Real Madrid exit the Spanish Supercup in 2021 after losing their first matchup to Athletic Bilbao, 2-1. Here are three takeaways.
The slide continues for Real Madrid. After the 0-0 draw in snowy Pamplona over the weekend, Los Blancos were just as uninspiring in the semifinals of the Spanish Supercup. Weeks ago, Real defeated Athletic Club 3-1 after an early red card from noted pest Raul Garcia. But in this Thursday night match in Malaga, Garcia scored an early brace to give Bilbao a lead they would not relinquish.
Los Blancos fought hard in the second half, but it was too little, too late. Here are three takeaways from Real Madrid’s 2-1 defeat to Athletic Club in the Supercup.
An awful game from Lucas Vazquez
We have to start with Lucas Vazquez, because he had a real nightmare of a performance for Real Madrid. He made three dreadful mistakes in the first half, and two of those mistakes were roundly punished by Raul Garcia.
Vazquez had five key passes, per WhoScored.com, and he did everything he could to help the team in the attack. But to be honest, the key passes even flatter his offensive impact.
Even so, the main issue was Vazquez’s defending. He’s performed admirably in most games at right back this season, but, like the 2-0 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk, this was one of those matches where Zinedine Zidane was harshly reminded why Vazquez is no right back. Except this time, Alvaro Odriozola was available. So why didn’t the former Real Sociedad man start?
Vazquez wants more money in order to re-sign with Real Madrid, but he did not help his case in the Supercup. Surely, he’ll bounce back, though, because he’s been genuinely good this season.
Luka Modric, Toni Kroos play below their standard
You know Real Madrid are in for a rough night when their two world-class midfielders aren’t at their best.
Toni Kroos rarely ever misplaces a pass, yet he completed under 90 percent of his passes against Athletic Club. For most players, a completion percentage hovering just under 90 is actually good, but for Kroos, that qualifies as a poor day at the office.
He had a couple of nice crosses and switches to Ferland Mendy, though Athletic Club seemed to give Mendy space on purpose, perhaps knowing that he’s the least likely to create a chance with his crossing.
Modric had a tougher night than Kroos. He was swarmed with the ball and didn’t receive much help from the forwards in possession. Modric was worn-out and let down by his teammates before making way for Fede Valverde in the 67th minute.
Both of these guys are on the shortlist of Real Madrid’s MVP for the 2020-2021 season, so they will almost certainly perform at a higher level soon. This just wasn’t their night, and we have to be honest about that. Kroos and Modric, as brilliant as they are, won’t be world-class every night, and that’s when they need other players to step up. Those guys, specifically the forwards, did not do their jobs for the full 90 minutes.
Eden Hazard disappoints for Real Madrid
Real Madrid spent 100 million euros in 2019 for Eden Hazard to be their next big superstar after Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure to Juventus, and while Hazard has shown that superstar ability at times, Real haven’t exactly received their return on investment.
Most of that should be pinned on injuries, but Hazard needs to be criticized for his performance against Athletic Club. After Lucas Vazquez, Hazard was the worst player on the pitch for Los Blancos in the match.
He had a couple of dangerous moments, but those were moments created by teammates. As a whole, Hazard offered nothing incisive to Real’s attack. He was far from magical. And you’d expect a player of his caliber to provide much more threat to the opposition than he did in the Spanish Supercup semifinal fixture.
Hazard had one key pass, one foul drawn, and ZERO dribbles completed. He created nothing, really, for himself or his teammates, aside from one shot that Unai Simon had no problems diverting. It was a tame shot, for sure.
The pressure at Real Madrid is immense. It is a disappointment for any player to have a performance like this in a cup game. But for a player who cost the team more than anyone else on the transfer market currently in the squad, this performance is a failure that will be met with derision.
We must be careful not to exaggerate. Hazard is not a flop (yet). He is not useless. And he should still be the starter.
However, we can absolutely be critical. Hazard was dreadful, and Real Madrid cannot accept performances like this from a starting forward who is expected to be their best player.