Real Madrid finally triumphed in the Copa del Rey in extra time, but the problems remain: Vinicius, Ceballos, weak defense, limited creativity…
Real Madrid will enter the Copa del Rey quarter-final draw on Monday despite working hard in the round of 16 against Celta on Thursday. 'Los Blancos' won 2-0 as the clock ticked and the crowd at the Bernabéu fell silent as Celta found two goals to take the tie to extra time. Ultimately, the home side found the goals that provided a path to the next stage of the competition, but the overall performance was disappointing and left many questions unanswered.
The Madrilenians were greeted with a series of boos from a demanding Bernabeu faithful after the sub-par Spanish Super Cup final in Jeddah against Barcelona, a situation Ancelotti himself described as normal given the circumstances: “It's a wake-up call from the fans it is acceptable given what happened against Barcelona.” Madrid are moving forward and thoughts now turn to the LaLiga match against Las Palmas and the return of the Champions League next week.
Vinicius, no more contact
The Brazilian has failed to find the target over the past month; his last goal came on December 10, 2024. He finally scored a goal against Celta, but the striker is far from being at his best: he shot four times, three on goal, dribbled successfully only twice, created two chances… Currently the former Flamengo man has lost the spark he used to have, with Mbappe stealing the headlines in the striking department.
Following his spell at Mestalla, the Brazilian will now serve a two-match suspension and miss Las Palmas' league fixtures against Valladolid.
Ceballos fails to gel
Given the demanding playing list, Ancelotti is forced to change teams and the man from Seville is played in midfield together with Modric and Tchouameni.
As things stand, Ceballos is failing to generate the reliability needed in such a key position on the pitch. He made 68 passes in 72 minutes and failed to compliment the attackers. As things stand, he lacks the presence a central player should provide.
Negligent Camavinga
Few players have been as highly regarded by Real Madrid fans as Camavinga, but recent games have been plagued by a series of mistakes.
In Jeddah, with the score at 1-1, he gave away an inexplicable penalty on Gavi that ended with Lewandowski making it 2-1. The goal spelled Madrid's demise, while Barça would win comfortably. Against Celta, the France international made an even more serious blunder: he delivered a ball on the edge of the penalty area and Bamba made it 2-1.
More defensive mismatches
Raul Asencio was called back into the backline for the game against Celta as the team tried to press higher. During the Copa match, Celta scored a total of twelve shots, five of which were on target. The team, it was felt, was still reeling from the heavy defeat in Jeddah and continued to lack concentration defensively at key moments in the match, with Camavinga's error compounded by a mistake made by Asencio as he cleared the penalty that made the match 2-. 2.
Madrid have improved their attack, scoring 27 goals in their last eight games, averaging over three goals per game. But it is also true that they are not closing shop and in those same matches they have conceded fifteen, an average of almost two per match.
Creative crisis
Despite an increase in 'Los Blancos' striking numbers, the bulk of their attackers have come via counter-attacking or long-range strikes.
The absence of Toni Kroos continues to weigh heavily and midfield master Modric is now struggling to complete the ninety minutes
There is a growing feeling that Madrid are struggling to create continuous and sustained build-up play, but are now taking their chances because of the quality of their attackers.
Comments