After much criticism of their style of play, Real Madrid put all doubts to rest with their second straight win in just one week. Despite Espanyol fielding a five-man defence at the Bernabeu, Kylian Mbappe and his teammates were still able to find the back of the net four times.
At home, Real Madrid even fell behind in the second half before scoring four goals in a row. This is a problem for Los Blancos because since the beginning of the season, they have only scored once in the first half. After the match, captain Carlo Ancelotti shared that this is an issue that needs to be seriously considered, but after 38 matches, the team has not lost, so everything is not too serious.
Back to the developments on the pitch, the highlight was Aurelien Tchouameni starting in the center-back position. Before the match, Ancelotti himself said he would rotate Antonio Rudiger and Eder Militao. In the end, the Italian coach's decision was correct when Tchouameni played very well in the position he had been tested many times last season.
Against Espanyol, the French star had successfully recovered the ball 6 times. With the qualities of a midfielder, it was not difficult for Tchouameni to successfully progress the ball. Los Blancos fans were surprised many times when they saw him breaking straight into the opponent's defense.
In matches where he knows the opposition will have difficulty attacking, Ancelotti will put Luka Modric on the pitch from the start. Once again, he made the right decision. The 39-year-old veteran completed the most passes on the pitch (85) and in the final third (31). He also had 9 quality crosses.
Modric is still the same, always knowing how to make passes that tear apart the opponent's defense. Kylian Mbappe is the one who benefits the most when Modric is behind him. The French striker almost scored from a pass from his senior. At the end of the match, Lukita was the one who created the second most chances, only behind Mbappe.
Modric has accepted that he will no longer be a regular starter since last season. He has chosen to stay and come on in appropriate situations. If he continues to maintain his current performances, fans may still see the Croatian star on the pitch more often this season, although his importance may not be as great as before.
The last person to be mentioned is not Mbappe or Vinicius, it is Rodrygo. In addition to scoring the goal to make it 2-1, the Brazilian striker also stood out with his passes in the opponent's third. He has the second best score in the team (22), only behind Modric (31).
After the match, Rodrygo received many compliments from his coach and was awarded the MVP title. The victory over Espanyol once again proved that the Brazilian star is not redundant in the context of Mbappe joining the team.
Most recently, when France Football released the list of Top 30 Ballon d'Or, Rodrygo was not on the list, but that is no longer important. Whether he is a starter or a substitute is no longer important. As long as he is still on the field and still scores regularly, that is the value Rodrygo is aiming for.
The Spanish press once mentioned that Real Madrid had a new super trio, BMV (Bellingham - Mbappe - Vinicius). However, Jude Bellingham himself spoke up and said that people should not forget the word "R" (referring to Rodrygo). With his current good form, the Brazilian star is certainly still an indispensable piece for Los Blancos in their journey to win the treble this season.
