In Lille, after Real Madrid’s first defeat after 36 games, the captains showed Vinicius and Mbappé their defensive gaps, according to sources close to one of those present. Obviously, this scene from a month ago does not explain everything that happens to the team, the most fragile version of Madrid in the last seven seasons in Europe. But it points to the place where the gregarious spirit that allowed them to endure one of the most devastating streaks of injuries last year and end up winning the League and the Champions League. If then Vinicius was the only player who seemed a little freed from defensive obligations, this season it is him and the Frenchman, whose contribution is significantly less: he presses half as much as the Brazilian and recovers only a third of the balls. But when they are surpassed, their participation ends there and behind them there are only eight defending.
That’s also where Real’s deficient defensive structure begins to open up, which burst in the last two games. He conceded seven goals at the Bernabéu, four from Barcelona and three from Milan, when the crash of the classic made a reaction expected. The seams are seen more clearly in the Champions League, where opponents are capable of generating more danger than in the last seven seasons, an average of 1.5 expected goals (xG) per game, according to the Hudl Statsbomb model, 40% more than the previous year.
Additionally, they allow for more dangerous shots than ever. They have become the team that provides the most facilities of all those in the Champions League. Opponents’ shots are worth an average of 0.13 xG, that is, 13% of similar attempts end in a goal. Last season the average shot of their rivals was only 0.08 xG. In this they are also 40% worse.
Various sources consulted close to the different strata of the club, from the offices to the locker room, agree in attributing this type of structural collapse to a drop in collective tension: they are less hungry and have a certain emotional exhaustion. The result is a team that runs less and with less conviction. This cooling of attitude complicates the implementation of Ancelotti’s plans. “I can’t say that my players are lazy, but at this moment we are not capable of doing effective collective work,” he said this Tuesday after the match.
It’s already November, they have played 16 games, and they are still looking for a configuration that can withstand the effects of the drop in tension and the holes in the squad, which has lost Carvajal, injured, and Nacho, in Arabia, and has no certain prospects to recover Alaba. Given the defensive bleeding and Lucas’ difficulties, the offices were already open yesterday to exploring the winter market, something that they had ruled out in recent weeks.
In addition to a structure, Ancelotti continues to look for the shock that wakes up the group. The club still trusts that the coach, with a contract until 2026, will achieve it, despite the terrible sensations of the 1-7 accumulated in the last two home games.
Although they also warn that the fall cannot continue. They host Osasuna on Saturday, who beat Barça 4-2 a little over a month ago. The event has become a control point for the dynamics of the determining group, which could lead the board to consider intervening to find a replacement on the bench. After the international break, they visit Liverpool at Anfield.
Some footballers believe that the necessary push does not depend only on the coach. They miss the drive of figures like Carvajal, who is, with Modric, the last member of the squad with the weight of leadership forged in the years of the three Champions Leagues in a row. They are both captains. With the winger injured and the Croatian consuming his last careers, the next generation has not yet given the essential growth spurt to unleash a rebellion when the goals begin to fall on them. Not after either.
After the 0-4 of the classic, no footballer appeared to offer explanations. After Milan’s 1-3, the trance fell on two secondary players: Lucas Vázquez and Lunin, who seemed devastated: “Puf…” he began. “I can’t say good night to you. The last two defeats are inexplicable.”
In the atmosphere of disintegration, the absence before the cameras of the regulars on the posters was mixed with criticism on social networks of Mina Bonino, Valverde’s partner, pointed out by Ancelotti as one of those who must now assume leadership: “I have “I have to close this because they are taking me prisoner,” he wrote. And he added in response to another user: “Where Fede plays best is as a pivot. When are they going to fucking understand that Fede is not extreme? Against Milan he occupied the right wing, even as a winger to help Lucas, who was greatly outmatched, with Leão. Like almost everyone, for whom Ancelotti predicted “very long nights” of digesting the fall and searching for the alarm clock.
