Real Madrid had an entertaining night. Scoring five goals in one game has been a rare feat for Los Blancos ever since Cristiano Ronaldo left in 2018, but they’ve done it. They’ve been a lot more free-scoring under Carlo Ancelotti than they were under Zinedine Zidane, but they’re also much more vulnerable defensively. I guess you’d take that though; instead of the 1-0s, and the 1-1s you’d now see some 5-2s and 3-3s. That’s much riskier and more gut-wrenching, but it’s also much more fun if done right.
Anyway, Real Madrid scored five in a brilliant second half-showing against Celta Vigo, who had their moments but never had control of the game. A hat-trick from Karim Benzema and a great Vinicius Jr goal, along with the debut goal for Eduardo Camavinga sealed the deal for Los Blancos. Real Madrid now sit top of La Liga with 10 points. Second-placed Valencia — who also have the same goal difference as Los Blancos — play against them next.
So, what did my scribbled notes have to say about this game?
Karim Benzema is, by far, the best player in La Liga
It’s just unfair. It’s unfair to teams that don’t have a player like Benzema. He ran the show all game. He kept Real Madrid in the game as he has done on so many occasions since Cristiano’s departure. He’s scoring goals and creating some for others at will. Five goals and four assists in just four league games? Benzema’s a blessing, and I wouldn’t give him away for all the money in the world.
He keeps performing well in every single game. Benzema opened the account for Real Madrid with a great volley from inside the box. His second was a header, which followed a brilliant Miguel Gutierrez cross. He scored his third from the spot, after Vinicius Jr opened his toolbox, riddled the defenders, and got fouled in Celta’s box. He also had a brilliant assist to Vinicius’s goal. It was a wonderful sight.
Benzema had six shot-creating actions, four key passes, three passes into the attacking third, and just a lot of other brilliant things that went under the radar. What I’m about to say next can be a bit controversial, but I genuinely think that based on form alone, Karim Benzema is currently a top-two player in the world. That might change soon when Cristiano and Messi really get going, but it might not. Benzema’s in a league of his own, and I won’t blame anyone for calling him not only the best in La Liga, but also in the world.
Vinicius Jr is slowly putting his troubles behind him
Vinicius Jr scored three league goals last season for Real Madrid. It wasn’t a good return, and it was not because of a lack of trying. He messed it up with a lot of really easy misses, and some very bad decision making in the final third. He’s slowly changing that, and I’m loving it so much.
Vinicius has now scored four goals this season in as many games. It’s still too early to say just how much he has improved, but I can say for sure that this is not a fluke. You can see his improvement even in shots that don’t go in. They’ve been more accurate and have been genuinely good looks, instead of him just taking a shot hurridly because he had nothing else to do.
Vinicius Jr is beating players with even more ease than before, and his decision making is also improving. in the first half, he tried to make a great pass in a 2v2 fastbreak when Karim Benzema was open. It didn’t work out the way he would’ve wanted it to, but it’s clear that he is working on his game. Carlo Ancelotti has had an everlasting impact on Vini’s game, and it’s beautiful and inspiring to see it bearing the fruits this early in the season.
If Vinicius can turn into the player he was bought to be, then there’s absolutely nothing that he won’t be able to do. Of course, there’s a lot of work still left to do, but you can’t think of it as a glass half empty, you know? Things are changing, and if he continues to go like this, La Liga might be in Real’s reach after all. I hope I wouldn’t have to eat my words, but Vinicius provides something to this attack that no one else can, and if he is able to broaden his skillset, it’ll prove to be of a lot of help for his teammate, Karim Benzema.
Real Madrid’s defense needs to improve in a lot of ways
I think this has been a constant in my takeaways for this season. The defense simply hasn’t been good enough. There’s no other way around it. You need to be attentive at all times, you need to do everything right, or else, you will suffer. Real Madrid suffered in the few chances they gave away. They let Celta score two goals in the first half alone, both of which could’ve been easily prevented.
First one was just a mess all around. Miguel tried to pass the ball to Nacho when he was under pressure from Iago Aspas. Nacho couldn’t get to it in time because the pass was too slow. This forced Casemiro to get involved and somehow prevent the chance from being created. But, not only did he fail to do that, but he also left his man free. The man was Santi Mina, who scored the goal a few seconds later. It was a very chaotic goal, one that could’ve been prevented.
The second goal was because of the space left behind by both Miguel and Nacho. Miguel was getting back to the defensive third, but then Nacho decided to go towards the ball carrier to force him into turning over possession. Instead, he left a huge chunk of space for Celta Vigo, and they made the best use of it. It was not fun watching these two goals going in.
Alaba’s return will help in that regard, but the issue is also with Real’s pressing. It was great for the majority of the game. But there were a few instances where it just didn’t make much sense. For example, in the second goal as I explained above. There were some sequences that showed that it was a flawed press. Sometimes they do it too much, sometimes not enough. The balance is key, and it’s the difference between teams that press well and teams that don’t.
There were also a bunch of really careless giveaways. For example, in the first half, Carvajal — who had a decent game overall — just gave away the ball carelessly, trying to pass it to Nacho from the midfield with his weak foot. There were many Celta players surrounding him, and it just didn’t make sense for him to do that. He also made a couple of weird passes through the flanks, that went out for throw ins. Little things like this matter, and sometimes you win or lose games over it.
The result overall was great, and hopefully the team keeps on improving. There’s no time to waste; they face Inter in the Champions League on Wednesday.