orange away kit Valencia have got on today. They're all one-touch passes and overlaps as they try to break as quickly as possible whenever they get the ball.

Real are moving the ball with speed too, stroking it around from left-back to right-wing.

Paco Alcacer - do you read these pages? Straight from the off he's at the Real back four and fires a long-range effort, palmed wide by Iker Casillas.

Corner but it's cleared. Not the start Carlo Ancelotti would have been expecting.

We are under way in Madrid.

Kick off is imminent at the Estadio Bernabeu. Real Madrid are looking to keep pace with Barcelona at the top of La Liga.

Luis Enrique's side went five points clear by beating Real Sociedad 2-0, just now.

For Valencia, this is all about consolidating fourth spot and a place in the Champions League next season.

I saw an interesting interview with Paco Alcacer in El Pais earlier today - "You don't have to be selfish to be a top scorer" was the stand-out line. True that, Paco, but I should think Cristiano Ronaldo would have something rather different to say.

The stats certainly suggest so. Ronaldo's on 54 goals from 50 games this season. Alcacer's got 12 from 33.