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The year 2018 witnessed some exciting clashes in the football world. While the clashes between arch-rivals set our hearts racing, the shock defeats pulled off by minnows did leave the giants red-faced. From the FIFA World Cup in Russia to the exciting leagues across the globe, here's a look at the major upsets that sent shockwaves across the footballing world in 2018: Germany Left Red-Faced (FIFA World Cup) © Reuters Going into the 2018 FIFA World Cup, defending champions Germany were expected to pose a grave threat to all the top contenders in Russia. And, for a team that had gone past the group-stages of the mega event sixteen times in a row, Germany's eventual disaster couldn't have possibly been predicted by a football pundit. But, Joachim Low's men stuttered and how. Amongst some desperate games, Germany's 2-0 loss to South Korea didn't just send them packing, but it also pretty much summed up their dismal outing in one of the world's biggest spectacle. The additional-time strikes from Kim Young-gwon (90+2') and Son Heung-min (90+6') didn't help South Korea to progress further in the tournament, but it did secure a famous win for the country. For only the second time in history, Germany were eliminated from the First Round at the World Cup having last done so in 1938. Real Madrid Losing To Eibar (La Liga) © Reuters Following their third consecutive UEFA Champions League title triumph earlier this year, Real Madrid and their fans were left reeling with the unexpected interview of Cristiano Ronaldo who expressed his desire of leaving Santiago Bernabeu. If that wasn't enough, the fact that Zinedine Zidane, soon, followed in the footsteps of the Portuguese, further left the Blancos in distress. Left to fend for themselves in the absence of their star man and pragmatic coach, Real Madrid had more agony to endure when they travelled to Municipal de Ipurua where Eibar cut them a sorry figure. In a game that featured the likes of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Toni Kroos, Real Madrid stuttered to a shocking 0-3 defeat. Despite maintaining possession and comparatively better accuracy in passing, the visitors found themselves trailing 0-1 after Gonzalo Escalante opened the scoring for the home side in the 16th minute. Coming out in the second-half with the same scoreline, Madrid's problems quickly turned into a nightmare as they conceded two more goals in just five minutes after Sergi Enrich (52') and Kike (57') sealed Eibar's domination in one of their famous triumphs in recent times. Man City Shot To The Ground By Crystal Palace (EPL) © Reuters For a team that smashed multiple records on their way to a phenomenal title win last season, Manchester City have shown signs of frailties and vulnerabilities in the Premier League this time around. One of the top dogs of the league, Pep Guardiola's men have lost three games in the ongoing season and are currently seven points behind leaders Liverpool. Their latest 2-1 defeat against Leicester City has surely titled the tide in the Kops' favour. But, it was undeniably Crystal Palace's shocking 3-2 triumph at the home of the champions that will go down as one of the major upsets this season. Despite taking the lead through Ilkay Gundogan early on, City didn't just lose their lead, they found themselves trailing in a space of eight minutes. If Jeffrey Schlupp equalised for Palace in the 33rd minute, Andros Townsend's long-range screamer, two minutes later, sent the home crowd in a state of shock. Trailing 1-2 in the first-half, the hosts tried to up the ante in the second but Luka Milivojevic's strike from the spot-kick in the 51st minute doubled the lead for Palace. Their talisman Kevin De Bruyne did pull one back for City in the 85th minute, but Palace stood their ground to shock the defending champions. Bayern Munich Stunned By Hertha (Bundesliga) © Reuters Falling in the footsteps of Manchester City, Bayern, too, were expected to continue their dominance in the Bundesliga ahead of the season. But, what many predicted to be a comfortable season for the defending champions, eventually turned out to be quite a task. Niko Kovac's side is currently trailing arch-rivals and league leaders Borussia Dortmund by six points on the back of three losses and as many draws so far. Amongst their defeats this season, one that arguably stands out came against 8th-placed Hertha in an away game. They probably did everything right, but as said earlier, just like City, luck was not in their favour. Barcelona Shocked By Leganes (La Liga) © Reuters Even the mightiest can be humbled at times, a testimony to that came through Barcelona's surprising defeat to Leganes in an away game. Despite their star-studded line-up which included great Lionel Messi, Barcelona couldn't avoid the inevitable. Everything was going well for Barca until they lost focus for a mere two minutes, which eventually saw them conceding two back-to-back goals. The Blaugrana did try to recover but Leganes' resilience in defence sadly saw them losing the game 2-1.

La Liga champions Real Madrid suffered a shock 2-1 defeat in their first ever league visit to Catalan side Girona on Sunday, conceding two goals in quick succession and falling eight points behind leaders Barcelona. Spain midfielder Isco tapped in a rebounded shot from Cristiano Ronaldo to open the scoring in the 12th minute in Real Madrid?s first visit to Catalonia this season amid the worst political crisis in Spain?s 39 years of democracy. The home side struck the woodwork twice before the break but rallied in the second half and Uruguay international Christian Stuani fired them level in the 54th minute. Forward Portu then turned in the winning goal four minutes later to the delight of the 13,500 fans crammed into the Montilivi stadium. Stuani came within inches of scoring again midway through the second half but a one-goal advantage was enough to give Girona their third win in their first campaign in the top flight and inflict a second league defeat on Zinedine Zidane?s side. Real are third in the standings on 20 points, four behind second-placed Valencia while unbeaten leaders Barca have 28. Real coach Zidane blamed his side?s lack of concentration for both of the goals they conceded. ?We did well in the first half but football is about details and the first goal was from a throw in and we weren?t focused,? he told a news conference. ?I don?t think we played badly, we didn?t lack intensity or effort, we just lost focused at the most important moments and that?s why I?m annoyed. ?We?re eight points behind but it won?t change anything, we can pick ourselves up, we?ll have better days than this and our rivals are going to drop points.? Although Real Madrid have many supporters in Catalonia, they are viewed as the club that is most representative of Spain and the arrival of the team bus at Montilivi was greeted with a smattering of boos and pro-Catalan independence flags. POLITICAL HEAT The political heat intensified two days before their visit when the region?s ruling party declared independence from Spain and the central government responded by dissolving the Catalan parliament. Deposed Catalan president Carles Puigdemont is from Girona province and a Girona supporter. He was not present at the game but showed his delight at the result with a post on Twitter. ?Girona?s victory over one of the best teams in the world can be an example and a reference for many situations,? he said. Despite the political undertones, the atmosphere was no more intimidating for Madrid than any other Liga ground and they were cheered on by hundreds of supporters who mixed with the home fans without any trouble. Pablo Maffeo, the Manchester City loanee who gained fame for his man-marking job on Lionel Messi, provided the first flash point of the game when his searching cross from the right wing pinged off the far post. The ball remained in play and Madrid surged up the other end where Ronaldo fired at Girona goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and Isco was ideally placed to tap in the rebound. Girona?s fighting spirit could not be crushed, however, and they staged an incredible turnaround to record arguably the most significant win in their 87-year history. ?We fully deserved it,? said Girona coach Pablo Machin. ?The fans have been behind us a long time, we promised we?d let them enjoy La Liga and today was the best atmosphere. If you?d said to me three years ago the fans would leave singing after beating Real Madrid I?d have said you were crazy.?