Real Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw by Elche at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero on Sunday night as their winless streak stretched to three games in a row. Los Blancos twice came from behind, as Aleix
Febas and then former Castilla forward Álvaro Rodríguez both scored, with Dean Huijsen and then Jude Bellingham equalising from set pieces to hit back.
Three answers
1. How would the makeshift defence stand up to Elche’s attack?
Dani Carvajal, Éder Militão, Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba and even Aurélien Tchouameni all being absent due to injury meant that Xabi Alonso was left with his hands tied defensively, given that half of the defenders in his match squad were left-backs. It was perhaps therefore surprising to see Alonso opt for a back three, but it made sense. He has clearly not fully bought into supporting Raúl Asencio ever since he endured a dreadful Club World Cup and blew his chance at making a strong first impression to his new coach, while Dean Huijsen’s form in recent weeks has not filled anyone with confidence either. A back three here seemingly made sense, freeing up Trent Alexander-Arnold, in his first start since September, but ensuring defensive cover. With limited options, Alonso opted for an out-of-the-box solution, though it didn’t quite work as well as he might have hoped.
2. Could Real Madrid inflict Elche’s first home defeat of the season?
Going into this encounter, Elche were the only team outside of La Liga’s top four to remain unbeaten on home turf, in their case at the Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero. The arena had hosted six games since hosting top flight action again this season, with Elche winning three and drawing three. In the process, no team had conceded fewer than the three goals Elche had conceded at home to date this season. Real Madrid suffered too, failing to inflict that long-awaited home defeat, and struggling to handle the pressure of a fan base who turned out in numbers to back their team on a chilly Sunday night. Elche’s strong defensive organisation showed, Real Madrid only able to unlock them twice at set pieces, both with a slice of luck as VAR ignored claims that Jude Bellingham’s header to set up Dean Huijsen came off his arm and that Vinícius Júnior had wiped out Elche’s goalkeeper Iñaki Peña before Bellingham turned the goalscorer for the second goal.
3. Could Real Madrid ease the pressure on Xabi Alonso?
The international break came at the worse possible time for reports to come in from all angles of locker room tension, unhappiness of players with the coach, and tactical debates. The coach knew that a strong reaction at Elche would be crucial to getting back on track, especially with a tricky Champions League away day to take on Olympiacos in Athens on Wednesday. His team selection already was a statement. Some pointed to the fact that many of the allegedly dissenting voices, like Vinícius Júnior, Eduardo Camavinga and Brahim Díaz, had been benched. Others simply suggested that it was a clear statement that the midweek fixture has more riding on it than this game against Elche. The end result is that the trip to take on Olympiacos is now a must-win for a coach who got it wrong on the night in Elche. There was little that went Alonso’s way on Sunday night, and his critics are only like to become more fervent in the days ahead. It could be a long flight to Greece for the coach and his staff.
Three questions
1. Did the back three work well enough to see it again?
Given the limited defensive options, the change felt perhaps more enforced than because of a tactical change of strategy from Xabi Alonso. Yet, it also felt unprepared and poorly executed. While Fran García and Trent Alexander-Arnold had width and space, with Elche defending narrowly, play was continually pushed centrally with slow distribution and little progression. Fran García pushed on, almost more like a left winger at times, but neither him nor Trent were offered either the opportunities on the ball or the targets to aim for. That only changed with the introduction of Gonzalo García, after Vinícius Júnior replaced Fran, and even then Gonzalo operated more on the right flank, ahead of Trent, rather than by giving him a target to aim for centrally with his deliveries from wide and deep. If this formation is to continue, which Alonso may seek to persist with having had success with it at Bayer Leverkusen, it will still need more work to make it effective. That could mean changes in approach but also in personnel to truly make this strategy effective, and in doing so, it could cause even more headaches for Xabi Alonso.
2. When will Rodrygo Goes score?
This was the 29th appearance in a row without a goal for Rodrygo Goes, reinstated into the offensive unit as a surprise starter. He registered four shots, only one on target, and contributed little to breaking down Elche’s defence. In doing so, and leaving the game without a goal, he equalled early 1970s striker Rafa Marañón in playing 29 games as a Real Madrid forward without scoring. Only Mariano Díaz, who went 30 consecutive appearances without scoring, has a longer record of any attacker to play for the club. Mariano, now at Alavés, played fewer minutes (986) than both Rodrygo (1,321) and Marañón (1,416). Marañón departed Madrid shortly after to join Espanyol and later Sabadell. Rodrygo spoke in the break about working to prove a point to his coach, but while his last goal continues to be over eight months ago, in the 2-1 Champions League last 16 first-leg win over Atlético in March, he will struggle.
3. Was Trent Alexander-Arnold a ray of light?
It’s clear that Trent is still settling in at Real Madrid, but making his first start since the game against Marseille where he lasted only a few minutes before a hamstring injury, he showed what he’s capable of. He ended the game as the second most creative player with four chances created, registering more accurate forward passes than any other player on the field. It wasn’t quite perfect for the Englishman to make things happen, with few options to aim for until later on in the game, but there was plenty of signs of promise for Madridistas to believe that with fitness and minutes under his belt, he could make a real impact. Fede Valverde may not be needed at right-back again for a while.
