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Real Madrid succumbed to a 1-0 defeat against Valencia at the Mestalla Stadium in La Liga on Sunday, May 21.
Los Blancos entered this game on the back of a mixed run of form. They had won three, drawn one and lost two of their last six games across competitions, with their last outing arguably being the most damaging experience.
Carlo Ancelotti's men were outclassed 4-0 by Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals, resulting in a 5-1 aggregate progression to the final where the Cityzens will face Inter Milan.
The Italian, however, fielded a strong lineup for this game as he looked to end the season on a high note for the team.
Real Madrid made a positive start to the game and looked to dominate possession in the early stages in a bid to get Valencia to chase the ball. Their efforts to tire the hosts were met with vociferous home support who would not accept anything but maximum effort from their team. And that is what they got.
Valencia grabbed the lead with 33 minutes on the clock as Diego Lopez scored against the run of play. Despite having just 28% of the ball in the first period, the hosts attempted seven shots with five on target. They fought hard and did well to reach the halfway mark with their slender lead intact.
Both Ancelotti and Ruben Baraja made several changes in the second period as they looked to shift momentum in their favor. However, neither side managed to trouble the scorekeeper in the second half, but they did keep the referee busy as six yellows and one red card were brandished in the second period.
Despite all that drama, neither side managed to get on the scoresheet as Valencia held on to secure a 1-0 win over Real Madrid. On that note, let's take a look at the five talking points from the game.
#5. Carlo Ancelotti made multiple changes to his XI
Following their humiliating 5-1 aggregate elimination from the Champions League at the hands of Manchester City, Ancelotti looked to give some of his squad players much-needed minutes as he made changes to his starting XI.
Ferland Mendy returned to the left-back spot as Eduardo Camavinga was given the opportunity to play in his preferred midfield role. Aurelien Tchouameni and Dani Ceballos joined him in midfield, with Lucas Vazquez taking up the right-back spot.
#4. Valencia came prepared with a plan and stuck to it
Usually when teams play against bigger and better teams, they try to adopt a conservative approach. Often we see a team do well initially but try and overdo something and get punished for being over-confident. Valencia, however, did not budge from their plan despite grabbing the lead against Real Madrid in the first half.
They were well aware that Real Madrid would dominate possession and control the tempo of the game. The hosts also knew that chances would come at a premium for them so they had to be on their toes and be clinical when the opportunity does present itself.
They played a fantastic game as a unit, a display much better than their current 13th position in the table reflects.
#3. Los Blancos slip to third in La Liga standings
Following their demoralizing defeat against Valencia, Real are now in third place with 71 points, one behind crosstown arch-rivals Atletico Madrid. With three games still left to play in the season, they can undoubtedly overturn that deficit.
Real Madrid will face Rayo Vallecano, Sevilla and Athletic Club in their remaining games, while Atleti will face Espanyol, Real Sociedad and Villarreal - clearly the tougher of the two lists.
It will be interesting to see how the two capital teams finish their seasons.
#2. Vinicius Junior was shown a ridiculous red card
There was 10 minutes of stoppage time added at the end of the second half due to several breaks in play during the second period. Vinicius Junior was part of a melee between players from both teams towards the end of the allotted stoppage time but was shockingly the only player to receive a card, let alone be sent off.
You can watch the incident and its aftermath below:
Despite being grabbed, shoved around and even choked at one point, Vinicius was shown a straight red and the referee did not even bother consulting VAR or his assistants to find out what part Valencia's players played as instigators.
#1. Real Madrid will refocus on next season
With this season basically done and dusted following their elimination from the Champions League this week, Real Madrid will now shift their focus to the upcoming summer transfer window with the intention of bolstering the squad to compete on all fronts next season.
