Three takeaways as Real Madrid draw in Barcelona

Zinedine Zidane hands his doubters yet another L:

His first reign as manager was trophy-laden, iced with the three consecutive Champions League wins, yet, Zidane was still doubted and questioned. A poor run with a deflated team last season and poor results in a meaningless preseason were enough to have his credentials called into question, how did the Frenchman respond? He showcased exactly why he should not have been doubted in the first place and why patience is indeed a virtue.

There was the brilliant performance against PSG, the solidity against Sevilla and Atletico Madrid, the bright half against Valencia – he’s pulled off fantastic performances and results even with key players missing at times. Once again, he did the same at the Camp Nou.

Despite being without his marquee attacker Eden Hazard and long-standing left-back Marcelo, Real out-performed Barça at their own game in their backyard. They were controlling on the ball, they posed threat at set-pieces, they created chances – Real were unfortunate not to take the win.

Zidane set the team up absolutely perfectly – the press was cohesive, the defence was solid. In fact, come the early part of the second half, Real Madrid had made 40 ball retrievals compared to Barça’s 25 – they hustled harder for every single ball. Little over 15 minutes into the second half? Real had 13 shots registered to Barça’s measly 2. All that was missing was that little bit of luck for the goal, a solid shout for a penalty was ignored and a goal was disallowed for a very tight offside call.

Consider that Real were nursing their way into this game and even during it – Sergio Ramos played the game with a sprained ankle! Zidane rallied the troops and got them to perform like the champions we knew they are. He deserves all the credit for that, he deserves the credit for reviving the lifeless carcass of what was left from last season and making them look like a force again. Vamos Zizou.