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Vazquez 4, Mbappe 6 | Real Madrid 1-3 AC Milan: Player ratings
Matchday 3 of the UEFA Champions League saw Real Madrid drawn up against AC Milan at Santiago Bernabeu in what was the team’s first game after the defeat to Barcelona in El Clasico.
Coming off the humiliating drubbing, the Merengues were expected to come out all guns blazing to turn their situation around and prove a point that they are still the best in the world. It is safe to say, however, that they were far from that on the night.
Milan took the early lead through a stunning Malick Thiaw header before Vinicius Jr drew level from the penalty spot. Alvaro Morata restored the visitors’ lead just 16 minutes later, however, and put the hosts under pressure.
AC Milan were the better side after the break as well, creating multiple chances and even taking a 3-1 lead with Tijjani Reijnders scoring the third.
Real Madrid astonishingly looked nowhere close to a comeback at any point in the game and unsurprisingly slumped to a second straight defeat. Madrid Universal brings you the player ratings from Real Madrid 1-3 AC Milan.
Andriy Lunin: 7.5
The Ukrainian shot-stopper had a busy night and was regularly tested against the Italian, forced to make four saves including two from inside the box in the first half alone. Not much he could do to stop the opener which the second goal was off a rebound after he saved the initial effort.
Made a sensational save to deny the visitors a third goal early in the second period. Completed the game with six saves to his name.
Ferland Mendy: 6
Mendy was constantly under pressure from Christian Pulisic’s attacking forays, yet racked up no defensive actions in the first 45 minutes. Was perfect with his distribution albeit minimally involved in the final third.
Antonio Rudiger: 5.5
The German was shaky at the back again, forming a rather unstable combination with Militao as has been the norm this season. Racked up eight defensive actions and completed 98% of his passes, yet was often placed too high to keep up with the visitors’ pacey counterattacks.
Scored a stunning goal to pull one back late for Los Blancos but had it ruled out for offside.
Eder Militao: 6
The Brazilian looked flustered from the get-go and often found himself out of position defending against Milan’s vicious counterattacks.
Was the team’s better defender in the game but still far from his best in terms of decision-making and equally at fault for the defensive collapse.
Lucas Vasquez: 4
A very rough night for Vazquez who was put up to a stern challenge against Raphael Leao. While he did better defensively than Mendy, he was also regularly threatened on the break and even allowed the winger space on the flank to get in behind the defence.
Struggled as the game progressed to keep Leao in check and once again highlighted the team’s need for a better defensive option at right-back. Was horrendous in the buildup for the third goal. A night to forget.
Aurelien Tchouameni: 7
The Frenchman was perhaps Real Madrid’s best midfielder in the first half, winning 100% of his duels participated and over ten defensive actions.
Held the team’s fortress and prevented Milan from breaking through the centre but did make an error that in part led to the second goal. Was taken off at half-time.
Federico Valverde: 6
Played just 45 minutes at the Bernabeu but was far from as influential as he usually is for Los Blancos. Managed just 16 passes throughout the first period in midfield and had just one defensive action, a testament to his off night given the normal powerhouse he is off the ball.
Jude Bellingham: 7
The English midfielder continued his deeper-lying role as has been the case throughout this season for Real Madrid. Worked hard off the ball but simply did not create any chances for himself in front of the goal. Did manage to rack up three key passes on the night, nevertheless.
Luka Modric: 6.5
The Croatian was handed the start for Real Madrid against the Rossoneri but even he struggled to orchestrate the play with his creativity given the disharmony on the field. Completed 94% of his passes, recorded two shots and just two defensive actions with one key pass.
Kylian Mbappe: 6
The Frenchman was anything but at his best against Milan as his struggles to make an impact in Real Madrid’s attack continued. Did record a couple of shots on target and decent distribution but lacked the X factor Los Blancos desperately expect of him in terms of finishing.
While his night was good in terms of numbers, he did not pass the eye test as his display on the field showed nowhere as much conviction as his numbers suggest.
Vinicius Jr: 8
The Ballon d’Or runner-up showed no signs of lack of confidence despite being snubbed of the award last week and turned up with a renewed fire to prove his worth. Was the Merengues’ best player in attack, always looking to create openings with his trickery.
Won a penalty to give his side the chance to equalise in the first half and stepped up to the spot himself to make it 1-1.
Brahim Diaz: 7
The youngster did well to up the tempo for Real Madrid after coming on and provided fresh legs in attack that improved the speed of the transition play.
Eduardo Camavinga: 6.5
A solid cameo from the youngster who filled into Tchouameni’s boots and put in a great defensive shift in midfield.
Rodrygo: 7
A handy appearance off the bench from the youngster who just returned from injury as he showed flashes of brilliance with his creativity.
Dani Ceballos: 6
Solid with his distribution and defensive contributions but did not provide any creativity on the field in a situation where Real Madrid desperately needed impetus in attack.
Roma made Real Madrid suffer for over 80 minutes on Wednesday night, and with a 3-1 lead, looked good for the win.
A flurry of set-pieces and accurate conversion, however, saved Los Blancos and helped them take all three points against the run of play.
The true depth of the club’s forward line was on full show on the night as Kylian Mbappe, Endrick and Carlos Espi all scored for Real Madrid and contributed to the 4-1 win.
What the result once again proved, however, is that the team under Jose Mourinho continues to have severe lacunae that will be punished by any elite European opposition.
Madrid Universal brings you three takeaways from Roma 3-4 Real Madrid.
A mess of an encounter
Real Madrid simply seem incapable of winning a game of football without suffering and making a massive mess out of it at this point, and the win last night did not change that perspective in any sense.
Los Blancos were outplayed by Roma for the major part of the night as the hosts played with more intent, attacking freedom and possession against Real Madrid.
Jose Mourinho’s men have been unconvincing on the road this season, and last night appeared set to go down as another defeat until a massive turn of events in the final ten minutes.
Earning back-to-back set pieces, Real Madrid managed to convert a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 win, but that does not speak to the team’s dominance in any capacity.
In the past, such a remontada would be celebrated as a mark of the team’s mentality, but those feelings do not seem to predominate this time around. Instead, the game is largely being viewed as an outing that exposed Real Madrid’s problems once again, but where they got fortunate enough to take three points.
The signs, at this point, continue to be extremely worrying and Mourinho and Co. have a lot of effort to put in if they are to overturn the team’s situation.
Substitutes outperform the starters
Jose Mourinho’s starting lineup against Roma was a representation of the mental picture the manager has of the team – and was his ‘strongest’ XI on paper.
Summer signings Marc Cucurella and Ibrahima Konate started in defence alongside Antonio Rudiger and Denzel Dumfries.
The ‘Gala’ midfield of Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde joined Jude Bellingham in midfield while Yan Diomande, Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe all started.
Despite all the big names featuring from the get-go, however, Real Madrid simply failed to create any passage of dominant play, nor did they create regular openings to score. Instead, they remained on the back foot comfortably, and matters only changed after substitutions rolled in.
Mourinho brought on Endrick and Arda Guler at the hour mark, replacing Vinicius and Dumfries, and thereby increased the attacking intensity. With Guler on the field, the team finally had a creative spark and Endrick constantly threatened the box.
Slightly later, the coach brought on Bernardo Silva for Aurelien Tchouameni, handing the team far more stability and control in midfield and restoring some level of order.
The arrivals of Carlos Espi and Alvaro Carreras in the 78th minute finally freed Real Madrid and they managed to pull off the comeback.
Every single one of the players who came on played a significant part in the comeback, be it the stability and creativity Silva and Guler offered or the attacking solutions Endrick and Espi brought. Even Carreras was an upgrade over Marc Cucurella.
How much disarray is too much disarray?
Given how Real Madrid’s midfield has looked this season, there will inevitably come a point when Jose Mourinho pulls the plug on the Valverde-Tchouameni plan.
The manager currently sees the duo as his best defensive midfield combination for the big games, but the disarray in midfield is growing with every game and the duo are unable to provide the control Real Madrid requires.
A breaking point, in that sense, will certainly arrive, but the bigger question is how much disarray is required for the manager to pull the plug on a plan that is clearly not working.
Against Roma last night, the game changed completely after Bernardo Silva came on for Tchouameni, and that alone shows how glaring the midfield problem currently is.
Not only did the Tchouameni-Valverde pairing struggle to keep possession, but they offered no attacking edge or creative spark and even looked shaky defensively.
There is an urgent need to bring the likes of Guler and Bernardo Silva into the starting dynamics for Real Madrid, and only time will tell when Mourinho will decide he has seen enough.
Hala_Madrid
November 5, 2024 at 10:45 pm
Time for a change. There is no sign of improvement. Bring in a coach who will utilize all the talents he has at his disposal and hold players accountable for their performances. It’s not rocket science to game plan against Madrid, Ancelotti is so predictable. Tonight’s substitutions took the cake. It seems Ancelotti is daring to get fired.
Hala_Madrid
November 5, 2024 at 10:51 pm
Mendy and Vazquez should not be starting. What happened to Endrick and Guler? Bring in a couple of right backs and center backs from the academy. Tchouameni is no longer a starter for Madrid. There was no improvement from the Barcelona beat down.