Real Madrid vs Espanyol

21 September 2024
Santiago Bernabéu

1st Half Highlights

We had Guler, Fran Garcia, and Modric as the starting players in this match. Ancelotti rested Vini and Rüdiger on the bench, which was different from the other matches. Madrid’s formation was one, three, two, and four for today. So far, Real Madrid is unbeaten in 37 matches in La Liga, 33 games in all competitions, and 26 matches on home ground in La Liga.

In the 3rd minute, Guler moved ahead into the box from the left flank, and he charged toward the goal, but the ball was easily handled by the goalkeeper.

In the 5th minute, Madrid got two corner kicks consecutively, but they were unable to exploit the situation. Immediately afterward, Rodrygo received the ball on the left side of the box and passed it to Militao, who was inside the box. He was on the left and close to the post; instead of taking a shot himself, he passed the ball toward the center, where no one was there to receive it. This way, one good opportunity was missed. For the time being, the main striker was Militao, as per the commentator.

Around the same time, Bellingham injured himself while sliding to intervene in a ball from an opposing player. However, he continued afterward with no problem.

In the 10th minute, García threw the ball into the box for Guler, and he, in turn, headed the ball to Mbappe. Mbappe took a close shot from the left side, but the shot was blocked by the keeper. They got a corner afterward. From Modric’s corner, Militao headed for the post, but the ball went high above the bar and out.

In the 14th minute, Güler took a left-footed shot at the goalpost from just outside the box; the keeper held the ball with no difficulty at all. Guler had been doing quite well on the right side of the field.

Real Madrid had 5 shots on goal, while Espanyol had none so far in the game. Madrid maintained good control of the game, and Espanyol rarely managed to organize and lead attacks. The game remained goalless until the 15-minute mark.

Fran García tried a long shot from the left side just outside the 18-yard line, but the ball was blocked by the keeper. Fran García had been very agile and worked hard for the team. He played from the start in this match.

In the 21st minute, Mbappe received the ball from Rodrygo just about the 18-yard line. Mbappe rushed forward and shot a powerful ground ball toward the post; again, the goalkeeper was alert and managed to hold the ball with his body on the ground. The shot was straight; if it had been slightly angled, it could have resulted in a goal, as the ball was quite powerful.

Modric passed a good ball to Mbappé inside the box in the 28th minute, and Mbappe tried to send the ball into the post with a slight touch, but the keeper was able to grab that ball too. If Mbappe had put more power into that shot, it could have gone into the net.

Mbappe received a yellow card for his gesture and argument with the referee when the referee blew the whistle for his offside position in the 32nd minute.

In the 37th minute, in addition to the constant attack on the Espanyol goalpost, Bellingham had a powerful shot from just outside the 18-yard line, which was well held by the keeper as the ball was straight at him. The score remained zero for both teams.

At one point, in the 38th minute, an Espanyol player took a long shot from the center of the field at Madrid’s goalpost when he noticed goalkeeper Courtois had come well out of his area. Courtois had to run back quickly to his post to deflect the ball, but it was too high and went well off-target.

Lucas Vázquez replaced Carvajal in the 60th minute.

In the 45th minute, Espanyol launched a rare attack. A shot was fired, but it was blocked by Tchouaméni, and the ball went out for Espanyol’s first corner of the game. The corner kick could not be utilized well, and a shot fired afterward was well wide of the post.

In this first half of the game, Real Madrid completely dominated with 76% possession of the ball and 14 shots on goal, though without success. It looked like a good game for Madrid, with solid ball control and many attacks on the opposition’s goal. However, they needed more precision and clinical finishing to score goals against Espanyol’s tight defense. On the other hand, Espanyol did a good job defensively by keeping Real Madrid at bay and not allowing them to score.

2nd Half Match Highlights

According to the commentator, Real Madrid this season, out of the eight games, has failed to score in the first half for the seventh time. I hoped to see some goals in the second half. Real Madrid usually produces results in the second half of the game.

In the 1st minute of the half, Mbappe had a quick shot at goal after receiving a pass from Bellingham inside the crowded box. However, the shot was not powerful enough, and the keeper easily held onto the ball.

Just a minute later, Espanyol led an attack from the right side of the field, and an opposing player shot the ball from the right side of the box toward the goalpost. The shot was powerful, aiming for the top near post. Courtois could only deflect the ball out for a corner.

Two minutes later, an Espanyol player took another powerful shot at the Madrid goalpost from outside the box, but the ball missed the far right target and went out of bounds. Courtois would not have been able to save it if it had been on target, as he was scrambling on the ground.

In the 50th minute, Bellingham shot a powerful ball into the post from the left side of the box, but the keeper punched it away for safety. It was a good try by Bellingham, but Madrid had still not beaten the goalkeeper, García.

In the 54th minute, there was a long pass into the Madrid half, and an Espanyol player, Jofra, ran with the ball into the box and could have shot at the goal from a very narrow angle on the left side. The ball deflected off Courtois’s left foot and entered the net for Espanyol’s goal. The deadlock was broken by Espanyol; it was an unexpected goal from a subdued team on the field. Thus, Courtois was credited with an own goal.

Right after the goal, Vinícius came onto the field, replacing Arda Guler.

In the 58th minute, Madrid had a corner kick, but it resulted in nothing. Seconds later, Valverde had a powerful shot at goal, but keeper García was able to block it. Bellingham then received the ball inside the box on the left and took a shot, but the keeper tried to stop it, and the ball slipped under his body toward the goal line. Carvajal was there to easily kick the ball into the net for a goal. Finally, after many attempts over a long time, Madrid could hit the target and score their 1st goal.

Valverde received a yellow card for pulling an opposing player.

In the 64th minute, Mbappe led a counterattack, and as he entered the box, he back-passed to Rodrygo. Rodrygo took a good shot, but the ball went high above the bar and out with no result.

Two minutes later, Bellingham dribbled on the left side of the box and took a shot from a narrow-angle, but the ball only grazed the outside of the net.

Espanyol mounted an attack in the 68th minute; an opposing player took the ball into the middle of the box and shot straight at the goalpost. Courtois was ready to receive it and blocked it well with both hands, posing no danger to Madrid.

While clearing the ball, there was a slight clash between Valverde and an Espanyol player on the left side of the box. After a VAR check, no foul was found to penalize Valverde.

Real Madrid maintained constant pressure on the Espanyol goal but with little success until the 74th minute. They had 32 attacks so far, with 15 from the left flank, 9 from the center, and 8 from the right side of the field.

In the 75th minute, Vinícius delivered a good cross toward the center of the box from the left flank. The ball was well picked up by Rodrygo, who sent it easily into the net. It was a well-executed buildup, and Vini made it look easy to score.

Soon afterward, Madrid led a counterattack and scored their 3rd goal of the match. Madrid gained possession in the center, and Mbappe rushed forward with the ball. As Vini was ahead of him, he passed to Vini, who, inside the box on the left side, needed only to beat keeper Juan García, sending the ball past him into the net. It was a beautiful attack led by the duo Mbappe and Vinícius.

Bellingham received a yellow card in the 81st minute for tangling with an opposing player, and Vini was also shown a yellow card, possibly for complaining about the referee’s whistle and card to Bellingham. Vini needs to control himself, as he has been seen complaining frequently in recent matches against the referee.

In the 83rd minute, Bellingham was replaced by Rudiger, and Endrick came in for Rodrygo. Bellingham and Rodrygo played very well in this match and covered the field as much as possible.

In the 87th minute, Fran García sent a high cross from the far left of the box to the far right, and Endrick received the ball. As Endrick advanced, a defender struggled with him to snatch the ball, pulling on Endrick’s waist, which looked quite amusing, and Endrick was brought down just about the box line. After a short VAR check, it was declared a penalty to the joy of Madrid fans. Mbappe took the penalty shot and easily found the back of the net, sending the keeper the other way.

Though Endrick was introduced late in the match, as in some other matches, he was able to trouble the opposing team and score goals.

Since Vinícius arrived in this match, Madrid’s scoring ability had increased, and they started adding goals one after the other. This proved how important he is to this team. Bellingham worked hard and played well, covering the field. Rodrygo also performed well and created some good chances. Courtois was not at his best today, as he let the ball slip under his foot, resulting in an own goal.

Man of the Match was Rodrygo of Real Madrid.

Match Statistics

Real Madrid                        Espanyol

73%              Possession             27%

31                Total shots              10

15                Shots on target      1

8                  Blocked shots        5

9                  Corner kicks          4

7                  Fouls                         5

1                  Saves                         10

4                 Yellow card             3

704            Passes                       260

(Source: scorevisit.com)