Real Madrid 2 – 3 FC Barcelona: 3 Takeaways from Real Madrid’s Devastating Loss in El Clásico

Real Madrid blew it at the Santiago Bernabéu, losing 2-3 to FC Barcelona in a match that may be devastating for Madrid’s title chances. Alex McVey gives you three thoughts from the heartbreaking loss.

The Will to Win Backfires, Massively

I’ve written several times now, here and here, about the winning mentality that Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has instilled in his side.

It looked, for 7 fateful minutes, like we were witnessing an exemplary display of that will to win (or at least not lose), when a 10-man Madrid fought back to a 2-2 draw.

That result would have been a perfectly fine one for Madrid to see out. All Real needed to do was not allow Barcelona to score in the last 30 seconds of the game, and they would have been sitting pretty at the top of the table, with a winnable game still in hand.

But it was not to be.

Instead, Zidane’s men decided to press for a third goal, something that Zizou’s post-match comments indicates was a strategic decision made by the manager himself.

Mateo Kovačić and Luka Modrić, amped up from the adrenaline of equalizing just minutes earlier, bombed up the field with Cristiano Ronaldo in an attempt to snap up a last-minute winner. This allowed Sergi Roberto to breeze past a winded Marcelo, creating a 5 on 3 Barcelona counter-attack that eventually found Lionel Messi, who silenced the Bernabéu with a winning goal of his own.

Zidane’s Madrid has the capability to kick the game up into a higher gear when they’re searching for an equalizer or a winner. Unfortunately, it’s unclear whether they have the ability to shift back down once they’re going full speed.

That inability to adjust and close out the last minutes of the match may have given Barcelona the momentum they need to snatch the title out from under Madrid’s noses. After losing El Clasico, Real Madrid now have to win all of their remaining games if they want to win their first league title since 2012.

Real Madrid got Messi’d, as Ronaldo Goes Missing

One of the reasons why discussions of form go out the window whenever El Clásico rolls around is that both teams have superstars that can single-handedly decide matches in the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

In the eternal battle of La Pulga vs. The Dark Invader, Messi won today, and it wasn’t even close.

Ronaldo has been immense for Real Madrid as of late, but he simply could not find his shooting boots in this El Clásico showdown. He started strong, ripping Barca’s back line to shreds and testing the Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen with a number of stinging shots from distance.

But as the match wore on Ronaldo grew a more frustrated figure. Especially painful was when he skied a chance to slot the ball into an open net following an excellent run from Marco Asensio.

Messi, on the other hand, was rampant. He embarrassed Casemiro a number of times in the first half, and Casemiro was once again lucky to not have been sent off the pitch trying to deal with the Argentinian.

He orchestrated Barca’s attack, for much of the match with blood in his mouth from a (completely accidental) Marcelo elbow. His super-clutch last-minute El Clásico winner will go down in the annals of Barca history if the Catalans end up snatching league victory from the jaws of defeat.

What in the World was Sergio Ramos Doing?

This has to go down as one of Sergio Ramos’ worst all-time performances in El Clásico, and maybe even in a Madrid shirt.

It’s made even worse by the fact that it couldn’t have come at a costlier time. As per the below from Squawka, Ramos failed to make a single tackle or interception before getting sent off.

Sergio Ramos has a history of losing his head in El Clásico, as detailed by The Real Champs’ Luis Castillo.

Today was no different.

He clumsily went in studs up on a tackle on a breaking Lionel Messi, and while it is questionable whether he made contact with Messi, he also definitely didn’t get the ball. It was a stupid, stupid tackle, and he invited the referee to make the decision he did.

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But the dumbest things Ramos did today were all after the tackle itself. First, he butted heads, lightly, but still making slight contact, against the referee. Second, as he was about to go down the tunnel, he sarcastically applauded. This is the exact same behavior that got Neymar a retrospective ban.

While Ramos may claim that his gestures were directed at Pique rather than the referee, I hardly doubt the powers that be will be in a mood to listen to Ramos’ excuses.

He is likely to face a multiple match ban. With Madrid in the middle of a defensive injury crisis, Ramos’ stupidity could prove to be the nail in Madrid’s title hopes.