Real Madrid can no longer hide behind excuses against Barcelona
Real Madrid are going to need a big result against Barcelona on Sunday night. There is no doubt about the fact that this match could well decide the La Liga title race, despite being in the month of October.
If Real Madrid win or even draw the game, there is still a chance that they are able to overcome the three or six point deficit they would have after it, despite history telling us it is not possible.
However, if they lose, nine points is perhaps too big a gap for Real Madrid to recover from, despite having so many games still left in the season.
Real Madrid need a big win against Barcelona on Sunday night
Fans can talk about Barcelona only needing three losses or a few draws to make it interesting again, but the truth is that Real Madrid will also drop points along the way. Winning on Sunday is crucial, and if that does not happen, Los Blancos will find themselves in a bad, bad position.
That is also exactly why they cannot afford to hide behind excuses. Real Madrid are at a different position in their progression, when compared to how Barcelona are doing. They are further back, have had more stability in these last couple of years, and have a coach in Hansi Flick who has been at the club for a while.
The entire team follows his commands, and everything is working well for Barcelona at the moment. Real Madrid, on the other hand, are off the back of two unbelievably bad seasons, with some heavy defeats to big teams like Barcelona, and are transitioning from having Toni Kroos and Luka Modric among them, to having essentially no leaders in the squad.
However, that is not an excuse to not being able to win the match. Jose Mourinho talked about being at different points in terms of progression, but all of this does not matter. If it is an excuse they can hide behind if they are to lose, it should not be.
Real Madrid cannot afford to do that anymore. They have spent all but one Clasico in the last two seasons being so far behind Barcelona that it no longer seems like a rivalry. Real Madrid have only played well in a couple of these games, and simply blaming it on a transition period will not work this time.
Hansi Flick's side has been a team in transition for so many seasons. Even his first Clasico in charge finished in a 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid. Xavi's Barcelona team, who were much worse than Real Madrid in 2022, were also able to beat them by four goals. Were they not at a worse point in terms of transitioning at that time? Did that excuse apply to them?
Real Madrid need a huge, huge win on Sunday night. It does not matter if it is ugly. It does not matter if Real Madrid do not play the best football. However, a win is mandatory. It is imperative. Excuses, if Mourinho is planning any, will not get them anywhere.
