Eibar 1 – 4 Real Madrid: Three Takeaways From the Match

Real Madrid defeated Eibar 4-1 in a league match in the Basque country. Alex McVey gives his initial impression with three thoughts about the match.

1. Benzema Silenced His Critics… For Now…

Complaints from the Madrid faithful surrounding Karim Benzema’s place in the starting lineup have grown to a fever pitch in recent weeks. Benzema’s profligacy in front of goal compared to Alvaro Morata’s precision has led many to believe that the Frenchman should be benched, a wish that was granted when Morata started against Las Palmas. Although Morata didn’t play poorly in that match, he had three goals (rightly or wrongly) ruled offside, ultimately failing to make an impact.

That set the stage for Benzema to reaffirm his value to Zidane, and he played his part with aplomb. Despite not having bagged a brace in league for over a year, Benzema put two in the Eibar net, assisted James on the third goal, and began the move that would ultimately lead to Asensio’s goal, sending Asensio away with a great ball over the top. When he plays with Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema’s subtle, intelligent hold-up play often goes unnoticed. His contributions fail to register in the usual metrics by which strikers are judged.

Against Eibar, though, Benzema enjoyed being the focal point of Madrid’s offense, conducting Madrid’s players in the attacking third of the pitch, and combining especially well with James, as evidenced by the graphic below.

The Benzema vs. Morata debate is far from settled, as the presence of two top-notch strikers provides Zidane with a selection headache that most managers would kill for. However, it seems as if Benzema might have just sealed his place in the starting lineup, at least for now. Hopefully this performance will keep Benzema’s boo boys quiet for at least a few weeks.

2. This Squad is Allergic to Clean Sheets

The question is not if Real Madrid is going to concede, it’s when  Real Madrid are going to concede. Because let’s be honest, at some point, Real Madrid are going to concede. The Real Champs’ Ben Sundock recently discussed Keylor Navas’ inability to keep a clean sheet, writing, “In 23 appearances this season in Champions League and La Liga play, Navas has registered just 4 clean sheets.” Real Madrid simply cannot seem to keep the ball out of the back of the net this season, and Eibar was no exception.

Real Madrid simply cannot seem to keep the ball out of the back of the net this season, and Eibar was no exception.

Perhaps it is no surprise that they conceded in Eibar; As the tweet below shows, Madrid is especially bad at keeping clean sheets away from home.

Additionally, Real Madrid did not do a great job preventing Eibar from taking chances at their goal (see the graphic from Sportify below). While Real Madrid’s offense was potent, they’re still not doing enough to prevent goals from being scored. Against better teams, this defensive leakiness could cost us big if we are unable to outgun our opponents.

Also, Twitter was hilariously savage about this:

3. The Bench Comes Up Big

When the lineup was rolled out today, it seemed like Zizou was taking a big gamble against Eibar. Reportedly coming under some criticism following the Las Palmas draw from players, fans, and media alike for his overly-zealous rotation policy and for not taking the league’s mid-table clubs seriously enough, it seemed Zidane was about to repeat his mistakes. Key players Toni Kroos, Isco, Dani Carvajal, and Marcelo were all kept on the bench, as starting spots were offered to the likes of more fringe players like Lucas Vázquez, Asensio, James Rodriguez, and the oft-derided Danilo.

Perhaps the theme of today’s match was “Frenchmen silencing their critics,” as Zizou’s gamble with the bench paid off big-time. James excelled in his partnership with Benzema, and scored a peach of a goal off the tip of his toe. Asensio demonstrated his supreme intelligence and his tremendous potential, making smart moves all over the park. Even Danilo had a relatively solid match, making few blunders and contributing smartly to the attack.

Madrid was able to let key players rest ahead of a tough match against Napoli, and managed to make it through with 3 points despite missing Bale and Morata through suspension. That has to count as a win and more proof that there is a method to Zidane’s rotation madness.