#3 Mistakes in El Clásico
Trending
On the biggest day in the La Liga calendar and with the advantage before the game heavily stacked in Real’s favour, it was a surprise that so many mistakes were made by Zidane which handed the game, and potentially the title, to their arch rivals.
His first error came before the game when he named Gareth Bale in the starting lineup. After hobbling off in the first half, it was clear that the Welshman wasn’t fit, nor did he do anything of note in the time that he was on the pitch.
Then, when almost everyone expected the in-form Isco to come on in his place, a midfielder who would’ve caused Barcelona untold problems, Zidane plumped for Marco Asensio. No one is doubting the youngster has what it takes at the top level, but this wasn’t the time to introduce him.
His final mistake was his most catastrophic.
Deep into injury time, with the scores level at 2-2, all Real needed to do was keep the ball. Instead, the team pushed forward looking for a winner that they didn’t need. A rapid counter-attack proved their undoing as Lionel Messi scored one of the most important goals of his career with the last kick, to win the match.
If it ends up that this was the day that the Catalans won the title, the Frenchman won’t be forgiven.
