Real Madrid fell to crosstown rivals Atletico Madrid 1-0 at the Estadio Santiago Bernebau on Saturday evening.
The derby clash is one of the highlights of the season for supporters and it was set to be a true test for the Los Galacticos, as well as a must win.
Indeed it was looking positive coming in for the hosts, who have not lost on home soil in 11 matches. However, Los Blancos’ slow start said otherwise, with a host of injured players absent from the starting squad.
Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema had shots saved by goalkeeper Jan Oblak, but the momentum was with the Atletico. Antoine Griezmann had his first chance in the latter stages of the first-half, with a strike from distance being tipped over the bar by Keylor Navas.
Minutes later the Costa Rican goalkeeper found himself diving at the near post to push Koke’s shot away for a corner.
The breakthrough came in the 53rd minute as Griezmann exchanged the ball with Felipe Luis in a one-two play, followed by a low strike into the back of the net at the near post for his 13th league goal.
A Real onslaught in the final quarter of the match placed pressure on the visitors, but was not enough to secure an equaliser.
The result leaves Atletico five points behind league leaders Barcelona, while Madrid remain in third position and will fall 12 points behind the Catalans if they defeat Sevilla.
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Real Madrid
Keylor Navas- 7: Made excellent saves which kept his side in the match.
Danilo- 5.5: Did his utmost to give Real the added width.
Sergio Ramos- 6: Calm and collected in the centre of defence and passed well under pressure.
Raphael Varane – 5: Excellent in the air and a dominant figure in attacking set plays.
Daniel Carvajal – 6: Created a few decent crosses into the goal area.
Luka Modric – 7.5: The puppeteer in the middle of the park, passing was great and did his best to get Real into the match.
James Rodriguez – 3.5: Inconsistent and could not find his rhythm.
Isco – 4: His creative element was thwarted against Atletico.
Toni Kroos – 4: Was beaten easily by Griezmann for the winning goal.
Karim Benzema – 6: Excellent in the wider areas, but was substituted in the second-half due to injury.
Cristiano Ronaldo – 5: Could not convert from the many chances he had.
Substitutes
Lucas Vasquez – 6.5: His energy and pace was an asset for Real on the right.
Jese – 4: Did not cause too much trouble for Atletico, but almost found himself on the end of a few good balls.
Borja Mayoral- 5: Had a shot saved by Oblak.
Atletico Madrid
Jan Oblak – 7: Blocked all of Ronaldo’s shots on goal and everything else that came in his vicinity.
Jose Gimenez – 6: Covered the defence well whenever Real attempted to get in behind their line.
Diego Godin – 7: Got in the way of many of the home players to block dangerous attempts and approaches.
Filipe Luis – 8: Almost the perfect game for Luis, capped-off with the assist for Griezmann’s goal.
Juanfran – 7.5: Solid in defence and blocked Jese’s late shot in the second-half.
Koke – 6: Offered his services in defence and had a decent scoring chance.
Gabi – 6: Picked his quick passes well in the centre of midfield.
Augusto Fernandez – 9: Aided the counter-attack of his side and passed the ball into excellent areas for the attack.
Saul – 7: Protected Juanfran well and came forward when required.
Antoine Griezmann – 8: Pace allowed him to break free of the opposition defenders marking him to score the winning and only goal of the match.
Fernando Torres – 5: Often caught offside when trying to play on the shoulder of the last defender.
Substitutes
Matias Kranevitter – 5: Helped his side see the game through to the final whistle.
Angel Correa – 4: Could not provide a great threat on the counter-attack as Real dominated possession.
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