Real Madrid used to be the masters of the massive occasions - now Los Blancos risk becoming the big-game bottlers

Flash back six months, and this didn't seem like it would be an issue - not massively, at least. The European Super Cup may be a glorified friendly - no matter how good reigning Europa League champions Atalanta are - but Los Blancos came out with the kind of attacking intent that suggested that they could be just as dominant as years past. The final scoreline was 2-0 but it should have been five.

And that's when the problems started. The first signs came at the end of September. Los Blancos traveled to a typically volatile Metropolitano and experienced the kind of rattling that Diego Simeone specialises in. Real escaped with a 1-1 draw, but were lucky to do so, having been thoroughly beaten on expected goals, and failed to ever grab a foothold in the game.

There were extraneous factors at play - Thibaut Courtois had to dodge missiles from fans. Still, it wasn't an assured, composed Madrid showing and Carlo Ancelotti admitted as much afterwards.

What should have come next was a Madrid big game masterclass. A Champions League league-phase clash with Lille seemed to be the perfect forum. Instead, Madrid were subject to the kind of showing they would usually inflict on others.

They outshot, outpassed and out-created the French side. But Lille did that signature Madrid thing, soaking up pressure and grabbing a goal on the break. By the end of it all Jude Bellingham was throwing his arms in the air in frustration while Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr refused to track back.

The end of October brought further struggles. It's hard to sell a 5-2 win over Borussia Dortmund as a disappointing thing, but there was a really worrying aspect to the patchy nature of the performance.

Madrid went down 2-0, and looked fragile against a poor Nuri Sahin side. It required individual inspiration - provided by the ever-excellent Vinicius - to drag them back into the game and then turn it into a blowout as the Bundesliga side collapsed.

Then came the Clasico. It was supposed to be Mbappe's coming out party in a Madrid shirt. the Frenchman had endured a mixed start to his Blancos career. The man who scored a hat-trick in the World Cup final lives for these moments - or so we were told. The reality was radically different.

The Barca high line was too much for Madrid. Mbappe was caught offside 11 times. And Los Blancos were far too easily torn apart on the break. Yamal grabbed the headlines, Raphinha pulled the strings, and Robert Lewandowski showed he still had it. In the end, 4-0 flattered Madrid.

Milan had clearly been watching. The following week, a Christian Pulisic-led Rossonieri rocked up in Madrid and the American turned in perhaps the best performance of anyone from the U.S. under the Bernabeu lights. Milan won 3-1 and their hosts had few complaints.

"We have to be concerned, the team is not playing well," Ancelotti admitted after the game. "The team is not compact, we need to be more compact, more organised, we've conceded a lot of goals ... The team is not well-organised on the pitch and we need to work on this."

Things only got worse, though. Anfield was always going to be a tough trip but Madrid were made to look thoroughly ordinary by Arne Slot's men. Mbappe missed a penalty and Liverpool cruised to a 2-0 win.

This, of course, all ran counter to what the world thought it knew about Madrid. Los Blancos are supposed to revel in these key games. Even when things aren't going well, Madrid find a way to win. It's what the kids called aura.

Last year's quarter-final victory against Manchester City at the Etihad stands as the perfect example. Madrid got their goal, conceded, and then simply soaked up pressure for the remainder of the second half, all of extra time, and won on penalties. And somehow, it all felt inevitable.

"You’ve got to see [the Real shirt] as a responsibility, not a pressure," Bellingham said. "You have to be willing to be under the scrutiny and spotlight. If you’re here it means you can handle it so trust the process.

"It’s incredible [to knock out the holders]. Today it’s come down to mentality, to running, to track [players]... you get that right and then the moments like the lads keeping their heads in penalties, it’s a mix of that.”

The same had happened countless times before. Madrid overturned deficits against Chelsea two years before that. They were summarily battered by Liverpool in the 2022 Champions League final - and still prevailed 1-0 in Paris.

Last season they won all three Clasicos by a combined score of 9-4. They beat Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-final with Joselu - yes, Joselu - coming off the bench to score a brace and send them to a European final which, by the way, they also won. They just don't lose these big matches. But now they are.

A Supercopa Clasico loss to Barcelona only piled on the misery. They ended up scraping into the Champions League knockout - and will have to play a two-leg elimination tie against Man City to even feature in the round of 16.

Ancelotti can point to all sorts of reasons for Real's struggles. The early ones this season were pretty simple: Madrid had too many stars, and not enough time for them to work things out. Vinicius and Mbappe were still trying to play in the same position. Bellingham hadn't quite mastered the art of dropping deep. There were, also, adjustments to be made following the retirement of Toni Kroos - an issue that has still not been fully resolved.

And then there are the injuries. Madrid have endured rotten luck so far. Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao both sustained ACL tears, while David Alaba's return is taking longer than expected. Eduardo Camavinga hasn't enjoyed a run of fitness, while knocks elsewhere have depleted things.

Ancelotti himself isn't above blame, either. His decision to use Aurelien Tchouameni as an auxiliary centre-back hasn't panned out. There is still little evidence to suggest that a Rodrygo-Vinicius-Mbappe has the requisite balance to function in big games.

Either way, piece it all together, and this is a strangely flawed team.

It is an immensely inopportune time, then, for Saturday's fixture with Atleti. Madrid's poor form in both la Liga and Europe has seen them let Los Rojiblancos back into the title race.

Player for player, euro for euro, this is a vastly superior Madrid squad. Atleti spent handsomely last summer, but still have the feel of a rag-tag, dirty side - albeit with the magical Antoine Griezmann making things happen in the final third. Either way, this shouldn't really be close.

Still, Atleti are just one point behind. They have lost fewer games. Diego Simeone is throwing shade in the media and making this whole thing feel like a real occasion. This is what derby games are meant for and, usually, historically, they end up with Madrid running away winners.

You wouldn't bet against the same here. Madrid are a better side. But the big game vibes are lacking. The Blancos aura that carries them through adversity has gone missing this season. And that just might be enough to allow Atletico to reclaim the lead in an absorbing title race.