PreviousLive Chronicle
A low-light and overcast Madrid before Sergio Herrera slipped for the first time in the course against Osasuna, handing the LaLiga lead to Barcelona. Pasty for an hour, the last pressure did not reach him. He lacked play, relied on the center to the penalty area in many moments, and he couldn’t even win a penalty and against ten in the last stretch. He collected attackers – up to five – but he always lacked football. And for dessert he met a goalkeeper in front of him who confused Benzema like no other by action or mere presence. A few months ago, in El Sadar, the red keeper took two maximum penalties from the Frenchman in the same spot on the left. This time, face to face again, the white nine chose violence, strange for him, but nothing. His powerful shot hit the bar. Those from Jagoba Arrasate, spirited at the start and running for cover afterwards, didn’t need heroics to scrape a point again at La Castellana.
1
Andriy Lunin, Dani Carvajal (Mariano, min. 85), Rüdiger, Ferland Mendy (Eder Militao, min. 73), Alaba, Dani Ceballos (Camavinga, min. 52), Aurelien Tchouameni (Federico Valverde, min. 52), Kroos (Marco Asensio, min. 73), Benzema, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo
1
Herrera, Juan Cruz, David García, Unai García, Nacho Vidal (Aridane, min. 81), Brasanac (Aimar Oroz, min. 68), Jon Moncayola (Manu Sánchez, min. 81), Lucas Torró, Abde (Rubén Peña, min 68), Kike García (vs Budimir, min 81) and Moi Gómez
Gates 1-0 min 41: Vinicius Jr. 1-1 min. 49: Kike Garcia.
referee Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez
Yellow cards Dani Ceballos (min. 45), Abde (min. 46) and Kike García (min. 77)
Red cards David García (min. 77)
If Madrid remembered the Osasuna that had embittered him last year as he crouched in the ditch and vacated everything, nothing to do with it. This time the Navarrese were planted at the Bernabéu with a lot more rennet, breeding lines. The barn of points from the start drove them to more joy, and they didn’t come out badly. On the left, Abde, the most persistent in the task – also with an arrival from the right – stabbed; but the visitors lacked the poignancy to threaten the oddball Lunin, who came off the starting XI at home for the first time in three seasons after Courtois suffered sudden sciatic nerve pain. Nacho Vidal also had it, tearing a hole in his right hand but shooting with his fingernail.
Madrid, meanwhile, were used to taking the days easy, waiting to win through attrition. He didn’t suffer from excessive hot flashes in his Ukraine goalkeeper’s playpen either. It took 37 minutes to sew the first serious occasion. Vinicius found his field on the left, looking for Benzema and the Frenchman shot wide. Until then, a fuzzy team in attack, with little advance. Mendy took it from above the French nine, Vini fired into the box like a rookie and Rüdiger nodded his eyebrow.
But it’s already known that Madrid don’t care about the past. Little had played up until then and out of nowhere it was 1-0. Vinicius crossed from the front, nobody attacked the ball and, to everyone’s astonishment, he slipped into Sergio Herrera’s goal. Rüdiger and Benzema were further ahead, but the referee team interpreted that they were not involved in the action. Three years ago, Vinicius scored from almost the same position and collapsed crying like a child, already a victim of the general sarcasm for his misery in front of goal. This time he hit accidentally. For some, life changes a lot.
Ancelotti’s rounds
However, the game went red again. Around the break, Unai García faced competition from Kike García, a man with plenty of perch who could handle a wardrobe like Rüdiger. The visitor combed it beautifully and let it slide through the square to Lunin. The Osasuna forward sang line and had bingo a step away. Two minutes later and against Madrid in contemplative mode, Moi Gómez was put down to break into the box, sending Kike García and he must have seen it so clearly that he was left in the dark.
Ancelotti’s intervention was immediate. Camavinga and Valverde instead of Ceballos and Tchouameni on stage. A good dose of energy to rock Madrid. And from there, the draw, the changes and the local needs drove Osasuna to reclaim the 2021 version in the Castellana, which was scaled back and looking for a counterattack. This was also shown with reference.
Rodrygo had it after a great pass from Benzema and the Whites collected a good range of shots and crosses, more through pressure than lyrics. Carletto made another turn, with Alaba on the left, Camavinga and Valverde in the middle and a fourth attacker (Asensio). That’s where, on a tip from VAR, he found David García’s penalty against Benzema and the red centre-back’s dismissal. But not. Sergio Herrera was there to confuse the French again. Mariano still came out for the last attack. But none. In the end, the Riau-Riau ended up in the Bernabéu. First white skid.
Follow EL PAÍS Deportes on Facebook and Twitteror sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.