The embarrassment was such that a quarter of the Bernabéu did not want to see more at game time. He walked away, incredulous, at what he had in front of him. A Real Madrid without football or heart. Very far from that heroic version that came back just two weeks ago against PSG (3-1). The night left a deep mark. “It was my fault. We are very sorry. It’s hard because it’s a Clasico”Ancelotti said at the subsequent press conference, intoning a mea culpa applauded by many, despite the anger at his anomalous approach. Madrid lost and the evening left many headdresses. Five names, specifically, very injured.
Carvajal
The best news for him is that he was not in the photo of any of the goals. But he is still far from his best version. A lot. Such was the case, that Carletto did not hesitate to sacrifice him to rest in search of his all in for a comeback that, far from arriving, ended in -more- bloodletting. Carvajal is curdling a season of more lows than highs. He suffered horrors to try to stop Mbappe in the Champions League tie, Ferran It was a headache in the Clásico and to top it off, the injuries are weighing him down: He has already missed ten games due to various annoyances (13 if you also take into account his withdrawal due to Covid, on the eve of the Super Cup final). He gave 22 passes… Of which he missed seven.
Carvajal, during the warm-up of the Clásico.
AFP7 via Europa Press
Praise
In a course that was raising him to the top of defensive security, his performance against the Barcelona he stained his resume. It was, by far, his worst game in a Real Madrid shirt. He lost 12 balls, only won 33% of the duels and made 43 passes, almost 20 fewer than Militao (67). He did not coordinate well with Military and, with the change of scheme to rest, they won his back continuously in ten catastrophic minutes. What it took Ancelotti to accept that his Plan C (after Plan B, to put Modric as a false nine) had also been unsuccessful. And put him on the left side, where he was able to gain offensive momentum, at the cost of losing position and causing several extremely dangerous counterattacks.
Kroos
The break due to his injury before the PSG it made him feel very bad. And that is why many point out that this ten-day break should be key for him to get ready and meet, again, with his best version. Ancelotti squeezed it for months and has reached the physical limit in the final stretch: An example of this is that, since he recovered from a pubalgia until Paris, he participated in absolutely all the matches. He only stopped in the League against Alavés… And against Real Sociedad, due to force majeure. Against him Barcelona He went completely unnoticed and was substituted at halftime. Something is wrong.
Rodrygo
The first quarter of an hour was a barrage of momentum. of courage Eager to try and show that he has a lot of football. He had two, both crashed on defense. And that’s where his game ended. From then on, nothing; invisible in attack and inoperative in defense. He again left a bland taste, that feeling that he is a very talented footballer, but stuck in his own quagmire. And with the cyst of the goal: he has only scored two in 36 official games. Although his moment is not the best, he was chosen by Ancelotti to be a starter ahead of Asensio.
Asensio
Because the Balearic was a substitute and among those who came from the bench, the one who least approached his level. Despite the fact that a broken match was found, impossible to amend, she did not show that claw that many expected to, at least, get a better taste of a nightmarish night. Goals were not asked of him, but mordant. And he only fired once, out. Its half an hour, coming by Rodrygo, left him at the same point he was: the pulse with the Brazilian on the right wing returns to the starting box. Technical tie.