Once the treasure chest was opened, Real Madrid found their space and allowed Jude Bellingham to exploit it with the England international scoring a further two goals to give the league leaders a convincing advantage over their closest rivals.

In another moment of individual brilliance, Rodrygo Goes made it four as he ran through the Girona defence and then curled the ball past Paulo Gazzaniga in the Girona goal, with Joselu then missing the chance to make it five as he hit a penalty kick against the post on the stroke of full-time.

What does this result mean for the LALIGA title race?

In mathematic terms, Girona are very much still in the fight. This was only their second defeat of the season and they have only drawn five from 24. That means that they are keeping pace with Real Madrid and are only five points behind Los Blancos.

“A win will just give an advantage, but the title will be decided further down the line,” Ancelotti insisted in his pre-match press conference on Friday, but even the Italian must now be feeling quietly optimistic.

Not only is the gap between the two teams now five points, but Real Madrid have also secured a convincing margin in the head-to-head comparison. The aggregate score over the home and away games means that Real Madrid beat Girona 7-0, equivalent to another point in the table.

With several months left of the season, and Real Madrid facing their own issues with a defensive injury crisis, there is plenty to compete for, but it would take a real collapse from Real Madrid to surrender their lead. They are unbeaten in LALIGA since a loss to Atlético Madrid in September, have now drawn level with Girona for goals scored with 52, and have conceded six goals fewer than the next best defensive record in the competition.