Real Madrid defeat gives Barcelona upper hand but has Zinedine Zidane finally learned his lesson?

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  • For a club with such a rich history and a reputation as a juggernaut of Spanish football, this has been one of their most disappointing seasons in recent times.

    They’ve struggled to find a rhythm and have been fumbling around in the dark trying to find their identity.

    They’re short of ideas in the final third, vulnerable at the back, have suffered some major upsets, are reliant on their talisman and have already dismissed one head coach this term.

    So how on earth are Barcelona top of La Liga?

    Quique Setien and his players will suggest they’re simply competing in another classic title race, but in their heart of hearts will know that they owe their position at the summit to the boggling faults of their fierce rivals.

    Despite being second-best in what was supposed to be a pivotal Clasico defeat last week, the Catalans find themselves two points clear at the top of the table again as a Lionel Messi penalty handed them a narrow 1-0 win over Real Sociedad.

    Their surprising position comes courtesy of yet another Real Madrid slip up in recent weeks. The Clasico victory aside, Los Blancos have now taken just one point from three league games.

    In fairness, they actually played well during the 2-2 draw against Celta Vigo and were unlucky not to win all three points. But they got what they deserved in a 1-0 defeat at Levante and now a 2-1 loss at Real Betis on Sunday night.

    What do those two games have in common?

    In each of those outings, Zinedine Zidane deployed Toni Kroos and Luka Modric in a midfield three anchored by Casemiro – a set-up that has consistently disappointed over the last couple of seasons.

    More importantly, the absence of the energetic Fede Valverde proved to offset the balance of the team and led to their downfall. Indeed, Madrid have only lost three league games this season, and the 21-year-old was missing from each of those starting XIs.

    Especially away from home and against opposition that, despite their struggles, have the quality in midfield to create opportunities, Madrid needed their dogged Uruguayan to work in tandem with Casemiro and deny them time on the ball.

    The South American midfielders operate in sync and have been at the heart of Real’s resurgence this season under Zidane. Valverde’s tenacity puts pressure on opposition midfielders, forcing them into loose touches or half-cooked passes while Casemiro sweeps up the pieces.

    It’s this combination which often sets up Madrid nicely in the transition as well with Valverde’s energy seeing him drive forward and support the attack.

    With Los Merengues sometimes lacking the creativity to break down oppositions, those transitions present them with alternative routes to goal.

    Instead, turnovers were at a premium while the likes of Nabil Fekir, Sergio Canales and Joaquin had time and space to hurt Madrid in key moments.

    What’s so strange about Valverde’s omission is that there was no midweek fixture last week and there isn’t one coming up either. So the decision then was purely tactical, and that’s a worry.

    The Casemiro-Valverde partnership gives Madrid an edge but even if it isn’t in play, the Kroos-Modric combo is not the answer. They looked much better when Mariano come on for the German international and played up top with Karim Benzema.

    A 4-4-2 system may not be ideal but at least it ensured that players didn’t occupy the same spaces and there was more freedom for Benzema while Mariano’s presence asked the Betis back-line a few questions.

    In the aftermath of the defeat Zidane was quick to label the performance their worst of the season and took total blame. Hopefully, he’s learned his lesson.

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