Real Madrid 1-2 Levante: 5 Talking Points as Los Blancos falter on home turf | La Liga 2020-21

#3 Eder Militao red card proves costly for Real Madrid

Real Madrid's Eder Militao was shown a red card in the eighth minute.

Eder Militao has taken advantage of the absence of Sergio Ramos to earn an extended run in the Real Madrid first team. The former Porto man has also earned rave reviews for his displays in recent weeks.

However, he put his team on the backfoot with less than ten minutes gone against Levante.

He and defensive partner Raphael Varane were caught out by a through ball to Sergio Leon. The Levante man showed great awareness to control the ball into the path of Militao, and Militao had no option but to bump onto him.

The contact from the Real Madrid defender was very minimal. But it was enough to stop Leon's pah, leaving the referee with no option but to dish out a red card, as Militao was the last man.

The absence of key first-teamers meant that Real Madrid were short at the back, and Casemiro had to play the rest of the game in the center of defence.

Beyond putting his team in jeopardy for this game, Militao's dismissal and impending suspension also puts Real Madrid at crossroads. Central defenders Nacho and Ramos are currently sidelined with injuries, giving Zidane and Bettoni selection headaches for Real Madrid's trip to Huesca.

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#2 Eden Hazard fails to build on impressive showing against Alaves

Eden Hazard struggled in the game.

Eden Hazard had arguably his standout performance in a Real Madrid shirt in the 4-1 victory over Alaves last weekend.

The Belgium international ended the game with a goal and an assist, but beyond his goal contribution, he had an excellent all-round game. He constantly put the hosts' defence on the backfoot, reminiscent of his days in a Chelsea shirt.

That could have been a turning point in his Real Madrid career, but Hazard failed to build on that. He put up another no-show against Levante and failed to make a mark on the game during his time on the field.

It came as no surprise when he was hurled off for Vinicius Junior on the hour mark. The trip to bottom-placed Huesca is yet another opportunity for Eden Hazard to showcase his best abilities, whether he does so or not remains to be seen though.

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#1 VAR shows its usefulness

VAR successfully overturned two wrong calls.

VAR came to the fore on two occasions in the game between Real Madrid and Levante. By current interpretations of the Rules of the Game, it cannot be argued that the correct decision was made on both occasions after initial errors.

The first had seen Militao get off with just a caution, but replays showed he was the last man and not Varane. The second saw VAR intervene when a free-kick had incorrectly been awarded for a foul in the area.

The penalty area line is technically considered to be part of the 18-yard area, and fouls committed on it are awarded as penalties.

62' | 1-1 | Penalty for Levante. #RMLiga | #RealMadridLevante

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 30, 2021

Despite missing the ensuing spot-kick, Levante benefitted from playing against 10-man Real Madrid for over 80 minutes, which undoubtedly made their work much easier.

That would not have been the case had VAR not been present.