Arsene Wenger said yesterday’s Clasico was ‘men against boys’ and felt Barcelona were ineffective at both ends of the pitch.
Madrid won 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham either side of a leveler from Fermin Lopez.
But in reality, it could have been much more categorical. Mbappe had two goals disallowed, Bellingham one, Mbappe missed a penalty while the home side also had a penalty ruled out after Lamine Yamal and Vinicius Jr clashed in the box.
Barca’s central defensive duo of Eric Garcia and Pau Cubarsi struggled with Mbappe all afternoon and the champions greatly missed the physical presence of the injured Robert Lewandowski in attack.
Men vs Boys – Wenger
Former Arsenal manager Wenger, who analyzed the match for beIN Sports, said: “The Clasico was a bit like a duel of men against boys. Real Madrid’s defense was much stronger than Barcelona’s.
“On attack, Madrid always looked capable of scoring, while Barcelona looked ineffective. They had a lot of possession, but they never really looked capable of scoring.”
While much of the post-match attention focused on Vinicius Jr’s behavior and the overall reaction of Madrid players to Lamine Yamal, Barca boss Hansi Flick, who had to watch the game from the stands due to a one-match suspension, will have been alarmed by his side’s toothless display.
Araujo – we are sad
Defender Ronald Araujo, who started on the bench but came on after 74 minutes to replace the outclassed Garcia, admitted there was plenty the defending champions could work on.
He said: “We are sad to lose the Clasico. There are things to correct and there is a big part of the season left.
“I’m afraid of winning and we have to correct and continue. We have to believe in what they [the coaching staff] tell us, with great confidence and to follow.
The good news for Barca is that they have a full week off to get to work on the training ground before their next match against Elche on Sunday.
