MAD 3 - 1 BAR: Tactical Errors That Made Barcelona Lose Their Game Against Real Madrid

Against the expectations of pundits and fans, Barcelona were roundly defeated 3-1 by Real Madrid at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu early this evening in a match that appears to be a battle between the “Matured” versus “Work in Progress”. Los Blanco’s young but mature players took Barcelona’s work-in-progress team to the cleaners by exploiting minor loopholes in the team. Ferran Torres gave Barcelona a lifeline after Madrid were 2 goals up courtesy of Karim Benzema and Federico Valverde. The game was however taken beyond Barca towards the final minutes after Rodrygo scored the third goal from the penalty spot.

Although Barcelona gave a good account of themselves considering their high possession and number of shots on target which were higher than their hosts, however, they lost the game as a result of tactical errors that have been costing the teams important games this season.

It is high time the coach, Xavi does something about the balance between the midfield and attack in this Barcelona team. During today’s El Clasico match, it was obvious that Sergio Busquets struggled to control the midfield while the likes of Toni Kroos and ageless Luka Modric were left to run riot as they dictated the rhythm of the game.

Also, Barcelona’s defensive structure is strewn with individual errors which were obvious when Eric Garcia was caught flat-footed in the moment that caused the penalty in favour of Madrid.