Real Madrid crashes out of the Champions League: lacking in football but not in heart

After what happened in London, no one expected a comeback based on football. Because that's something Real Madrid doesn't have this season. The tap has run dry and Ancelotti has been unable to find a starting eleven that plays anything like the team that won the European title last season. Without Kroos, nothing seems to work. Ceballos' plan was good, but he got injured at the worst possible moment and everything fell apart in the quarter-final first leg. That 3-0 scoreline hid a lot more, and the Bernabéu saw a Real Madrid side that died with all the players who brought glory to the Italian coach a year ago.

This type of coach is prone to such disasters. They are capable of motivating a team to turn the Bernabéu into a madhouse, but also of mutinying in their impossible approaches and giving minutes to players like Brahim in the 84th minute of the first leg and in the 75th minute of the second leg. There is no strategy other than to wait for those who are not even a shadow of what they were a few months ago to pull the cart. 

Vinicius has shut himself away on his wing and, against Arsenal, he spent the game running along the touchline to put balls into the box with no one there to finish or to force corners. The goal was an act of bravery, like Benzema's against Donnarumma. Saliba didn't expect the pressure and the Brazilian scored the 1-1, which meant nothing. 

It all started with the Santiago Bernabéu turned into a cauldron with a fearsome atmosphere for the opposition. But the football was missing, and everyone knew it. Either something extraordinary would happen or there would be nothing to do. And it happened. But in the Real Madrid area. Asencio grabbed Merino and the referee awarded a penalty minutes later after consulting VAR. Saka attempted a Panenka, but Courtois' long arms prevented it. It was a sign. Something could work. Even if there was no football and no plan to break the deadlock. 

What happened minutes later was a refereeing disaster. More than five minutes of review for a (slight) grab on Mbappé that VAR failed to handle. Fear gripped the referees, who resolved the play with an offside call on Rodrygo that only they saw, but which solved their problem. 

Madrid closed Arsenal down, but the personality of Odegaard, Partey and Rice himself made it impossible for any perfect storm to break out. There was just a shower of rain on Raya and a well-worked move that gave Saliba the chance to redeem himself and score the 1-0. 

Ancelotti was criticised for not having a decent plan for the comeback. Either that or he knows his players are not up to it. Mbappé left the field with an ankle injury after going it alone, and Rodrygo was unable to get into the box with any danger. Bellingham continues to run miles from goal, and Ceballos, Modric and Brahim were unable to change the team's fortunes in 20 minutes. 

Arsenal scored the 1-2 at the end and went through to the semi-finals with all honours, where Luis Enrique's PSG awaits them. Madrid put in a lot of heart, but not a shred of football. They must fight for the league while they can and, along the way, play a Copa del Rey final against Barça, who are in the Champions League semi-finals and will face Inter Milan. 

The Club World Cup is a long way off, even though it is an important objective this season. Ancelotti is no longer a catalyst for a defeated squad.