Real Madrid
Not serious at all
The post-match analysis of Barcelona vs. Real Madrid
JUAN IGNACIO GARCÍA-OCHOA
It is not serious that Real Madrid is losing LaLiga with a 14-point gap and only three matchdays remaining. It is not serious that Mbappé was traveling in Sardinia a week ago and then missed the Camp Nou match due to a muscle overload that has kept him out for 15 days. It is not serious that Madrid has accumulated 119 injuries over the last two seasons. It is not serious that Vinícius blew up a project just two months in because he didn’t like the coach. It is not serious that the club allowed it. It is not serious that a player (Ceballos) walked into his coach’s office, gave him an earful, and then disappeared for the last six games of the season. It is not serious that players are fighting in the locker room. It is not serious that Arbeloa claims to be proud of his players. It is not serious that Madrid bets everything on the Champions League every season. It is not serious that the players only run hard in four or five matches a year. It is not serious that this Camp Nou game was not one of them. And we could go on for hours.
Madrid is supposed to be the NASA of football—the absolute elite. But right now, they are light-years away from that status. Their season has been a joke.
Two consecutive league titles
Barça once again showed the value of LaLiga and won their second straight title under Flick. The Blaugrana give far more importance to day-to-day consistency than Madrid, which has become a lazy team that only thinks about the Champions League. That in 26 years of the century Madrid has only managed back-to-back league titles once speaks volumes about the club.
Too big a gap
Barça didn’t even need to step on the gas to beat Madrid and seal LaLiga. The difference between the two teams is so vast today that Flick didn’t even need Lamine or Raphinha. Barça’s coach is a good mirror for Madrid to look into. Because if Flick has done one thing well, it’s getting the best out of every player he has—whether a star or a youth academy product. At Madrid, very few players today seem to have the necessary level to play for the club.
First Rashford, then Olmo
The Clásico had no more story than the two spectacular goals Barça produced. The first came from Rashford with a stunning free kick that curled into the top corner, with the added merit that Courtois was in goal. In the second, Olmo gifted the goal to Ferran with a backheel that fooled Rüdiger—the only Madrid defender who tried to stop the goal. Asencio preferred to watch.
Mbappé not sharp
The Frenchman pulled out of the Clásico due to hamstring discomfort. The overload that has kept him out for 15 days is odd, as is the fact that he decided to send a message of encouragement to his team when the score was already 2-0. He wanted to show he was watching the match at home, but doing so while Madrid was bleeding at Camp Nou rather than before the game started… We’ll see if he plays again this season. It doesn’t look like it.
Courtois showed up
Tibú is always there—in good times and bad. The Belgian decided to return at Camp Nou after a six-week injury, knowing he could be facing a heavy defeat. He didn’t care about the team’s context and was the first to put his body on the line in Barcelona. The match didn’t start well, conceding Rashford’s brilliant free kick, but his commitment cannot be questioned. He later made several saves to prevent an even bigger rout. And he’s not the captain…
Bellingham also deserves a separate analysis
The Clásico overwhelmed him—as have so many other matches. And while the spotlight always falls on Viní and Mbappé, the Englishman’s influence has faded significantly this season.
