In this Real Madrid vs Elche match, I analyse the key tactical moments, individual performances and turning points of the game.
Real Madrid stepped onto the pitch at the Bernabéu with a clear mission: to win and close the gap to Barcelona, the league leaders. After the memorable Champions League night against Manchester City, there was also curiosity to see whether that performance had been a turning point or just an isolated moment in an irregular season.
On the other side was Elche CF, a team fighting to avoid relegation and arriving with very worrying numbers, especially away from home. Even so, the start of the match was strange. Madrid seemed little interested in accelerating the game and Elche even had more possession than one might have expected.
The first minimally dangerous situation appeared early: André Silva appeared alone in the six-yard box and headed into the side netting. The play would probably have been ruled out for offside in the build-up, but even so it showed a certain defensive passivity from Madrid.
For long minutes the match was slow, with little creativity and almost no clear chances. For a team that needed to win and pressure the league leaders, Madrid seemed far too comfortable with a slow tempo.
The game only woke up close to halftime. In the 39th minute, from a set-piece, Valverde struck a powerful free kick, the goalkeeper saved it, the ball was cleared poorly and Rüdiger appeared to finish first time and make it 1-0.
Shortly after came the most beautiful moment of the first half. In the 44th minute, Valverde received the ball at the edge of the box, had time and space to think, made an elegant fake shot, shifted the ball onto his right foot and placed it into the corner of the goal. A goal of enormous technical quality that confirmed the great form of the Uruguayan.
Even so, the feeling at halftime was curious: Madrid were winning fairly, but without needing to do much.
In the second half the scenario remained relatively similar. Elche continued to have phases with more possession, something that may seem strange when playing at the Bernabéu, but it also showed that Madrid were comfortable controlling the match without taking many risks.
Early on, Brahim Díaz had a huge chance after a long ball, but one-on-one with the goalkeeper he completely missed the target. With the game relatively controlled, the coach decided to manage the workload and took off Valverde, Vinícius Júnior and Tchouaméni shortly before the hour mark, clearly thinking about the European second leg.
Even so, the third goal arrived in the 66th minute. Yáñez delivered a good cross from the right and Dean Huijsen appeared completely free in the box to head home and make it 3-0. A moment that showed more defensive failure from Elche than great attacking construction.
When everything seemed decided, the game had a chaotic moment in the 85th minute. Eduardo Camavinga lost the ball near his own box, Rafa Mir was involved in the play and it ended in an own goal from Ángel Morán.
In the 89th minute, Arda Güler recovered the ball still in the defensive half and attempted an extremely powerful shot from very far out. The ball went in with the goalkeeper completely out of position, closing the result at 4-1.
Post-match
The final score looks comfortable, but the match told a slightly different story. For many minutes, Real Madrid played at a very low tempo and allowed Elche to have long spells of possession.
Of course, it is also true that Madrid never really seemed in danger. When they needed to accelerate, they scored, and when individual moments of quality appeared they solved the game without much drama.
Valverde continues to live through an absolutely impressive period.
In the end, it was a logical victory, without great collective brilliance, but enough to keep the pressure in the title race.
