Madrid cut the deficit with Barcelona to five points after beating Valencia with solvency at the Bernabeu in a postponed match. Valencia, which came with Voro on the bench after the dismissal of Gattusso, did not compete with the integrity with which they did in the semifinal of the Spanish Super Cup played in Riyadh on January 11. He limited himself to surviving, often with bad manners, locked up in his field and without dangerously approaching the Courtois area.
The night left several certainties in Madrid. The first, that the team has lost some punch. He was goalless against Real Sociedad and last night it took him a world to materialize the chances he had. It is a paradox for this Madrid that often found the goal without the game and now that they have the game, they cannot find the goal so easily.
Another certainty is that right now Ceballos is their fittest midfielder. The man from Utrera formed a hat-trick with Kroos, who acted as a defensive midfielder, and Modric, and he was the best of the three. The presence of Camavinga on the left side is no longer a novelty, a position that was seen with France in the World Cup in Qatar but that did not seem likely at all in Madrid. And Camavinga complies even though he is a natural midfielder with great physical display.
The script for the game was quite similar to that of the day of the Real with the exception that Valencia is many lengths below. Madrid started well but gradually faded away, somewhat desperate due to the missed chances and because they went into tricks to lose time for Valencia.
The night would have been more comfortable for the whites if Marco Asensio had scored after three minutes against Mamardashvili after a filtered pass from Modric, but the Georgian goalkeeper pulled off a miraculous hand. It would be by far the best of his. Then it would be Paulista who would get in the way with his body to avoid the goal of the Spaniard, who had picked up a heel from Benzema.
Before the break, Madrid got into trouble. Militão left injured after getting hurt in a collision with Lino in what appears to be a muscle injury in the right adductor. The Brazilian is being Madrid’s best defender this season. Carvajal came out in his place and Nacho, the guy for everything, went to the axis of the defense.
Already in the added time of the first half, Madrid scored on a header from Rüdiger. Alberola Rojas went to the VAR monitor and annulled the goal for appreciating a push from Benzema to Yunus, which caused a notable scandal at the Bernabeu, which was hot because it understood that the referee had earlier forgiven Samu Castillejo for stomping on Camavinga .
The second part began without changing players and with Madrid very pressing. The uncertainty was short-lived because at minute 51 Asensio scored with a shot outside the area, a sharp shot that entered the top corner. And without letting Valencia react, in minute 54, Vinícius grabbed a ball almost in the center of the field, he went from Gabriel Paulista at speed and beat the Valencian goalkeeper with a close shot. In three minutes, game resolved.
The unleashed storm could have been even worse for the de Voro. In minute 56 Mamardashvili prevented Modric’s goal. The rebound fell to Benzema and his shot was cleared by a defender on the goal line. He did not have the last Ballon d’Or night.
With the 2-0 came the changes. Benzema left, who seemed touched, and Rodrygo entered. Then the veterans left the pitch: Kroos and Modric and Valverde and Tchouaméni came on, who reappeared after several weeks injured.
Madrid lowered the piston and in the middle of a reduced intensity game Paulista went to treacherously hunt Vinícius with a direct red-deserving tackle. Valencia was left with one less. Madrid looked for the third, but without excessive courage. Mamardashvili closed the door and prevented a couple more goals. The night ended well for Madrid in a season that looks fatal for Valencia.
