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“As long as I emerge victorious they can’t say a word,” Lamine Yamal previously remarked, however on this occasion he came up short and opponents closed in for him. Comments were made he was overly vocal; came the response that, yeah, they were going to meet him off the pitch; they told him talk is cheap. And that was only the players: there was more from the preachers in their pulpits, men who never lose.

On the eve the clásico, the teenager who claims he left fear behind in his hometown implied that the Madrid side rob and complain, or so it goes. Additionally, he provided a reminder that on his previous visit he stepped onto the Santiago Bernabéu – a kid with blaugrana braces, a spark in his eye and his shooting ability they didn’t know he possessed – his team triumphed 4-0. Yet that was past and the present differed. Moreover, an adult now, precisely twelve months later, his side fell short. He knew, they told him so.

Jude Bellingham scores clásico winner as the Madrid club open a gap of Barcelona

When the final whistle sounded on an intense, heated 262nd clásico that was a little like past encounters, the Barcelona winger walked towards Dani Carvajal, offering a handshake. Rather than taking it, Carvajal made the old talking motion. It had been challenging keeping up with everything that unfolded in the 105 minutes that went before, an encounter of 38 shots, multiple scores scored and three more ruled out; now it was too much.

All at once appeared players all around, running in and out of sight and converging, security separating people away from each other. In the middle the melee, Madrid’s goalkeeper took up the invitation to resume the dispute in the dressing room area. Vinícius was being held back, he saying to someone else they talk to much. Barcelona’s winger hurried to intervene with his compatriot, the defender there too. “The scene resembled our youth,” the midfielder said.

Turning Point

In April, Tchouaméni had written: “They celebrate our defeats like we will never win again. We’ll be back.” Madrid had just lost a derby Copa del Rey showpiece 3-2 after additional minutes, a collective breakdown greeting the end, ice cubes being thrown. Two weeks later, they were beaten again. In four clásicos, Madrid had lost on each occasion, La Liga, cup and Super Cup going to Barcelona. They had conceded 4, five, 3 and 4. But there is always tomorrow and as it happened Tchouaméni proved correct.

Only once have the Catalan side ever secured 5 derbies consecutively, under Guardiola historic streak ending with that 5-0 against Mourinho’s team, and it wouldn’t happen again. On Sunday, Real Madrid ended the coach’s perfect record in charge, beating their arch-rivals 2-1 to move a significant margin clear at the top in La Liga.

What It Means

The Madrid squad required this. The celebration said so, players dancing together. Likewise, the crowd’s roar, the Bernabéu more vocal and intense than on a clásico day for years: “incredible,” the English midfielder described it. The coach echoed this. When questioned whether the win represented a weight off his shoulders, or existed a psychosis around big games, an obsession, he shot back: “That’s you lot’s thing.” Yet he acknowledged that the result represented “more than three points, and where we come from and what it means to us; the boys needed the experience of winning a major fixture.”

In the previous campaign Madrid failed to secure a win in such matches. On fourteen occasions they lost: French side, Milan, Liverpool, Athletic, Espanyol, Betis, city foes, Valencia and Arsenal all beat them. They did not achieve one victory versus a top-tier opponent. Carlo Ancelotti went and was replaced by Alonso yet the trend persisted. The team secured several victories at the Club World Cup, indications of tactical organization emerging, a game plan, however then came PSG.

Season Progress

That defeat is part of last season, Alonso said. Yet the new campaign, his season, started with six wins in a row before Atlético visited and scored five past them. It was all well and good defeating Oviedo, island team and Pamplona side but what about elite opponents? Finally they defeated a major rival too. And not only that they triumphed, it was the manner they achieved it.

Barcelona were missing out: Joan García, young midfielder, attacking midfielder, Robert Lewandowski and Andreas Christensen were all missing. So too the winger, an important player may at least be fully recognised by his absence. Others were not at 100%, defender and Lamine Yamal among them. On the bench they had several individuals who hadn’t started a league game, others who featured only once; two 17-year-olds, young talents and a couple who are 19. And defender, Uruguayan star, who ended it in attack once more. Additionally head coach was absent, Flick banned and located in a radio cabin. His assistant, Sorg, was in the dugout three times: he has lost all of them.

Game Breakdown

Much is made of the team’s defensive setup, yet their offense struggled effectively during the match. Among comments directed to Lamine Yamal that day, perhaps the most telling was from Vinícius mid-match, mocking the teenager by telling him: “You’re all backwards passes.” Regarding that backline, leakier than before with the defender departing, defensive intensity on opponents decreasing and the timing lacking, one opponent made six clear chances versus Barcelona, Rayo 5, Sevilla five, Girona 3. Last year they trapped the French forward offside on multiple occasions in a high-scoring game; however, lost amid the defeats, was that in their most recent match he scored three goals, Madrid consistently positioned to get opportunities currently.

Decisive Actions

Playing like this, in particular. The match served as a start as well as an end in itself. “Going forward we will require much of what we did today,” the manager said. They put shots result in goals on five occasions – three efforts disallowed due to offside – failed to convert {a penalty|a spot-kick