Real Madrid vs. Villarreal: 5 Reasons It All Went Wrong for Los Blancos

League leaders Real Madrid have once again finished a game in a 1-1 draw. This time, Villarreal grabbed a point against Los Blancos in their fight to evade relegation.

This could prove to be a crucial match for Los Blancos, since they are now only six points ahead of their main title rivals, Barcelona.

Here I will attempt to pick out the five main reasons behind Real Madrid's downfall.

Poor Refereeing

Poor refereeing is first on the list because it had the smallest effect on the result.

Jose Romero, the referee, gave us a lesson on how not to referee such a high-profile match. 

From the beginning of the match he didn't tolerate any unsportsmanlike behaviour. That was alright, but 20 minutes before the final whistle things got ugly and the Spanish referee completely lost control of the match.

As a result he had to show four yellow cards as well as three red cards in less than 10 minutes. Although, one of the three red cards were actually player's second yellow card. 

Not to forget, he also made several dubious calls. The most prominent of those was the free kick from which Villarreal equalised.

Players Buckling Down Under Pressure from Barcelona?

Less than a week ago, Real Madrid were sitting on top of the league with a 10-point lead over Barcelona.

Two games in a row, Barcelona played before Real Madrid comfortably winning both of the games. This certainly put some pressure under Los Blancos who had to win their games in order to maintain the lead. It seemed to affect the players as some of them put in below-standard performances.

Now with the lead reduced to only six points and with the El Clasico match at Camp Nou slowly approaching, the pressure will become even more intensive.

We'll have to wait and see how Real Madrid's stars respond to that kind of pressure.

Iker Casillas

I can understand some of the newer Real Madrid stars buckling down under pressure, but what has happend to Casillas?

For the second consecutive game, the Real Madrid captain conceded goals from two unspectacular free kicks, letting his team down.

Two straight shots to the goalkeeper's side of the goal would never be expected to bother Casillas. In recent times even the most simple shots are making Casillas nervous and insecure.

Is it just a bad run of form, or is he finally coming to age? 

Either way, if he continues to perform this way, Casillas could very well end Madrid's hope of La Liga trophy at the end of the season.

Ronaldo's Poor Form

Once again, Real Madrid's over-reliance on the Portuguese could be seen.

When Villarreal equalised, almost all of the attacks went through Ronaldo, completely bypassing the others.

The other players seemed to be afraid to take the matter in their own hands and relied on the Portuguese to do it all by himself. As expected, he couldn't beat the whole Villarreal team.

Overall, Ronaldo had a decent match and even managed to score.

In the last two games, Ronaldo rarely looked like a player who scores 50 goals per season. It's mainly because he has a bad run of form, but the other players in the squad are relying too much on Ronaldo.

It may sound strange, but Ronaldo is a human after all. 

Mourinho's Arrogance Affecting the Players

Jose Mourinho is often described as arrogant and controversial. In fact, so much has been told about Mourinho and his arrogance that the fans even forgot what kind of influence it can have on the players.

The game against Villarreal reminded the fans just how influential a manager's actions can be.

After furiously voicing his discontent with the free kick given to Villarreal in dangerous area, Mourinho was rightly sent off. Seconds after he left the pitch his team conceded a goal.

Only a couple of minutes later, Ramos was sent off for a reckless challenge on Nilmar. Ozil's reaction to his teammate's dismissal earned him a straight red card. The trio were united in the tunnel before the game was over.

Of course, no one can say it was Mourinho's fault his players got sent off. But he definitely played a role.

That's All

Thanks for reading! Feel free to express your opinion in the comments below. 

Don't forget to check out some of my other works:

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Real Madrid vs. Malaga: 5 Things We Learned