Real Madrid managed to stay in the game against Chelsea despite a nightmare start in which they conceded three shots on target and one goal in the first 15 minutes. They found a first-half equalizer, courtesy of superstar striker Karim Benzema, and held on firmly in the second half despite being clearly hobbled.
It will all come down to the second leg at Stamford Bridge. Until then, let’s take a look at five takeaways from the 1-1 result at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano.
Real Madrid were not up to it
Simply put, this was another poor performance from Real Madrid. After drawing Real Betis this weekend in an uninspiring night at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, Los Blancos were equally weak for much of the first leg against Chelsea.
Real Madrid’s pressing scheme was poor. It was disorganized, ineffective, and way too easy for Chelsea to play through during the first 45 minutes. Los Blancos were, therefore, extremely lucky not to have conceded more than once.
On top of that, the midfielders were all less effective than usual. Casemiro looked out of sorts, Luka Modric is clearly gassed, and Toni Kroos was not able to control the match like he usually does due to an injury he is playing through.
The result was a lackluster performance from Real Madrid. And the fact that no attacker besides Benzema stepped up sealed the fact that they were never going to score more than once.
Marcelo was embarrassingly bad
Marcelo had a woeful performance against Getafe, and he was arguably worse against Chelsea. I mean, he looked worse, because he was going up against a much better side, and even though he should have been protected as a wing back, he still “distinguished” himself as a massive defensive liability. Even at the half, reporter Guillem Balague remarked that Los Blancos’ sideline instructed Marcelo to stop doing “whatever he was doing”.
Every time I watch him play, I don’t even see him on the screen, within the field of vision, on many attacks. In this game, Chelsea had a few dangerous spells of possession in the Real Madrid box, and Marcelo was nowhere near the penalty area.
He jogs back in defense. His attacking is ineffective aside from the occasional cross, though, thankfully, he had one decent one that led to Benzema’s goal three headers later. I bring up his attacking, because as a wing back, he was supposed to make up for his poor defending with excellent attacking. He did not do that.
Marcelo can’t start in the second leg. Ferland Mendy’s return is imperative to Real Madrid advancing to the Champions League Final, because Marcelo is such a huge liability that any decent side can exploit him. He is a shell of his former self, sadly.
Eder Militao was the only defender to show up
The Real Madrid defense is supposed to be the strength of the team, and even without Sergio Ramos, you’d thought they’d be strong at the back with Dani Carvajal and Raphael Varane back in the lineup. Plus, Nacho Fernandez has been great in Ramos’ absence this season.
Unfortunately, Nacho, Varane, and Carvajal were all poor. Carvajal was a non-factor in this game and subbed in the second half. Varane looked like he would make a decisive error at any moment. And Nacho spent more time hopelessly flailing at Chelsea players than making composed tackles.
But it was the young man who held everything together. We need to give Eder Militao all the praise in the world, he was one of THE standout players in yet another match, just as he was in the recent draws with Getafe and Real Betis.
According to WhoScored.com, Militao led the way with seven tackles, three interceptions, four clearances, and one blocked shot close to the six-yard box on Timo Werner.
Without Militao, Real would be at a serious disadvantage going into the second leg at Stamford Bridge. The 23-year-old may be known as a world-class center back in the near future. He has the full trust of Madridistas now.
Karim Benzema gave Real Madrid a chance
Karim Benzema deserves a ton of praise for another vital performance for Real Madrid. Eder Militao was the star of the defense, while Benzema was the clear standout in an otherwise meandering Royal White attack.
The French No. 9 nearly scored a goal from nothing, clattering the post with a great effort from outside the box with his weaker left foot. And then minutes later, Benzema scored the equalizer, heading the ball to himself after Casemiro and Eder Militao pinged around Marcelo’s cross in the box. And then Benzema followed up his own header with a thunderous volley, leaving Edouard Mendy with no chance.
Throughout the match, Benzema did the most with what little service he received from his struggling teammates. He did a good job of moving out wide, beating a defender, and keeping the ball circulating. Benzema put in a lot of the dirty work for Real Madrid against Chelsea, and he created his chances for himself.
Los Blancos had major issues with creating chances against the organized Chelsea defense, and if they did not have Benzema, they would not have been in this match at all. Benz’s hard work and clinical finishing have given Real hope and now a chance to steal the draw in the second leg next week at Stamford Bridge.
Optimism for the second leg
It may not seem like there is much room for optimism from the perspective of Real Madrid, but there actually is reason for Madridistas to be hopeful. And ironically enough, it’s because Los Blancos were so underwhelming in the first leg.
Real were not 100 percent. Eden Hazard was not healthy enough to start but completed a second game off the bench without any apparent issues. Luka Modric and Toni Kroos were fatigued and coming off injuries. Casemiro and Vinicius Junior looked tired. Ferland Mendy, Fede Valverde, and Sergio Ramos were all unavailable due to injuries. Dani Carvajal still has not played a full 90 minutes since returning from injury.
So this was not Real’s best performance at all. They could have lost 3-1, even. But they didn’t. They drew Chelsea and are right in the thick of it heading into the second leg. Better yet, they managed to hang in there despite obviously not being at their best health-wise.
Mendy and Valverde wll be back. Ramos should, too. Those are three massive, potentially game-changing returns. And if they are, they could be enough to switch the momentum from a lucky 1-1 draw to a deserved, narrow victory on the road.