Real Madrid recorded a phenomenal victory in the El Clasico duel in the second leg of the 2022/2023 Copa del Rey semifinals, Thursday. Despite acting as a guest team, El Real was able to silence host Barcelona at the Nou Camp, four goals without reply.
A landslide victory that made Barcelona really suffer. The defeat at home and at the same time lost hope of reaching the final even though in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu was able to lock in a one-goal victory without reply. Madrid turned winning 4-1 on aggregate.
The two teams almost played out a goalless draw in the first half. Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s goal was finally torn apart in extra time ahead of going to the locker room.
Vinicius Junior Jr. successfully completed the visitors’ quick counterattack. Beginning with Rodrygo’s efforts to beat Marcos Alonso. This goal was born from the accuracy and maturity of the Madrid players in taking advantage of the situation. Barcelona, which kept trying to look for opportunities, actually collided with the solidity of Los Blancos’ game, especially the tight defense at the back.
Barca’s only best chance came from Robert Lewandowski. The alertness of Thibaut Courtois in countering the aging striker also changed the course of the story. Apparently Vinicius’ goal from Karim Benzema’s assist was the start of Barcelona’s disaster. The second mentioned player really showed his strength. Benzema “exploded” after the interval.
The three additional goals were all born from the senior player from France. First in the 50th minute, then a penalty three minutes later, and closed in the 70th minute. Benzema’s first goal as well as Madrid’s second goal to reverse the aggregate score came from Eder Militao’s easy effort to take the ball from Sergio Busquets.
Followed by Modric’s movement, which was able to pass Sergi Roberto. From Modric, Benzema got the flow of the ball which was continued with an accurate “first time” shot. Apart from Benzema, Vini’s name is indeed worth mentioning. He was the creator behind both of Benzema’s goals. Madrid was awarded a penalty after Vini’s acceleration had to be violated by Franck Kessid in the forbidden box. Madrid’s closing goal was the result of the young Brazilian striker’s carefulness in seeing the empty space in front of his senior.
So, what made Benzema, the 35-year-old player, able to show his charm in front of Barcelona fans? Firstly, the overall statistics are not entirely in Madrid’s favor. Barcelona actually excelled in possession, 53 percent versus 47 percent. Not only that. Behind the domination of “ball possession”, Barca is also leading in the number of “shots.” Unfortunately, Barcelona is left behind in more important elements than that. Shots on target and goals.
Of the nine attempts released by Madrid, seven of them were “on target” with four goals created. While Barcelona with a greater number of “shots”, namely 11, only five of them were on target and sadly, none of them resulted in goals. Slow play on almost all fronts. On the front lines there were no significant movements and threats that were carried out in succession.
Robert Lewandowski after an attempt at the end of the first half, almost no longer showed his sharpness. Senior players who are still under contract for three years seem to have lost the best side as he showed with Bayern Munich before. Second, it’s not just about Lewandowski. The responsibility behind this defeat should be borne by all elements.
We can see how the performance of the midfield players that Xavi entrusted with responsibility to Kessie, Sergio Busquets and Sergi Roberto. They are also expected to be able to support Gavi, Lewandowski and Raphinha. But what happened was beyond expectations. Busquest crankcase running out of fuel. This situation is inversely proportional to the Madrid camp. Even though Luka Modric and Toni Kroos are no longer young, they are part of an energetic team game. Madrid can flow the ball quickly from foot to foot. From the two midfield conductors, they targeted Rodrygo, Federico Valverde, to Vini and Benzema
It’s no exaggeration if Madrid can then pick up a landslide victory. The price is worth paying for Barca’s less passionate performance. Third, is this the best composition that Xavi wants? Certainly not. Barcelona had to lose Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Ousmane Dembele and Andreas Christensen. Without these players Barca’s game is not as good as shown in domestic competition.
The loss of genius attack organizers and young players full of skills really affected the wheels of Barcelona’s game. Even so, behind the absence of several key players, Barcelona actually showed another weak point. This club may be mighty on the domestic stage. They are so powerful and the most favored to win LaLiga. However, when it comes to the atmosphere of big matches with the Champions League and Europa League as an example, the team is dead tick.
If so, is Barcelona mentally not ready to live in a more competitive competition? Fourth, in terms of effectiveness and toughness, Barcelona must recognize the opponent. Barcelona were unable to capitalize on the momentum in the first half when they could have done better. Barcelona had three chances in the second half. However, Eduardo Camavinga, Alaba, and Courtois were able to thwart it. In situations like this, Xavi doesn’t have many alternatives on the bench. Ferran Torres, Ansu Fati and Eric Garcia are the most likely to be counted on.
However, Garcia, who replaced Alonso, who was very overwhelmed in defense, almost caused problems. Luckily the late tackle only got a yellow card. Camavinga doesn’t seem to be getting a serious test from Raphinha. The Brazilian player, who is known for being agile and attractive, seemed to have lost his magic in front of the 20-year-old young midfielder.
Kessie even made Barcelona sink even more with a fatal foul in the penalty box. Mesut Ozil became one of the many footballers who spoke up shortly after the match was over. The former German national team player takes his hat off especially to his former teammate, Benzema. Less than a week later, Benzema scored another hat-trick. A few days ago, he did it in a six goal devoid of reply against Real Valladolid.
The three goals in this match made history in its own right. Benzema officially became the first European-born player to score three goals in an El Clasico duel since Gary Lineker in 1987. Benzema became the first Madrid player to score a hat-trick at the Nou Camp since Ferenc Puskas, the legend from Hungary, did it in 1963. “The King” is how Ozil praised Benzema on Twitter, plus three crown emojis. “THE KING My Boy Benzi! The best No. 9 of our generation.” As soon as Ozil’s complete tweet.
Apart from personal records and individual praise, what is certain is that this victory really means something to Madrid. Win duels with striking scores over arch enemies. A prestige-laden match that is never free from tension. Referee Jose Luis Martinez Munuera had to show a number of yellow cards. There were 29 violations committed by players from both sides. Xavi even received a yellow card for protesting excessively for the foul on Kessie.
Vini also stole the attention, not only in terms of assists and goals but also violations. He was involved in problems with Kessie and Gavi which forced Carlo Ancelotti to withdraw him from the field before the game was over. Madrid is now one step closer to the championship ladder. They will face Osasuna in early May. Osasuna into the final after getting rid of Athletic Bilbao with a thin aggregate, 2-1.
Looks like Madrid’s journey to the championship ladder will be difficult to dam. The victory over Barcelona, the team that is considered the best in LaLiga this season is a clear signal. In addition, the team from the Spanish capital is motivated to end the drought for the Copa del Rey title in the last nine years. The Copa del Rey and the Champions League are the stimulus for defending the first league title since 2019.
ASL
