For almost the entire night, it seemed that Real Madrid was going to escape the fate predicted by the 176 centimeters of average height of its defense, as well as its inexperience. However, fate brought them down precisely as expected. From above. After 25 centers into the area, after just over 93 minutes of play in which they dominated the match, both the ball and the pace and the moments in which they surrounded Oblak, Atlético deactivated the local joy in the last aerial delivery . Memphis headed back from the front, and Llorente, also with his head, stole the victory from them, and that four-point gap that they had opened against Girona, the next visitor to the Bernabéu. What pointed to Brahim's consecrated night, who left the stands standing after a goal and a collection of prodigies, ended in disappointment.
1
Andriy Lunin, Nacho, Dani Carvajal, Lucas Vázquez, Ferland Mendy, Camavinga, Kroos, Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham (Dani Ceballos, min. 88), Rodrygo (Modric, min. 76) and Brahim Diaz (Joselu, min. 70)
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Oblak, Witsel, Savic, Mario Hermoso, Rodrigo Riquelme (Nahuel Molina, min. 45), Koke (Correa, min. 67), Saúl (Samuel Lino, min. 60), De Paul (Pablo Barrios Rivas, min. 61) , Marcos Llorente, Griezmann and Morata (Depay, min. 60)
Goals 1-0 min. 19: Brahim Diaz. 1-1 min. 93: Marcos Llorente.
Referee José María Sánchez Martínez
Yellow cards Saúl (min. 37), Mario Hermoso (min. 38), Pablo Barrios Rivas (min. 84) and Depay (min. 95)
You can't always escape fate, although Madrid has been avoiding its blows for months. The accumulation of his misfortunes marked how the game unfolded, although not in the way one might guess. There was the familiar: Rüdiger's injury on Thursday in Getafe and Tchouameni's last-minute yellow card that left Ancelotti without the most obvious circumstantial replacement for his penultimate healthy centre-back. The German's clash with Greenwood led him to place Carvajal as Nacho's partner. And in this Madrid of Murphy, where almost everyone who would be important not to get injured gets injured, the unexpected also happened. Vinicius went to the locker room early in the warm-up and a period of uncertainty, orders and counter-orders began.
Joselu stayed warming up, when the entire team was already preparing in the locker room, but the public address system announced Vini Jr. in the eleven. Minutes later, a last-minute change was announced over the loudspeakers: Joselu would start in place of the Brazilian, who, as it later became known, had suffered a cervical mishap. However, when the players appeared to start playing, the striker was not there, but Brahim, Ancelotti's last-minute idea.
But this year's Madrid is a team for which everything has been working just after the essential engine seized, or what any observer would point out as essential. It almost happened again. After three gargantuan derbies with 18 goals in which Atlético had always been ahead, this time Real struck first. And the blow was given by Brahim, who was there after a double carom derived from another misfortune. The man from Malaga believed more than anyone in a hubbub of several rebounds in the area and rewarded his team's dominance.
Until then, Madrid had ruled the show against Atlético with the brakes on. Simeone looked out from his balcony to ask his troops to hold together, with their line of five defenders, not to give in to the temptation of resorting to the lure of the ball that the rival was moving, not to get out of adjustment. They had little taste of the ball and it didn't last long. Madrid had camped very high up and were stealing quickly. Camavinga's deployment was overwhelming. The center of the field was his. There he stole, played with finesse and broke lines on the run. Everything happened through him and Kroos, and Bellingham, Rodrygo, Brahim and Valverde circulated around them.
The Uruguayan delivered another of his expansive performances, an all-in-one footballer. In defending his commitment, Ancelotti put Valverde as a crutch. He started as an addition, almost as a third center back, between Carvajal and Lucas. He also watched Griezmann almost with a mark on the man. Until the Frenchman got tired of him and moved to the other side.
There began Simeone's reforms, which also removed Riquelme, almost unheard of as a left winger. The Argentine went to a defense of four. Atlético was not fueled. He tried to exploit the invitation of the defenders' height with a barrage of crosses into the area that put Madrid in trouble and forced Lunin to make some punches and a good save to respond to a header from Witsel. These approaches made Real uncomfortable, but they did not end up producing anything on which to build much.
After an hour, Simeone maneuvered more vigorously: he introduced Memphis, Lino and Barrios, and removed Morata, Riquelme and Saúl. That transformed Atlético, who looked more decisively into the Lunin area. The Ukrainian, who has surpassed Kepa perhaps definitively, also left a burst of inspiration among those who hold matches: Griezmann back-heeled inside the small area and the goalkeeper warded off the problem.
Memphis' energy and Lino's depth complemented the Frenchman's creativity to hurt Madrid, but the step forward unprotected Atlético and Madrid launched themselves into the newly opened space. Valverde rode and rode, and as he approached the area he saw that there were four in white against two defenders. He left it to Rodrygo, but Oblak stood up.
Like Atlético, who maintained their conviction. Madrid did not tie the game, they remained agitated, and Simeone's men ended up ruining their night through the expected air route.
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