Real Madrid looked so comfortable three weeks ago. Unbeaten in 21 games and top of a league they have only won twice in the last decade, they were progressing in Europe and the Spanish Cup as well.
Three defeats in five games has changed everything. Conceding four goals at home to in-form Real Sociedad to be eliminated from the cup was bad enough, and only Madrid’s two late goals gave the game a more respectable scoreline. A draw at Celta Vigo cost two precious points in the title race, but it became a slump when that was followed last weekend by a loss at Levante and then that home defeat to Manchester City.
Real’s season is not over but it hangs in the balance and that result against City really stung.
“It’s really bad for all of us to lose a game like this,” admitted Zinedine Zidane.
“The mistakes we had at the end were painful; we didn’t deserve that but this is football. You have to concentrate for 90 minutes especially against this type of team. We lost an opportunity here but we have another (in Manchester).”
How does he explain it? “It’s not a physical thing, we made mistakes,” said the Frenchman.
What is concerning is that until now mistakes had been few this season. They have been tight and well organised in their biggest games. Pep Guardiola noted their quality when he said they had gone to Camp Nou for the December clasico and oppressed Barcelona.
The return clasico is on Sunday, an immediate opportunity for Real to arrest the slide against their greatest rivals, who keep winning domestically but still look a shadow of the teams Guardiola managed. But which team wouldn’t?
Zidane sees the clasico as a chance to put things right. “It’s a big match. We have to recover properly but I hope the fans will come on Sunday and support this team. In football you can’t control everything.”
He doesn’t think his side have lost their form. “In the Levante match or the Celta game we gave everything but we are in a bad run. When we lose and play poorly we understand that, but it’s not the case. We haven’t played poorly. We have to be more united, stronger, we have to keep on moving forward and Sunday is an opportunity to change.”
Real need their main men to turn up. Karim Benzema, easily their best player in 2019, has scored twice in 12 and will never match the goal tallies of Cristiano Ronaldo. Will anyone apart from Lionel Messi, La Liga’s top scorer at present with five more goals than any other player? He’s got five more assists than anyone, despite missing a fifth of the season to injury.
Madrid’s South American midfielders Fede Valverde and Casemiro have been consistent stalwarts this season but both paled against City. Brazilian Vinicius was Madrid’s most dangerous player, but he was brought off exhausted to sit on the bench where Gareth Bale and Toni Kroos started the game.
City had an equally strong bench after Guardiola started without Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero, Fernandinho and David Silva but City’s substitutes made a difference when they came on. Real’s only weakened them.
Real are still missing Ronaldo and his goals. Bale could have stepped up and increased his strike rate, but he is injured too often. The Welshman, 30, has two league goals this season and scored eight last. He scored 16 in Ronaldo’s last season. There were hopes that Luka Jovic could bring goals but the Serb is fortunate if he comes off the bench and has only two in the league this season.
Eden Hazard, last summer’s big signing and the man who took Ronaldo’s No 7 shirt, came back from injury to play in the draw at Celta and the Levante defeat, but injuries have ruined a season where he’s managed one league goal.
The result is that Madrid have 46 goals from 25 league games. Barcelona boast 62 and a two point advantage after winning their last four league games.
Barca are not enjoying a vintage season and sacked Ernesto Valverde in January with club legend Rivaldo saying: “After watching Barcelona’s last few games, I haven’t seen any improvement since they sacked Valverde. The team is capable of playing much better because they have great players. And their possession of the ball isn’t consistent.”
It needs to be on Sunday since it’s the clasico neither side can afford to lose.
