There are two sides to Real Madrid.
Nothing illustrated that better than Sunday’s game against Rayo Vallecano. Carlo Ancelotti’s team started the game with pace and dynamism, with key players having regained some of the enthusiasm lacking in recent matches. They were 2-0 up around the half-hour mark courtesy of brilliant goals from Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior.
Everything seemed settled. The hosts were in complete control. Then they relaxed and, from nowhere, Inigo Perez’s side started to make life difficult for them.
Pedro Diaz reduced the arrears before half-time with a fantastic long-range goal after a great team move. Then, through a nervy second half, Rayo came close to equalising. Cue whistles from a disgruntled crowd at the Bernabeu — not for the first time this season.
Yet Ancelotti remains confident ahead of the second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. “The fans didn’t like the second half, but many teams who played in the Champions League last week suffered this weekend,” said the Madrid manager, whose side are 2-1 up after the first game. “If we play like we did in the first half, we have a good chance of getting through the tie.”
Guillermo Rai dissects the main talking points from the Bernabeu.
Mbappe and Vinicius bare their teeth
In the three games leading up to the visit of Rayo, neither Mbappe nor Vinicius Jr had scored. Admittedly, the Frenchman had been absent against Real Sociedad as he recovered from dental surgery, but even so, that barren run felt rare.
After all, the pair had contributed 29 and 19 goals respectively in all competitions this season.
In last week’s first leg against Atletico, they were subjected to criticism at not only their scoring blank, but also a perceived lack of spark and invention. “In such a demanding season, that’s quite normal,” said Ancelotti ahead of the Rayo game. “The players with more quality have more ups and downs — it’s something genetic.”
On Sunday, both Mbappe and Vinicius Jr proved their coach right.
Mbappe celebrates after putting Real Madrid ahead (Sara Gordon/Real Madrid via Getty Images)
After only seven minutes, the Frenchman, brimming with confidence, latched onto a ball in the middle of the pitch and bypassed those Rayo players in his path to find Vinicius Jr, who almost opened the scoring. Shortly afterwards, the pair were at it again, this time with Vinicius Jr hitting the post and Mbappe just failing to convert the rebound, slipping as he connected to put his shot wide.
It was Vinicius Jr who found Mbappe for the team’s first goal, the latter curling a lovely shot into the corner of Augusto Batalla’s net. The majority inside the Bernabeu rose to acknowledge the slick play that had earned the hosts the lead, though Mbappe’s reaction reflected recent frustrations over criticism from supporters.
And just four minutes later, Florian Lejeune at the heart of the Rayo defence was tormented once again, this time as Vinicius Jr led him a merry dance before converting another goal oozing quality. That was his 103rd for the club, equalling his compatriot Ronaldo Nazario’s tally. No Brazilian has scored more for the club.
It should also have prompted a rout, only for further opportunities to be passed up. Suggestions the team might have scored more had their forward talents not been selfish were rejected by Ancelotti in the aftermath. “I didn’t see this individualism because the first goal was a pass from Vinicius to Mbappe and the second was a spectacular individuality from Vinicius,” said the manager. “They tried to combine as always.”
The pair’s performances also reinforced two ideas that the coaching staff have had internally for some time: if they compete at their capabilities, they can win games on their own, which, in turn, means the team need not worry too much about conceding more goals.
Vinicius Jr is now Real Madrid’s joint top-scoring Brazilian (Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
Tchouameni steps up for Bellingham
It’s hard to imagine it now, but Madrid fans booed Aurelien Tchouameni in the Copa del Rey game against Celta Vigo on 16 January.
Since then, much has changed for the 25-year-old, who has always been dogged by the shadow of his price tag having arrived from Monaco in the summer of 2022 for €80million (£67.1m; $86.7m) plus €20m in potential add ons.
There have been rumours about a possible move to the Premier League next summer, though those have surprised his camp who are not considering an exit at present.
Those close to Tchouameni were also adamant that it was time to keep quiet, allow his football to do the talking and that the situation could be reversed.
The Frenchman has featured most often this season as a central defender, though his natural position is in defensive midfield. Perhaps that explains why he struggled in matches such as the Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona. But the player remains committed to Ancelotti, with whom he enjoys a strong relationship. He was willing to help the team in the absence of the injured Eder Militao.
Tchouameni has returned to his natural position at Real Madrid (M Gracia Jimenez/Soccrates/Getty Images)
Now, over the last few games, Tchouameni has been able to return to his favoured position and is excelling. With Bellingham a little off the pace after his two-match suspension in La Liga, the Frenchman was more daring than usual, with eight passes into the final third of the pitch. But that didn’t stop him from having a passing accuracy of 92 per cent (48 out of 52 successful passes), while also thriving in other areas, including eight ball recoveries.
“Tchouameni has a very strong personality,” said Ancelotti. “He is a very serious worker and has handled criticism very well. Now he is playing very well with the ball and we didn’t have to discover that, without the ball, he is spectacular.”
David Alaba is back
Despite Madrid’s defensive struggles in the closing stages of the game, there were positives to be gleaned from the contribution of David Alaba.
The Austrian centre-back played a full game again after his recent recovery from an ACL injury that had kept him out for 399 days. Since his return against Las Palmas, the plan had been not to ask him to play two games in quick succession. Previous experience dictated they could not put that extra strain on his body. The idea is to maintain that approach for the foreseeable future, particularly if he features for more than 60 minutes.
But that doesn’t stop the Austrian national team captain from wanting to be more involved. In fact, he was unhappy at not being able to play and help his team against Atletico, according to sources close to the player.
Alaba has been keen for greater involvement (Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)
However, the coaching staff see him as a leader and consider his return key to helping the team in the season’s run-in.
Against Rayo, it was Alaba who organised the defensive line and orchestrated the team’s ball distribution. There he was, nine minutes in, urging his team-mates to accelerate the pace to bypass Rayo’s pressure. And on the quarter-hour mark, it was the Austrian who joined the attack as if he was a winger, winning a corner. Defensively, before half-time, he conjured one fine block to deny the visitors.
Over the 93 minutes, the defender racked up the second-best number of completed passes (55) and the third-highest number of team recoveries (five). More significantly, there was no sense that he feared suffering another injury. This was Alaba back to his best.
Now those same sources close to the player suggest the next step is accumulating matches. He only has Real Madrid on his mind.
(Top photo: Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
