Real Madrid falls without defense
The match between Real Madrid and Valencia will go down in the history of Spanish soccer. The biggest defeat that Zidane suffers as a coach. The first time that three penalties were taken against the white team. Reason enough to set off the alarm bells in Real Madrid. But they should be sports alarms. They should make the defense work harder, improve the team's concentration, and look for a solution to the lack of goals. This is not the time to resurrect refereeing ghosts, nor to justify the defeat by the usual motivation with which Valencia plays when the Whites visit.
#Verbena
Lucas Vazquez made a hand in the first penalty. Marcelo provoked the second penalty to Maxi Gómez. Varane cleared inside his goal a center from the sideline to give away the third goal. Ramos slapped a ball embarrassingly in the area in the third penalty. There were celebrations in Spanish towns that were less entertaining than the Real Madrid defense. The French defender disappeared from the map with those mistakes against Manchester City. Ramos is on his own. More than Vinicius. His leadership covers up his mistakes. His renewal is still in the air because he wants to sign two years and the club offers him one and one more according to his performance. Florentino Pérez is not going to get his hands on a player over 30. Hierro, Raúl or Casillas know that the bracelet doesn't weigh that much when it comes to negotiating either.
#Errors
Real Madrid was a nonsense in Valencia. These are things that can happen in soccer, it's true. But when they happen to Madrid, you have to look for an answer. The team has lost confidence and has long since lost the intensity in every ball. They could have won the league by defending in those 13 games. But that's not what they live on. When an opponent presses him physically and makes him run, Zidane's people suffer a lot. It happened with Shaktar and Cadiz. All of this puts the team into a spiral of errors and insecurities that lead to unpredictable situations. They don't dominate the games and anything can happen.
#Controversy
Marcelo did not miss Maxi Gomez in the second penalty. The forward is ready and puts his body to benefit from the crash. The referee bites and the VAR does not warn because there is contact. But we have to rewind and ask ourselves why Asensio defended Gayá on the wing. How the wingback faked and threw Ramos to the ground. An unmarked forward inside the small area. The penalty was the least of it because the white defense had been leaking for many minutes.
#Varane
Varane's third goal failure is part of his bad timing. The play begins many seconds earlier on a possible foul by Cherysev on Asensio. There's little that a good retraction won't solve. Varane's move began in the second leg of the Champions League against City. He hasn't recovered his confidence and Ramos can't give it to him because he doesn't have enough. Now his rivals are attacking more. They step on the area more and the mistakes follow one another.
#Ramos
Ramos is a free soul at Real Madrid. The leader who manages the dressing room. The veteran who hasn't seen his moment to say goodbye. Against Valencia he went back up too many times too soon. A desire to score goals. Impotence to see how his team does not reach the rival's area. His presence forces to center balls and puts too much speed to the game. No coach is going to channel that waste of strength at this point. He is a winner and Real Madrid needs to win.
#Problems
While Madridism licks its wounds, Zidane's staff has a gaping hole. Veterans and novices. Zidanes and peacocks. They do not just fit in the template. We must banish the myth that hardened players help the "bisoños". The demand is maximum as to walk with didactic tasks. Real Madrid is reached with the homework done. The jumble of ages, needs, potential, charismas... is too varied for Zidane to put in order. But it's the whites' turn to battle with these weapons this season. And, as always, they will be capable of anything they want.