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Real Madrid's title hopes were dealt a blow on Saturday when they came short 1-0 against a spirited Barcelona side. Having already booted out of Copa Del Rey by the Catalans, their second consecutive home defeat against their bitter rivals effectively ended their La Liga campaign too.
That defeat also made it the third time Barcelona beat them at home this season, having already lost 5-1 and 3-0 respectively at the Santiago Bernabeu, with their best performance coming in the 1-1 draw against the Blaugrana in the first leg of their Copa Del Rey clash.
Following their double home defeats against the Catalans in just 4 days, here are the 3 things which Real Madrid need to learn from their recent losses:
#1 They are not as good as they think
To lose once is a coincidence. To lose twice is a mistake. But, to lose thrice against the same team means something is seriously wrong.
Real Madrid is suffering from an identity crisis. The defending Champions League and Club World Cup champions are not playing at a level like before.
Having already lost eight times in the league and a further two in Europe, they have shown their vulnerability. Even though they played with enthusiasm and purpose they still came short on both occasions. Maybe they underestimated the Blaugrana or overestimated themselves. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric worked hard but their passing let them down. Based on his displays, Modric is by far from the best player in the world as his FIFA award suggests so.
Dani Carvajal and Casemiro were sloppy too. It seemed that they had forgotten the recent Clasicos. Karim Benzema, the world's best number 9 according to his teammates, missed a sitter in the first match and another offside missed chance spared his blushes in the next match. Vinicius Junior, despite the massive hype still doesn't know how to finish. Gareth Bale, just like the whole season was passive in both the matches and Marco Asensio was nowhere to be seen.
The squad must understand that they are nowhere near as good as they think they are.
#2 Barcelona faked themselves
Over the two matches, Barcelona made themselves look like any mid-table team from La Liga. They sat back, absorbed pressure and pounced on their opponent's mistakes. In the Copa Del Rey tie, Real dominated most of the match yet ended up with a 3-0 loss. How did this happen?
The answer is simple. Barcelona faked themselves. They came with a purpose; to get the job done. They knew about Real's defensive shortcomings and were more than ready to exploit them. In the first half of their recent Copa Del Rey encounter, Barcelona let Real come at them and were happy to defend. This made Real believe that they had the upper hand in the game. Nelson Semedo closed down the left wing as most of Real's attacks came through Reguilion and Vinicius. Barcelona's plan had worked to perfection thanks to Real's wasteful finishing. Had Real scored a goal or two in the first half, the whole outlook of the game would have changed.
In the second half, Barcelona showed their true colors. Their incisive passing and ruthless finishing were on full display as they tore apart Real's defense. Their third goal was a perfect example of this. Ousmane Dembele raced through the right wing and played a perfect cross which Varane could only guide into his own net.
Much was the same in the La Liga fixture. Barcelona patiently waited for the first 25 minutes and then suddenly changed gears. As real lost the ball high up the pitch, a swift counter-attack followed which culminated in Sergio Roberto playing in Ivan Rakitic whose delightful chipped finish opened the scoring. Real missed a lot of opportunities but Barcelona stayed firm and absorbed all the attacks and went onto claim the win.
#1 They are still living in the past
The consecutive El Clasico home defeats showed that Real Madrid is still living in the past. They still consider themselves the best team in the world. They are neither learning from their mistakes nor are willing to adapt. In the previous seasons, they would often play mediocrely and still come out as eventual winners. Players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Alvaro Morata, James Rodriguez, Jese, were there to support them. But, today they don't have such a luxury.
Neither do they have a plan 'B'. They still believe that they could hang till the end and somehow win the game. But, unfortunately, this strategy is not working as they have lost their edge. Their ability to win ugly, a hallmark of champions too seems long gone. The players still haven't come to terms with Ronaldo's departure and blame the club for their failure in bringing a top forward this season. It's their attitude and mental aspect of the game which is hurting them the most.
If Real Madrid wants to be the best, they must come out from the shackles of the past and start living in the present.
