La Liga 2017/18: Real Madrid 0-1 Real Betis, 5 Talking Points

Real Madrid v Real Betis - La Liga
Real Madrid v Real Betis - La Liga

#3 Real Madrid lost shape far too early

Real Madrid v Real Betis - La Liga
Real Madrid v Real Betis - La Liga

For a team that had scored in its 73 previous games, Real Madrid looked surprisingly out of ideas when it came to chasing games in the last 20 minutes of the game. Cross after aimless cross came in from Dani Carvajal and Marcelo on both flanks, with the pair having less than stellar games.

Despite the umpteen corners that Toni Kroos took, Madrid failed to fashion a single clear chance, criminally so when Sergio Ramos was on the pitch. The end result? That much-praised scoring streak came to a bitter end.

The blame may lie with Zinedine Zidane - the Frenchman took off Isco and Modric with 20 minutes left to play, which left Lucas Vaquez having to fill in in the middle as Madrid ended the game with Borja Mayoral, Gareth Bale, Marco Asensio and Cristiano Ronaldo all getting in each others way for the better part of 20 minutes.

It can work sometimes, but the time to go all out is after the 80th minute - Madrid lacked a cohesive plan, and all their panic lead to an overload that brought about their downfall at the opposite end of the pitch.

Zinedine Zidane faces another one of his toughest tests as Real Madrid manager now - ensuring that Madrid retain what made them what they are today - their calm, even when things go wrong.

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