Real Madrid still need a goal-hungry striker, but plenty of positives for Santiago Solari

Andy West 08:28 02/12/2018
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Santiago Solari

    Goals at the beginning and the end of the game were enough to give Real Madrid a fully deserved victory over a lacklustre Valencia at the Bernabeu on Saturday night.

    There were plenty of positives for manager Santi Solari to enjoy, with several individuals delivering impressive performances and the overall team structure also looking more solid than generally has been the case this season.

    But it’s clear that the team remains far from perfect, and we review the ups and downs with our three key conclusions from the action.

    Real on the right path – but a long way to go

    Luka Modric was back to his best against Valencia.

    Luka Modric was back to his best against Valencia.

    This was a much better performance from Madrid, who were vastly superior to Valencia for the majority of the game and also withstood the brief flurry of pressure mounted by the visitors early in the second half without too many problems.

    With Karim Benzema effectively playing as a false nine, Luka Modric recovering his best level and Dani Carvajal a constant presence down the right flank, there was a greater fluidity about Real’s play than we have seen for much of the season, and also an improved intensity on the defensive side of the game as they worked hard to deny Valencia comfortable possession.

    However, there is still a fair way to go before Los Blancos can be truly considered as a serious challenger for major titles. Despite their dominance in the first half they created few clear chances, and the lack of penalty box penetration from Benzema and the up-and-down Gareth Bale remains a significant concern.

    Valencia, as poorly as they played, must have felt they had a chance of snatching a result until Lucas Vazquez settled the outcome with the second goal in the latter stages, and it’s impossible to avoid the conclusion that Real need to bolster their strike force with the addition of a goal-hungry striker who lives for the penalty box…someone perhaps similar to that Portuguese lad who’s doing OK for Juventus.

    Carvajal makes his mark

    Madrid players rush to congratulate Dani Carvajal who created the opening goal.

    Madrid players rush to congratulate Dani Carvajal who created the opening goal.

    One of the greatest regrets of former Real boss Julen Lopetegui should be the fact that Carvajal was absent through injury during the latter stages of his reign.

    It’s perhaps unusual to bestow so much importance upon a full-back, but an argument can be made that if Carvajal hadn’t limped off during his team’s Champions League loss at CSKA Moscow – the game which marked the beginning of the end for Lopetegui – the team would have picked up sufficient points to keep their manager in a job.

    Carvajal, who returned from injury as a substitute at Eibar last weekend, is surely the best right-back in the world when he’s on top form – as he was against Valencia on Saturday night. His excellence was highlighted by the opening goal, when he surged into the box to win a loose ball, classily stepped inside a challenge and then delivered a dangerous cross which Daniel Wass could only divert into his own goal.

    Performances of that nature were badly missed during his time on the sidelines, which coincided with the demise of Lopetegui – which makes Carvajal’s later comments that the fired manager was the best coach he has ever worked with sadly ironic.

    Solari finds a new midfield

    Dani Ceballos was excellent alongside Marcos Llorente in a two-man Real defensive midfield.

    Dani Ceballos was excellent alongside Marcos Llorente in a two-man Real defensive midfield.

    With Toni Kroos and Casemiro both ruled out through injury and Isco restricted to the bench in his ongoing ostracisation, Real boss Solari had little choice but to select youngsters Dani Ceballos and Marcos Llorente – who has barely featured over the last 12 months – into the midfield battleground.

    And whether by design or accident, on this evidence Solari appears to have found himself a brand-new midfield, because Ceballos and Llorente both delivered outstanding performances to spark a performance of welcome and rare intensity which should now become the norm from such a talented squad.

    Llorente was particularly impressive, completing 79 of his 83 attempted passes and also making several forward bursts including one which nearly created a goal for substitute Marco Asensio.

    Their dynamic presence also had the welcome side-effect of liberating Modric, who was able to concentrate on attacking duties with greater confidence in the knowledge that Ceballos and Llorente had things nicely tied up behind him.

    It was the best performance from the Croatian pass master for a long time, and perhaps that was coincidence considering the greater security behind him. Perhaps we should expect to see the Llorente-Ceballos axis more regularly in the future, even when Kroos and Casemiro have regained fitness.

    Recommended