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Carlos Soler scored a hat-trick of penalties for Valencia as Real Madrid were humbled 4-1 at the Mastella, their first loss away from home in the 2020-21 La Liga season.
Too many individual mistakes at the back cost Los Blancos the game against Valencia as Karim Benzema's opening goal quickly faded into oblivion.
For neutral spectators, this must have been one of the most thrilling games in La Liga this calendar year, as it was packed with VAR incidents, defensive blunders, a triumvirate of penalties, a hat-trick and fouls galore.
The defeat condemns the reigning champions down to fourth in the La Liga table; Real Madrid now have just 16 points from eight games, whereas the Bats are up to ninth following their first win in five games.
On that note, let's have a look at the hits and flops from the match:
Hit: Carlos Soler (Valencia)
Three penalties, three goals - Carlos Soler put champions Real Madrid to the sword with his spot-kick prowess - becoming the first player since Lionel Messi in March 2014 to score a La Liga hat-trick against Los Blancos. And remember, he's just a midfielder.
After initially missing his first penalty, he made no mistake when asked to retake following a VAR review. Soler then followed suit with his next two penalties too, showing great composure on each occasion. In the process, the Spaniard scored more goals in one game than he did in the entirety of the previous season.
He wasn't so impressive from open play, but Soler as clinical from the spot, and that made the difference against Real Madrid. Another interesting fact to note here is that Soler became just the third player in La Liga history to convert three penalties in a game and the first to do so since 1996.
Flop: Real Madrid's defence
Real Madrid's defensive prowess, which laid the foundation for their league success last season, already seems like a distant memory. The holders' defence has been in absolute shambles in recent weeks.
Following another horror show against Valencia, Real Madrid have now conceded ten goals in their last five competitive games.
Each of the four goals Real Madrid conceded at the Mestalla were a result of individual mistakes from their four defenders:
Vazquez was penalised for a handball for Valencia's opening goal; the hosts' second was an own goal by Varane; the second Valencia penalty was conceded by Marcelo after a clumsy challenge, and Carlos scored his third from the spot after Ramos handled the ball inside the area.
It was an absolutely calamitous day for the Real Madrid defence. Each time Los Che drove forward, a disaster was waiting to happen in the Real Madrid defence which was wobbly, disorganised and lackadaisical.
This is quickly becoming a recurring theme for Real Madrid, and Zinedine Zidane must find a cure to the malaise before it gets too late.
Hit: Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
A 'hit' despite conceding four goals? That's because Thibault Courtois really held his own even as Real Madrid's backline went through the motions. Interestingly, he dived the right way for all three of Valencia's penalties.
The towering Belgian was forced to make a couple of saves when the game was goalless. He even saved Soler's initial effort from the spot before the midfielder converted the retake. Later on, after the break, Courtois was at full stretch to deny Lee Kang-In's rasping effort from range, tipping it onto the post for one of his best saves this year.
Like it has been the case recently, Courtois was eventually let down by his own defence, and despite his best efforts, his clean sheet drought now extends to seven games in all competitions.
Flop: Isco (Real Madrid)
A fringe player for Real Madrid last season, Isco was heavily touted to leave in the summer, just like Gareth Bale, but opted to stay on and fight for his place. He was given a chance to do the same against Valencia. It was a golden opportunity to stake a claim for a spot in the XI, but Isco screwed it up..royally.
Starting on the left side of a three-man midfield, the 28-year old struggled to get involved in the game all night. He made 59 touches on the ball, the sixth most by any player in the game, but conjured nothing out of the ordinary besides one key pass early on.
Marco Asensio on the other flank was having a poor night too, but Isco's situation is far worse right now. He burst onto the scene with Los Blancos with much promise seven years ago, but at the Mestalla, the Spaniard failed to provide a reminder of his worth to the side. Isco doesn't seem to have much of a future at Madrid now.
Hit: Maxi Gomez (Valencia)
There were no goals for the Uruguayan striker Maxi Gomez against Real Madrid as his goal drought in the league extended to four games. But he was still very effective on the night for the Bats by forcing Real Madrid into mistakes with his movements on the ball and crosses inside the area.
It was Gomez's cross inside the Madrid box which Varane scuffed over into his own net to put Valencia ahead. Gomez then won his side's second penalty of the night in the 51st minute after drawing a foul from Marcelo.
With two goal-contributions, Gomez had a decent game.
