Elche-Real Madrid End of the year campaign

Another team from the south of the table and another displeasure for Madrid, who continues to believe that in this League it is possible to win and rest at the same time. So a limited Elche but with order, discipline and claw gave the bell on the eve of the chimes. The puncture coincided with the return of Marcelo, a day more out of tune. Each ownership of his that ends in Madrid's skidding has ceased to be an accident.

El del Elche is a project on the run, in a certain way unexpected, but with a clear horizon: from this he will come out defending well. This avoids the doubt of where to pull and end up disoriented. He put pressure on Madrid for five minutes and then picked himself up in that tight 4-1-4-1 that has served him in fits and starts until now. He waited, tilted, annoyed, and kept his attention to detail. It is the fate of the newly promoted: a holiday and nine months of agonizing resistance.

Marcelo, umpteenth try

Zidane wrote the lineup with his left hand. The usual ones Marcelo, who hadn't played a minute in the winning streak. It has been a long time since it has been known whether with him a band is won or given away. In a quarter of an hour, one and the other happened. He burst the crossbar with a forehand volley coming as an inside and trotted down in a counter that Rigoni could take advantage of. By his side now many more chickens come out than enter. Casemiro had to correct a lot on that flank.

The game, despite the goodwill of Elche, began as Madrid, even with this quiet driving mode. More with the goal of Modric, who headed a rejection of the stick in a cannon from Asensio of the good times. The Croatian, Kroos and Casemiro remain a durable chemical compound. When they start walking, Madrid is unapproachable. Especially Modric, who has been substituting science for fiber loss. Nobody in the team translates games better. Stop and accelerate, break lines and recover, it has physics and chemistry. His merit is having been the Ballon d'Or without the soloist and scorer bonuses.

The napping

Elche had little response to the setback. His best footballer, Fidel, found the most protected area of ​​Madrid, that of Carvajal and Lucas Vázquez, two tragamillas. And that meekness infected Madrid, who found the excuse to take half a night off after a beating that has put him in the league and European career. A mistake.

Before the break, Figueroa Vázquez whistled a folkloric penalty for a rejection in the thigh of Víctor Rodríguez. The VAR corrected his oversight. This time a second opinion was helpful. And after the break, a penalty on the other side, for a grab from Carvajal to Barragán on a free kick. The immense minority is whistled, but there is no complaint of the offender who plays with fire. Yes by comparative offense, because a very similar hug to Casemiro was then smoked by the Asturian referee.

Useless siege

This is how Elche tied and for Madrid it went from a comfortable game to a cheat game. It was difficult for Zidane's team to reconnect, with less time and more demand due to the athletic victory two hours earlier. And it also had to be uncovered. Lucas Boyé was about to make him pay for it in a great swing. He touched the stick.

With the water around his neck, Hazard returned, booked to solve extreme situations like this. The Madrid handball on the edge of the area, but without filtering any inside pass of profit or taking off spreadable centers. The feeling remained that Zidane had shaken the tree too late.

The end was the same as so many times. A disorderly attack, with Ramos to a changed area (he was about to catch a rebound), with Vinicius on the right, with Benzema leaving ground zero and Carvajal entering it. The Frenchman had the victory on his crown, but did not hit the detour. And Madrid left 2020 with a bad feeling that they seemed to have forgotten.