There is no worse feeling than losing an El Clasico, but giving Real Madrid the three points on a plate in the Spotify Camp Nou is simply frustrating. FC Barcelona suffered a heart-breaking 2-1 loss to end their nine game clean run in La Liga, but this wasn’t down to their opponents being superior on the pitch, but due to Barcelona’s two stupid errors.
Without Vinícius Junior due to suspension, Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid had no intention of posession play. They sat back with 37% possession and watched for Barcelona to give the points away. Their patience paid off with two silly mistakes from Gerard Martin in the first half and a disastrous moment from Gabriel Jesus and Pau Cubarsi in the 87th minute. This allowed Kylian Mbappe to leave with a brace.
Slow start sees Martin’s mistake
Barcelona started the match looking like they were suffering from a hangover after losing 4-2 in Paris on Tuesday. The team lacked energy in their build-up play in the opening 35 minutes. However, it got worse for them in the 29th minute as their young gem, Xavi Espart, was taken off early which led to Alejandro Balde coming on.
Despite Barcelona failing to get into their stride, Real Madrid couldn’t create anything in open play. However, they did manage to create something in the 41st minute. Gerard Martin made a stupid mistake in a routine defensive situation. He lost his head in front of Mbappe, which caused him to mess up his clearance. Martin watched in horror as the ball went in past Joan Garcia. It was a devastating moment for Barcelona as they went into the changing room 1-0 down, despite Real Madrid not having a coherent attack.
Flick’s half-time talk pays off
Flick must have said something at half-time as they came back into the game. After the break, the team dominated Real Madrid by pressing high. They had 63% possession and completed 581 passes, with a 90% accuracy rate.
In the 61st minute, Pedri and Raphinha provided the spark for Barcelona. They combined well with a short corner routine. Pedri played in Raphinha with a disguised pass. The Brazilian fired a powerful shot past Jude Bellingham and into the back of the net. It was a stunning equaliser.
From this point on, only one team could win.
Gerard Martin tried to redeem himself in the 65th minute after his mistake. He headed the ball from six yards out, however, Lunin saved brilliantly. In the 73rd and 78th minutes, Lamine Yamal danced into space twice. He then played a wicked outside of the boot cross shot into the box. From here he curled his left foot shot inches past the post.
Real Madrid were struggling. They were desperate for the final whistle to come. A draw would have meant that Barcelona still had a six point lead.
Jesus and Cubarsí’s ridiculous mistake
In the 85th minute, Flick decided to try and change things up. They brought on Gabriel Jesus and Karim Adeyemi for Raphinha and Anthony Gordon.
However, Jesus made a stupid mistake within 120 seconds. Barcelona were playing high up the park and Jesus lost his head with the ball. He was easily picked off by Jude Bellingham. This led to a dangerous 3v2.
Bellingham played in Eduardo Camavinga. This is where Barcelona’s problems began. Pau Cubarsí has played every minute this season due to injuries to Jules Kounde, Eric Garcia and Andreas Christensen. The 19 year old had no energy left in his legs. Camavinga ran past the tired centre-back and reached the by-line. He played the ball back past Joan Garcia to Mbappe who tapped it into the empty net in the 87th minute.
Mourinho crawling down the touchline summed up how delighted he was with this result. They had only managed to take nine shots throughout the entire game. Instead of building up a nine point lead over Los Blancos, Barcelona now have a three point lead after losing twice in five days. Despite their attacking brilliance, they need to stop giving goals to world class strikers if they want to dominate with possession.
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