Real Madrid vs. Villarreal: 4 takeaways as Los Blancos win but lose the title

Marco Asensio was invisible once more

“Invisible” is the most appropriate word to describe the vast majority of Marco Asensio’s performances this season. He’s scored some great goals in the past but precious few this season. And worse yet, his overall influences in matches has been essentially zero. Asensio offers little on the ball as a dribbler, he does not create chances for his teammates aside from the occasional cross from the left, and his brilliant technical quality is often wasted by his lack of willingness to take the initiative by getting on the ball.

Asensio has been poor all season long, but he honestly reached a new low for Real Madrid vs. Villarreal this Saturday afternoon at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano.

He was horrible in the first half. You could scarcely notice him on the pitch. He would drift around aimlessly, and his pressing was abysmal. A youth player could have literally offered more than Asensio, who is supposed to be one of the most highly regarded right wingers in Europe.

Instead, Asensio failed to provide any sort of an impact in a must-win, potentially title-deciding match for Real Madrid. That Los Blancos were considerably better and eventually won without him on the pitch tells you all you need to know about his role with the club. He is not a starting-caliber player for Los Merengues.