Rocket party ends badly

In the 49th minute, Toni Kroos appeared on the video board, accompanied by his children and from the top of the penalty area, contemplating the crater that had formed in the center of the Madrid field. The crowd cheered him as if it were his last day in white. The team continues in the same spirit, looking for a model that works without the German. But his farewell doesn’t explain everything. The team has lost its appetite, Bellingham, who was once the queen bee, now looks only like a worker, Mbappe delivers goals without embellishment. Even Vinicius measured his attacks, but even in this case he is able to support Madrid. while the muses return. His rocket finished off Villarreal. Another, more expected blow from Valverde left him injured when he least deserved it. White’s victory was significantly minimized Carvajal’s knee injury at a discount. He left in tears and on a stretcher. Looks bad.

Losing teaches. In short, this was Ancelotti’s message after his disappointment at Lille. The defeat taught the Italian that decathletes should not be abused, that the team lacks a point ‘Finezza’ in formations where a balance between violins and trumpets is required. This is where the figure of Modric came in give the Ferrari driver a third point, with Valverde, iron man team, the only player in his position in the lineup, along with Camavinga, and ahead of the Croatian and Bellingham, the links with Vinicius and Mbappe. The stabilization plan took the weakest, Rodrigo. Last year there was no need for this reduction: it was enough to put Kroos in and follow the dotted line.

Of course, the goal that started it all went beyond the plan. Or it was part of another plan drawn on the board. Modric took the corner when everyone was waiting for him in the penalty area, and Valverde fired a rocket from 20 meters that hit the net after the finishing shot in Baena. Valverde and Baena: this goal had its own funny side.

Vinicius factor

So far, Villarreal Marcelino has played big: steel fist, glass jaw, great attack, invisible defense. It’s a real binge if the bills work, and they have worked so far because the table shows that more chicks went in than came out.. But at the Bernabeu he changed his plan: from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3, almost to 4-5-1, allowing him to combine three pivots. become stronger in midfield and open up a lot for Pepe and Baena.

With a missile on target on the touchline, you could say Villarreal were in control of the game early on. He faked twice before the score was 1-0 and made two more immediately after. with amazing headlines from Gueye and Barry. The first one touched the crossbar; the second one didn’t even come close to him.

The improvement in Madrid just appeared on the scoreboard. They lost the ball, pressed without faith or intensity, retreated poorly, stumbled on the flanks and created almost no chances. In any case, from behind he made a great judgment, and it was impossible to determine whether it was his own skill or yellow carelessness, because the Submarine is also not one of those who bite. This greater volatility was not enough to quiet the whispers at the Bernabeu, which were always a prelude to something worse.

Vinicius, the lone wolf, put an end to this worry. three attacks in his style: breakthrough, feint, acceleration and going beyond the baseline. He didn’t find a striker or a goal, but he raised the morale of the stands. And also the team’s opinion. Rüdiger tried it head on. Bellingham, from afar, with a torpedo that deviated from its target at the last moment. And Mbappe in a supersonic counter-attack, to which Vinicius gave continuity and meaning. Diego Conde stole a goal from the Frenchman with the toe of his boot guessing the final break. This signal from Vinicius turned the tide of the match until the break in the palm of Madrid. Even Pepe, who hopes to transform himself into a great footballer, disappeared from the scene after a magnificent first few minutes.

Dramatic ending

This quarter of an hour of turbulence passed for Madrid. Villarreal regained control with one touch in the second half. It caused less giddiness than at the start but left Ancelotti’s side chasing the ball and further chilled a Bernabeu side who already had a fly behind their ear. Tchuameni awarded Barry a penalty and saved it because his compatriot’s knee went out of bounds early in the game. Still feeling the fear, Alex Baena sent the ball into the net. Half an hour before the end of the match, Marcelino replaced Jeremi. Coming is explainable, leaving is debatable, the best advantage of the Submarine.

Ancelotti then seemed to give up on any improvement and began to salvage the score. He brought Militao, the advanced Chuameni, who has less joy than Camavinga, and even abandoned Mbappé. Madrid were predicted to have another rushed finish, but with Vinicius there is no predictable outcome. Without warning, outside his zone and also from 20 meters, he fired his second accurate missile of the night and finished off Villarreal. Valverde’s goal is signed by the Brazilian. Artillery fire from a cavalryman. Villarreal still had the strength to try to bring the score closer to reality with a few good chances, but it was not their day. Not Carvajal, who left with a knee injury, gesturing anxiously when nothing else mattered. A terrible end to a gray game.

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