Real Madrid made it four wins in four since the pandemic put a hold on the La Liga season. Here are three takeaways from the 2-0 win over RCD Mallorca.
The goals came by way of a cheeky chip from Vinicius Junior in the first half and a stunning free-kick from center back Sergio Ramos just before the hour mark. While Zinedine Zidane‘s men did a fantastic job defending, they sure were tested by the side battling to retain a spot in Spain’s top flight.
The early going was a bit sketchy as Los Blancos took about 10 minutes to truly settle into a groove, but once they did, they controlled possession and limited clear cut chances from the visitors.
Here are the takeaways.
The left-wing link-up
With Casemiro suspended after picking up his 10th yellow card of the season against Real Sociedad, Zizou elected to deploy four forwards against Mallorca. Karim Benzema was in his usual no. nine spot, Gareth Bale and Vinicius occupied the wings, and Eden Hazard played as a free-roaming central attacking midfielder.
What impressed me most during this match was the interchanging play between Vini and fullback Ferland Mendy.
The two were causing problems for Mallorca all night and with Hazard roaming, it helped the two overload their opponent’s defense. On the goal Vinicius scored, even Gareth Bale swapped flanks and was helping on that left flank.
I don’t know if it was the formation or the help from Mendy, but the Brazilian forward was finding acres of space in the box and likely should’ve scored two in this match (he hit the crossbar just minutes after scoring).
The only negative from Mendy’s 90 minute performance was the yellow he was handed in the 80th minute which will see him miss the weekend tie with Espanyol.