Real Madrid concluded this year 2024 on a good note after their 4-2 success against Sevilla FC. A victory which allows the Merengues to climb to second place (40 points) in the standings, two points ahead of FC Barcelona and one less than Atlético de Madrid, new leader of LaLiga. In Madrid, the smiles returned. Since the defeat on the Athletic pitch and Kylian Mbappé’s missed penalty (1-2), the Madrilenians have had four wins and a draw in their last five matches and the Merengue stars finally seem to be up to the task.
A decisive meeting after the fiasco against Milan
This morning, the Spanish press did not fail to welcome the metamorphosis of Kylian Mbappé, for example. And today, after very long months of turbulence, the Merengue fighter plane finally seems to have reached a comfort zone. Real Madrid raised the bar in the league, in the Champions League (3-2 victory against Atalanta) and won the Intercontinental Cup. Enough to relieve Ancelotti who is more hectic than ever despite his experience and his record with the reigning European champions. This Monday, Relevo has also revealed the recipe which allowed the Italian to restore some order to the Madrid house.
The starting point of the Merengue revival was the meeting organized by the transalpine technician after the defeat in the Champions League against AC Milan. The Madrilenians lost at home 3 goals to 1 just a few days after being humiliated by FC Barcelona (0-4), again at the Bernabéu. This meeting served to clarify things, but the Spanish media indicates that it was the players who spoke the most during this interview, well aware that their performances were not up to the standards of Casa Blanca. Information that Ancelotti indirectly confirmed during his post-match press conference last night.
A renewed defensive involvement
“The self-criticism we did made it possible to clarify what we were missing: attitude, collective commitment, running a little more… and we started doing things again the way we should do them, that’s that is to say good. After the defeat against Milan (1-3), there were two very demanding months, with very difficult matches, but little by little the team started doing things well again. And Mbappé is the same. We finished the year well. I have to say: looking forward to 2025”. But that’s not all. Aware of being in the hot seat (he knew that Real Madrid was ready to install Santiago Solari in his place) and that his club will not help him during the next winter transfer window, Ancelotti made the choice, from November , to take all matches as finals. Enough to motivate its stars to make efforts, particularly defensively. Which was the big problem identified for weeks.
“The evolution we have made has led us to something very concrete: commitment at the defensive level. This is the weakness we had…and still have. Because the absence of players like Militão, Carvajal, Alaba or Mendy weighs on us. To counter this, we try to strengthen the qualities, by activating the attackers. And that’s what happened in the last few matches. Mbappé is much better, Bellingham scored again, Rodrygo is back… but in attack we have done much better in the last few matches. » Real Madrid is undoubtedly not completely healed, many injuries remain to be deplored, but the stars present on the field finally seem to want to whistle the end of the break and put the Casa Blanca back on track.
