Real Madrid's heavy defeat in Lille with many doubts about their future
Real Madrid started the season by winning the Super Cup against Atalanta but, little by little, their play has been diluted until conceding their first defeat in 37 consecutive matches without defeat.
The qualification for the round of 16 is not a concern, although they now occupy a historic 17th position and would have to play a preliminary round, the problem is that Ancelotti's design is not working and the stars are not shining as they should.
In Lille, the Whites experienced a French hell very similar to the one at the Metropolitano, perhaps that match wore the players down too much just three days before the Champions League.
Four huge tifos and many flares greeted Real Madrid during the anthem. In the match they faced a very intense opponent for 90 minutes who pressed all the balls that Tchouaméni, Camavinga, Bellingham and Valverde should dominate for Endrick and Vinicius to deploy in attack.
A lot of muscle and little ball control until Modric came on in the 60th minute. Bellingham wasted too much time covering Vinicius' runs and that prevented him from getting into the box. Endrick was fresher and broke through the French defence, but he came up against a great Chevalier who saved the great chance.
A handball by Camavinga as the referee was about to whistle for the end of the first half led to the penalty that gave rise to the French goal and a lot of doubts in Real Madrid. Before that, Lunin made a double save that reminded us why the Ukrainian took Kepa's place last season.
In the second half, Real Madrid received an unexpected visit from Mbappé. The Frenchman travelled to the north of France to watch his brother, a Lille player, but had to put on his shorts to face his first big test. And he failed. No dribbles, no dangerous shots. Güler had the equaliser in his head in stoppage time after a great pass from Modric, but the goalkeeper was in his place and the goal vanished.
Ancelotti's men had no other plans to look for a goal. Modric was the only one because Kroos is still withdrawn. The 4-4-2 will be the style of the future, with Bellingham attacking and those up front scoring goals. But that includes a sacrifice that will not be easy to manage.
A five-man defence, a goal conceded and an intense team put the European champions in serious trouble, while Atletico Madrid crashed to a 4-0 defeat at Benfica and Girona lost at home to Feyenoord (2-3). Lille celebrated the victory as a title and in the same style as Atleti, with their radical fans and the odd hooded man, while ignoring the rest of the crowd. Teams held captive by their ultras.