3 things we learnt from Real Madrid’s comfortable 3-0 win over Mallorca

Real Madrid breezed past Mallorca in a 3-0 win at Iberostar Stadium and increased their lead on Sevilla to 10 points. A brace from Karim Benzema, including an assist, and a brilliant Vinicius Junior goal ensured Real Madrid take all three points home, and they’re now looking forward to the Clasico.

The win, though, was overshadowed by injuries to Karim Benzema, Rodrygo Goes and Ferland Mendy.

What did my notes tell me about this game?

Takefusa Kubo clearly isn’t at the level Real Madrid want him to be, yet

I covered Takefusa Kubo’s progress at Villarreal last season over on Villarreal USA, as well as on this site once he moved to Getafe. There were a bunch of things that made me feel excited about the player he could become in the future. And, there were a lot of things that could potentially get in the way of his development, including, well, himself.

That was on full display vs Real Madrid.

Kubo was sluggish with possession sometimes, taking heavy touches and going down very easily after minimal contact just because he knew he was going to lose the ball either way. The Japanese international didn’t make great decisions in the final third, either, which caused him to lose the ball many times during the game. Vazquez did an excellent job keeping him quiet during his time on the pitch, and Kubo certainly didn’t help his own case.

The commentator said that Kubo’s feet are working faster than his mind, and I guess that explains it perfectly. His battle with consistency was the main story during his not-so-successful time at Villarreal, and even though he has shown some sparks during his time in Spain, he still has a long way to go before he can make the squad for Real Madrid, which according to him is his main goal.