"That first half was an absolute nightmare. Barça didn't have a chance, and found a goal out of nowhere to stay in a game they should have been out of very early. Wojciech Szczesny kept them in it, but Madrid absolutely battered them for the entire 45 minutes plus added time. It's been a while since we've seen Barça get dominated that badly."
"Apart from Rashford and Fermín, Barça's attack was anemic, unimaginative, and physically dominated by the Madrid defense. Barça were so concerned with keeping the ball and trying to have some control that they forgot about actually doing something with it, and Lamine Yamal was especially poor in his duel with Álvaro Carreras. Barça conceded the predictable goal with Kylian Mbappé getting in behind their high line which everyone expected to happen, and Pau Cubarsí's lack of awareness to track that run was quite poor."
"Pedri needs to shoot more. There were several moments in which he got to promising positions but was instantly looking to pass. In these games scoring chances don't come around that often, and even someone not inclined to score like Pedri has to try and take them. His (deserved) red card at the death was the unfortunate ending to a pretty disappointing afternoon for Barça's best player."
Barcelona finished second in La Liga, five points behind the leaders, after a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. Madrid utterly dominated the first half and created multiple clear chances, with Wojciech Szczesny making several key saves to keep Barcelona afloat. Barcelona briefly threatened in the second half but never mounted a real comeback and deservedly lost. The Barcelona attack, apart from Rashford and Fermín, lacked imagination and was physically outmatched. Kylian Mbappé exploited a high defensive line for the decisive goal, Pau Cubarsí failed to track the run, and Pedri was criticized for not shooting and received a late red card.
Read at Barca Blaugranes
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