Football’s most celebrated club fixture comes to Las Vegas this weekend, and although it is a pre-season game, all clasicos carry competitive bite.
There’s a fresh aspect to the eternal grudge between Barcelona and Real Madrid, too, dating from their surreal last meeting. Back in March, at the Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid wore all black, had Luka Modric playing at centre-forward, and, most surprisingly, lost to Barca by a thumping 4-0 scoreline.
It made no difference to the destiny of the Liga title, won at canter by a Real Madrid who had at that stage embarked on an extraordinary set of adventures, comeback after comeback, in the knockouts of European Cup, a trophy they collected for the 14th time in the club’s history after beating Liverpool in Paris.
Since then, a calm, ordered close-season has been under way. Madrid failed in their bid to land their No 1 target in the market, Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, but continue to build their collection of talented French players, with Aurelien Tchouameni their big-money new signing. The 22-year-old is earmarked for a midfield place long into the future, alongside last summer’s French capture, Eduardo Camavinga.
Antonio Rudiger, out of contract at Chelsea, has arrived to reinforce a defence that, in achieving the double last season, missed the departed Sergio Ramos and Rafa Varane, two long-term pillars of the side, less than expected.
Rudiger, though, has been reminded since linking up within his new teammates that goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, his former Chelsea colleague, was the principal and outstanding protector of Madrid at the back in 2021/22.
If Madrid are to recapture their domestic and European prizes in the coming campaign, they will likely need Courtois to maintain his excellence, and Karim Benzema, at the other end of the pitch, to keep similar standards to those he rose to in the last 10 months.
Gallery: Real beat Liverpool in Champions League final
-
Real Madrid celebrate after beating Liverpool to win the Champions League final at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday, May 29, 2022. Reuters -
Real Madrid celebrate after beating Liverpool to win the Champions League final. Getty -
Luka Modric kisses the trophy. Getty -
Marcelo lifts the trophy for Real Madrid. Getty -
Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior celebrates after scoring the only goal of the Champions League final against Liverpool. AP -
Real Madrid players celebrate after their victory in Paris. Getty -
Dejected Liverpool player Fabinho after the match. AP -
Real manager Carlo Ancelotti celebrates after the match. Getty -
Dejected Mohamed Salah of Liverpool after the match. Getty -
Real Madrid players celebrate after the match. Getty -
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois celebrates winning the Champions League. Reuters -
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois saves from Liverpool attacker Mohamed Salah in the second half. Getty -
Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior scores the opening goal. PA -
Karim Benzema scores for Real Madrid late in the first half but the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside. PA -
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah fires a shot past Real Madrid's Croatian midfielder Luka Modric. AFP -
Liverpool midfielder Fabinho is shown a yellow card. AP -
A first-half shot from Liverpool's Sadio Mane beats Real keeper Thibaut Courtois but hits the post. Getty -
Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior celebrates with teammates after scoring. PA -
Liverpool attacker Sadio Mane sees his shot hit the post. Getty -
Vinicius Junior scores for Real Madrid. EPA -
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois catches a cross. AP -
Vinicius Junior celebrates after scoring for Real Madrid. Getty -
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on the sidelines. EPA -
Liverpool's Luis Diaz shoots at goal. Getty -
Real attacker Karim Benzema scores but the goal was disallowed. Getty -
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah sees a shot saved in the first half by Real goakeeper Thibaut Courtois. Getty -
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois makes a save from Mohamed Salah. Reuters -
Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold goes to cross the ball. Getty -
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti. AFP -
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois screams at his defence after Liverpool hit the post in the first half. PA -
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois under pressure from Liverpool's Jordan Henderson. EPA -
Liverpool's Sadio Mane reacts to a challenge from Real midfielder Casemiro. EPA
Benzema is the leading candidate to win this year’s Ballon d’Or, on the back of his 44 goals, his leadership, and the hat-tricks in Europe that inspired the come-from-behind triumphs on the road to the winning final against Liverpool.
The concern for Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, ahead of a season where senior players are bound to be affected with fatigue because of the November-December World Cup in Qatar, is that cover for the goalkeeper and especially for his 34-year-old France international centre-forward that looks thin.
Luka Jovic, the Serbian striker who struggled for form following his €60m purchase from Eintracht Frankfurt in 2019, has put an end to his three-year misadventure in Madrid by joining Fiorentina. Gareth Bale is at last off the wage bill, after nine years in which spectacular success with Madrid was followed by a long uncomfortable period on the margins.
Both were, in theory at least, back-ups for Benzema. There are few others. One lesson of that peculiar 4-0 Barcelona win in March was that, in the absence of Benzema, Modric as a ‘false nine’ is not a solution – “it was a mistake,” Ancelotti admitted afterwards.
The best alternative available is probably Vinicius Junior applying his improvements as a finisher to a more central position that his usual role attacking, at pace, from the left wing.
Top La Liga goalscorers 2021/22
-
LA LIGA TOP SCORERS 2021/22: =11) Goncalo Guedes (Valencia) 11 goals in 36 games. AFP -
=11) Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid) 11 goals in 35 games. AFP -
=11) Carlos Soler (Valencia) 11 goals in 32 games. AFP -
=11) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Barcelona) 11 goals in 17 games. AP -
=9 Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid) 12 goals in 36 games. EPA -
=9) Memphis Depay (Barcelona) 12 goals in 28 games. Reuters -
8) Jose Luis Morales (Levante) 13 goals in 35 games. Getty -
7) Joselu (Alaves) 14 goals 37 games. EPA -
=5) Enes Unal (Getafe) 16 goals in 37 games. EPA -
=5) Juanmi (Real Betis) 16 goals in 33 games. EPA -
3) Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid) 17 goals in 35 games. AFP -
=3) Raul de Tomas (Espanyol). 17 goals in 34 games. EPA -
2) Iago Aspas (Celta Vigo) 18 goals in 37 games. Getty -
1) Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) 27 goals in 32 games. Getty -
MOST ASSISTS LA LIGA 2021/22: =9) Nabil Fekir (Real Betis) Eight assists in 34 games. Getty -
=9) Luka Modric (Real Madrid) Eight assists in 28 games. AP -
=7) Sergi Darder (Real Sociedad) Nine assists in 36 games. AFP -
=7) Oscar Trejo (Rayo Vallecano) Nine assists in 32 games. AFP -
=3) Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao) 10 assists in 35 games. Reuters -
=3) Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid) 10 assists in 35 games. Getty -
=3) Daniel Parejo (Villarreal) 10 assists in 33 games. Getty -
=3) Jordi Alba (Barcelona) 10 assists in 30 games. AP -
2) Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) 12 assists in 32 games. EPA -
1) Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona) 13 assists in 21 games. Reuters
Vinicius scored the only goal of the Champions League final, capping a brilliant nine months for the 22-year-old Brazilian and offering one of several lines of encouragement for madridistas concerned about the club’s dependence on their so-called ‘old guard’.
Modric, still full of energy, will turn 37 in September. His long-time allies in midfield, Tony Kroos and Casemiro, are 32 and 30. They each now know they have hungry, ambitious understudies.
The precocious Camavinga, who turns 20 in November, impressed coming off the bench in the Champions League, where Federico Valverde, 23, was in the starting XI for the final and the preceding five games of the see-saw knockout phase. And Madrid did not commit to Monaco €80 million – with possible add-ons of €20m – for Tchouameni, 22, without envisaging for him a long-term, commanding role in their midfield.
So far in this summer window, no transfer has fetched a higher fee than Tchouameni’s, but Madrid would acknowledge moves elsewhere have drawn more headlines.
For instance: Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona, who have been busy in their trading. Or even the transfer from Leeds United to Barca of Raphinha, who took it on himself to declare, ahead of the Las Vegas clasico, “for me, we’re better than Real Madrid.”
A 13-point gap between the rivals in last season’s Liga table, not to mention Barcelona’s failure to get out of the group in the last Champions League, says otherwise. But Madrid will still remember that 4-0 shock from the spring, and note that, in Lewandowski, Barcelona have armed themselves for the season ahead with a centre-forward of Benzema’s calibre.
Gallery: Real's La Liga title celebrations
-
Real Madrid players celebrate on an open top bus after winning La Liga as thousands of fans turn out on the streets of Madrid. AP -
Real Madrid players Karim Benzema and Lucas Vasquez celebrate on the Plaza Cibeles square in Madrid after securing the club's 35th La Liga title. AFP -
Real Madrid players celebrate on an open top bus through the streets of Madrid after winning the Spanish title. AP -
Luka Modric and his Real Madrid teammates celebrate during the open top bus trophy parade. AP -
Thousands of fans cheer on Real Madrid as the open top bus drives through the streets of the Spanish capital. Reuters -
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti waves during celebrations after guiding the club to the title. AP -
Real Madrid players celebrate on an open top bus after they won the Spanish La Liga title. AP -
Real Madrid players celebrate with the fans at the Plaza Cibeles after winning the club's 35th La Liga title. EPA -
Marcelo puts up a flag on top of a statue on the Plaza Cibeles square in Madrid during Real Madrid's La Liga title celebrations. AFP -
Thousands of fans pack the streets of Madrid to celebrate Real Madrid's La Liga title triumph. Reuters -
Fans of Real Madrid celebrate at Plaza de Cibeles following the the club's La Liga title. Getty -
Real Madrid players celebrate winning La Liga on top of the bus with fans at Cibeles fountain in Madrid. Reuters -
Real Madrid fans celebrate at Cibeles fountain in Madrid after the club won La Liga. Reuters -
Real Madrid fans celebrate at Plaza de Cibeles following the club's La Liga title triumph. Getty -
A view of Plaza Cibeles as Real Madrid players and fans celebrate winning La Liga. EPA -
Real Madrid players and fans celebrate at Cibeles fountain after the club won La Liga. Reuters -
Toni Kroos and his teammates celebrate on top of the bus at Cibeles fountain in Madrid after the club secured the Spanish league title. Reuters -
Real Madrid players celebrate with their fans after winning the Spanish La Liga title. EPA -
Real Madrid players celebrate with fans in Madrid during the open top bus parade. Reuters -
Real Madrid fans wait for players to arrive as they celebrate winning La Liga. EPA
