The fifth round of the Spanish league laid bare the flaws of Spain's two giants. Real Madrid and Barcelona secured two wins, similar in script yet different in message.
Los Blancos overcame Rayo Vallecano 4-1 at the Bernabeu. Barcelona got past Levante 4-2 away from home. Both sides endured unexpected suffering that nearly cost them dearly.
In Madrid, Los Blancos raced three goals ahead before Camello pulled one back to make it 3-1, opening the door to a terrifying scenario. Mourinho's men squandered clear-cut chances and left Courtois alone to fend off Rayo's attacks. The Bernabeu crowd whistled in disapproval at the players' slackness, until Mbappe settled matters with a fourth goal in stoppage time.
Barcelona lived through the same nightmare in Valencia. Comfortably 3-0 ahead of Levante at the Orriols stadium, they watched the hosts pull it back to 3-2 and press with all their might. Only a decisive touch of class from Adame, making the score 4-2, spared them.
This shared suffering prompted Javi Herraiz, the correspondent covering Real Madrid for radio station "Cadena SER", to defend the Bernabeu crowd on the radio programme "Carrusel Canalla". He completely understood the whistles when the team relaxes on the pitch.
Herraiz said: "The fans are annoyed because Barcelona are playing wonderful football and will continue to do so, things have gone excellently with Flick, and it seems he has a large number of players. I think Real Madrid will play good football, but it will be difficult because the team loses its focus."
The whistles began immediately after Sergio Camello's goal that made it 3-1, he explained, and grew fiercer after Courtois' saves. He added: "The team lacks consistency and cohesion, and they will acquire that with time. There is nothing wrong with the disapproval; it is something that benefits the players because praise weakens them."
To drive home his message, Herraiz cited a single moment he sees as "essential" for Real Madrid. It came with Barcelona 3-0 ahead of Levante. Flick took off Lamine Yamal, Raphinha shifted to the right wing, then sprinted back to defend with all his might despite his team being ahead. Teammate Eric Garcia applauded him warmly for it.
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Herraiz concluded by saying: "It is a perfect example of what Barcelona represent and the philosophy of this team. The same applies to Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich: we are eleven players, we came to work, to run and to play. If Real Madrid's players grasp that, then the team will have taken a step forward."