Three talking points from Real Madrid 4-0 Girona | La Liga | OneFootball

There are no words to describe Real Madrid’s evening against Girona on Matchday 24 of La Liga. Not many would have expected the game against Michel’s side to be such a critical clash at the beginning of the season, but the game was not close to as tight as was predicted by pundits.

Girona, for all their impressive accomplishments this season, had no response to Los Blancos’ carnage in attack. They dominated the play early on, but the Merengues’ sheer efficiency in front of goal inflicted regular setbacks that the Catalans simply could not recover from.

The 4-0 result at full-time is reflective of the game that ensued on Saturday. Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo Goes and Jude Bellingham were all on the scoresheet, while Joselu would also have joined the list had he not missed a last-minute penalty.

Madrid Universal brings you three talking points from Real Madrid vs Girona.

Ancelotti’s magic

Real Madrid’s display at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday was impressive on many fronts, but arguably the most flabbergasting of them all was their defensive show.

Heading into the clash against Girona, the manager had no fit options available in central defence. Antonio Rudiger’s latest injury blow coupled with Nacho Fernandez’s relatively long layoff period left the manager forced to deploy two makeshift centre-backs.

Aurelien Tchouameni and Dani Carvajal thus started as the team’s centre-backs on the night. Inevitably, the first impression was that the duo would serve as the team’s weak link on the field, but their performance oozed class.

Despite being thrown into the deep end, the defensive duo shelled out a flawless performance that can only be described as inspirational. They gave Girona almost no chance to attack, holding their lines with discipline and efficiently clearing the ball when under pressure.

In ninety minutes, Los Blancos allowed Girona just five shots and staggeringly did not allow them a single shot on target. Considering that the Catalans were the league’s highest-scoring side ahead of kickoff, it is an unbelievable achievement for a right-back and defensive midfielder to pull off such a clean sheet.

A generational performance

Vinicius was brilliant vs Girona. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

Real Madrid were impressive all over the park on Saturday. The centre-backs pulled off their duties with impeccable diligence while the midfield was bossed completely by Toni Kroos’ immaculate long balls and Eduardo Camavinga’s vertical runs.

The player who impressed the most, however, was a certain Vinicius Jr. who just returned from a neck injury earlier in the week.

The Brazilian star ran riot on Girona’s right flank at the Bernabeu and single-handedly stole the show. Every time he got on the ball, he threatened to break past the defence and create an opening to the extent that he got their right-back Yan Couto in tears at full-time.

Vinicius opened the scoring on the night in just the fifth minute through an out-of-the-world strike from outside the box. He then provided an outrageous assist for Jude Bellingham’s second, curling the ball over the defence and into the Englishman’s path on goal.

Unsurprisingly, he was the creator-in-chief for the team’s third goal as well, as he skilfully evaded and dribbled past the Catalan defence and put the ball on a platter for Bellingham once more.

All in all, he attempted nine dribbles, completed five, took two shots on target and provided three key passes on the night. Game-changing.

League in the bag?

Real Madrid’s win over Girona is critical for a number of reasons, the most important of which is the league standings and the implications it has on the same.

Saturday’s result takes Los Blancos to the clear lead in La Liga with 61 points ahead just 24 games and puts them in pole position to take home the title. After all, Girona were forced to drop points and now sit a staggering five points behind Real Madrid.

With 14 games to go in La Liga, the title race will be mathematically open for a long time. However, the win over Girona might as well practically seal the title for Carlo Ancelotti’s men considering the imperious form they have been in this season.

The five-point cushion also gives them the breathing space to focus on the UEFA Champions League with more priority. Knowing that the league is almost in the bag is indeed a liberating feeling for the dressing room, and its implications will likely be visible in the team’s upcoming UCL games.