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“Whenever I emerge victorious they are unable to say a word,” the young star once remarked, but this time he didn’t win and they closed in for him. They said he was overly vocal; they replied that, indeed, they were going to meet him off the pitch; the message was talk is cheap. This included only the players: there was more from the preachers in media platforms, individuals who always have opinions.

On the eve the clásico, young Lamine Yamal who says he abandoned nervousness back in Mataró implied that Real Madrid rob and moan, or so it goes. He also offered a recollection that on his previous visit he stepped onto Madrid’s home ground – as a youngster with blaugrana dental work, a spark in his gaze and a right foot was unexpected he possessed – he beat them 4-0. Yet that was past and this was now. Moreover, an adult now, precisely twelve months later, he was beaten back. It was clear, as opponents made sure.

Jude Bellingham scores clásico decisive goal as the Madrid club pull clear of Barcelona

When the final whistle sounded on an intense, intense 262nd Madrid-Barca match that was somewhat like old times, the Barcelona winger walked towards Madrid’s captain, hand out. Instead of accepting it, Madrid’s captain made the classic talking motion. It had been hard enough keeping up with all the action that happened in the 105 minutes that went before, an encounter of numerous attempts, three goals recorded and three more ruled out; at that moment it became impossible.

All at once appeared players all around, racing in and out of view and converging, police pulling individuals away from each other. Amidst the melee, Thibaut Courtois took up the offer to resume this down the tunnel. The Brazilian forward was restrained, him saying to another player else they are too vocal. Barcelona’s winger hurried to stop his compatriot, Antonio Rüdiger also present. “The scene resembled our youth,” Aurélien Tchouaméni commented.

Turning Point

In April, the French star had written: “Opponents celebrate our defeats as if our winning days are over. We’ll be back.” Real Madrid were defeated in a clásico Spanish Cup showpiece 3-2 after additional minutes, a collective breakdown following the final whistle, ice cubes being thrown. A fortnight later, they were beaten again. Over four clásicos, the team had lost on each occasion, league, cup and Super Cup won by their rivals. They had conceded four, 5, 3 and four. However there remains tomorrow and as it happened he was right.

Only once had Barcelona ever secured five derbies in a row, Pep Guardiola’s record-breaking run ending with that 5-0 against Mourinho’s team, and it was not repeated. This past weekend, Real Madrid ended Hansi Flick’s perfect record in charge, defeating Barcelona 2-1 to move a significant margin clear at the top in La Liga.

Significance

The Madrid squad had needed the victory. Their post-match joy said so, team members celebrating together. So did the noise, the Bernabéu louder and more edgy compared to for such matches for years: “amazing,” Jude Bellingham called it. Manager Xabi Alonso said so too. Asked if this was a weight off his shoulders, if existed a mental block around important matches, a fixation, Xabi Alonso responded: “That’s you lot’s thing.” Yet he acknowledged that the result represented “not just three points, and where we come from and its importance to us; the boys needed the experience of winning a big game.”

In the previous campaign they had not won in such matches. On fourteen occasions they lost: Lille, Milan, Liverpool, Bilbao, city rivals, Sevilla-based, Atlético, eastern side and Arsenal all beat them. They did not achieve one victory versus a top-tier opponent. Carlo Ancelotti departed and was replaced by Alonso but it continued. The team secured five games at the Club World Cup, signs of tactical organization emerging, a game plan, but then came Paris Saint Germain.

Current Campaign

That defeat belongs to last season, the coach stated. But the next season, his term, started with a winning streak consecutively until Atlético visited and put 5 past them. The results were all well and good defeating newly promoted, Mallorca and Osasuna however, against elite opponents? Now at last they had beaten a major rival too. Moreover it wasn’t just that they won, it was the way they achieved it.

Barcelona had players out: backup keeper, Gavi, Dani Olmo, Robert Lewandowski and Andreas Christensen were absent. So too the winger, an important player may at least be fully recognised by his absence. Others weren’t fully fit, Jules Koundé and Lamine Yamal among them. On the bench were five players who hadn’t started in La Liga, two more who had started only once; teenagers, four 18-year-olds and two who are nineteen. And a centre-back, Uruguayan star, who ended it in attack once more. Even their manager was missing, Hansi Flick suspended and stuck in a radio cabin. His assistant, his assistant, was in the dugout on three occasions: he suffered defeats in each one.

Game Breakdown

Much discussion focuses of the team’s vulnerable high line, yet their offense struggled well during the match. Among the things directed to Lamine Yamal that day, perhaps the most telling came from the Brazilian during the game, mocking the teenager by telling him: “You’re all retreating balls.” Regarding their defense, more porous than before with the defender leaving, defensive intensity on passers dropping and coordination lacking, Levante created six clear chances versus Barcelona, another team 5, Sevilla five, Catalan club 3. Previously they trapped the French forward offside eight times in an open clásico; yet, lost amid the defeats, is the fact in the last meeting he got a hat-trick, Madrid consistently likely to get opportunities now.

Decisive Actions

With this approach, in particular. The match served as a start and also an end in itself. “Going forward we’re going to need much of what we did in this game,” the manager commented. The team had the ball in the net five times – three disallowed for offside – missed {a penalty|a spot-kick