Ragged Defence Costs Real Madrid Clasico vs. Barcelona and Possibly La Liga

Crucial errors and a general lack of discipline in their defensive work cost Real Madrid big as they failed to take advantage of an excellent first half to lose 2-1 away to title-rivals Barcelona on Sunday.

It was a frustrating night for those in white. They dominated for much of the opening hour and created a number of good opportunities but were unable to take full advantage of their superiority. They conceded the second at a key moment and rarely looked like staging a comeback thereafter.

The first mistake came early. Sergio Ramos allowed Jeremy Mathieu to steal a march on him to head home Lionel Messi’s left-wing set piece and put Barcelona ahead in the 19th minute of play.

Carlo Ancelotti had made special note of the importance of both Ramos and Luka Modric in his pre-match press conference. The latter has become a talismanic figure in his nearly 10-year career at the Bernabeu following his move from Sevilla in 2005—a real leader of men.

In a small break in play in the final quarter-hour of play, Neymar and Lionel Messi were joined first by Javier Mascherano and then Gerard Pique in an animated conversation intended to solve a problem they had picked up on. The talk ended with strong words of encouragement from Mascherano.

It was an exchange that showed that Barcelona have many leaders; Ramos aside, Madrid lack such figures.

Manu Fernandez/Associated Press

And that much was made clear by the absence of discipline they displayed on Sunday. Both Pepe and Ramos were booked during the first half for needless fouls from behind. Dani Carvajal and Modric were shown yellow cards shortly after the interval for cynical challenges, while Isco had his name taken for a crude foul on Neymar just past the hour-mark.

When the Brazilian ran through from just inside the attacking half to shoot over from the edge of the area on 67 minutes, his progress went largely unchecked as all five players in pursuit already had a yellow card to their name.

The referee, Mateu Lahoz, even seemed to take pity on the Madrid defenders during the final exchanges. He failed to call two or three clear fouls that could have led to further cards being issued. Carvajal had earlier been lucky to escape a second booking after easing Neymar to the floor after the forward had got in behind him.

Pepe, too, walked a tightrope for much of the second half and was eventually substituted for Raphael Varane with just under 20 minutes left to play.

The Portuguese defender seemed to regress to the Pepe of the Jose-Mourinho-era Clasicos. He was a snarling and indisciplined liability at the heart of the Madrid defence and became too easily embroiled in a losing personal battle with Suarez.

Both he and Ramos were at fault for Barcelona’s second. His defensive partner was caught a couple of steps behind his colleagues, playing Suarez onside to control and finish superbly into the corner of the net. Pepe, for his part, had failed to adequately track the forward's run.

The 32-year-old was then lucky to see the offside flag raised prior to another silly foul from behind on Suarez just minutes later.

Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press

The quality of Barcelona’s three forwards shone through once their lead had been established. They regularly sliced their way through the Madrid defence, with Casillas making two very good saves to deny Jordi Alba and then Messi late on. Luis Enrique’s side had already wasted two or three other good opportunities to extend their advantage.

Madrid were unable to muster many chances of note after going behind.

Karim Benzema had been excellent during the first half, dropping off the front and into the channels to connect with the midfield and his fellow forwards. He provided the assist for Cristiano Ronaldo’s well-taken equaliser.

But the front three became disconnected during the final half-hour, failing to combine anywhere near as effectively as they had earlier in the match. Benzema had one deflected effort well-saved by Claudio Bravo, but they otherwise created little.

"I think the problem was more mental than physical," Ancelotti said afterward, as per Carlos Forjanes of AS, when questioned about his side's drop-off in performance level during the final 30 minutes. "We didn’t play in the same way that we did at the start of the game."

And so a match that at one point seemed to be progressing in Madrid’s favour instead ended in a defeat that now leaves them four points behind Barcelona at the top of La Liga. The Catalans still have to travel to Sevilla and Atletico Madrid and host Valencia, but they are now the clear favourites to win the title, as noted by Paul Carr of ESPN Stats & Info:

Ramos is, though, not ready to give up the fight just yet.

“They’re only four points ahead, and we’ll keep fighting,” he told Canal+ (h/t Football Espana) afterward. “My experience has shown me that you can’t give up. You have to stay calm and keep working hard.”

Calmness was not something that Ramos or his team-mates displayed in any great measure on Sunday. And they will have to be far more disciplined and focused in their defensive work if they are to end the season with any silverware.