Ancelotti’s team, which came from four consecutive victories, was overwhelmed by a four-of-a-kind product from the sheikh’s global network
Madrid came off four consecutive 2-0 wins between La Liga and the Champions League, were caught off guard in Catalonia and ended up heavily knocked out. Newly promoted Girona, who had made it 1-1 in the first leg at the Bernabeu, inflicted their ninth defeat of the season on the Spanish and European champions: a 4-2 already sensational enough on its own that became historic because the Catalan team’s 4 goals were all signed by Valentin ‘Taty’ Castellanos, the 24-year-old Argentine taken last summer from New York City, a team in the group led by the Manchester team to which Girona also belongs.
FOUR GOALS IN ONE HOUR
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Castellanos, who has scored 7 goals in his first Liga to date, scored 4 against Madrid in 62′ minutes, three with his head and one with his right foot. Madrid in La Liga hadn’t collected a poker from an opponent for 76 years. Ancelotti’s team remains -11 from Barcelona on the field tomorrow in the capital, in Vallecas against Rayo. The Blaugrana’s 27th Liga is getting closer and closer. For Girona a salvation in absolute tranquility. The match was preceded by the words Michel, coach of Girona, who has a son who lives in Valdebebas as manager of Madrid. However, Michel is employed by the City group, which through Pere Guardiola, Pep’s brother, controls Girona, and so yesterday he said with great honesty that in the Champions League semi-final he will support the English club: “Madrid is treating my son very well, but I know how important it is for the City Group to win the Champions League final”.
THE CHOICES
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With La Liga now lost and commitments piling up – today was match number 51 for Madrid – Ancelotti makes a few changes: Courtois, Camavinga and Benzema out, as well as the injured Alaba and Mendy, Lunin in (very bad), Nacho (overtaken) and Asensio (one assist) with Rodrygo in the center of the attack. And the Brazilian after just 30 seconds invents a heel that seems to win on an assist from Modric, Juanpe denies him the goal. Madrid seemed in control but in the 12th minute ‘Taty’ Castellanos scored, with a nice header from a cross from the left by Miguel Gutierrez, Madrid’s manager, after a genius from ‘Roro’ Riquelme, who instead grew up in the Atletico Madrid to which it still belongs. For the Argentine eighth goal in this Liga, which became 9 in the 24th minute when Castellanos launched by Arnau resisted the counter strikes of a strangely blunt Militao in the long run from midfield and burned the uncertain Lunin with discrete ease making him pass the ball between the legs.
WINES UNLEASHED
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Madrid had 75% of possession and in the 34th minute closed the gap with a header from Vinicius lurking at the far post following Asensio’s cross from the right. For the Brazilian 10 goals in La Liga, 22 seasonal like last year, and nerves uncovered: Vini is ready to quarrel with anyone, between the opponents and the public unnerved by the Madrid player who continues to provocatively signal and polish the Club World Cup crest to underline the difference between Girona and the World Champion club. With Ancelotti and Madrid very angry with the referee for handling the Vinicius issue, the ‘Taty’ still had a lot to say: 45 seconds into the second half the Argentine put in a cross from the right by Yann Couto behind Lunin who burned Nacho and put the ball in the middle of the blanco crib. After the hour of play, Castellanos headed poker from a corner with a cross from the right which was touched by Carvajal, with Militao mesmerized: the Brazilian, author of an exceptional season so far, had given away the corner and missed the opposing center forward.
CHRISTMAS OF 1947
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It had been almost exactly 10 years since someone hadn’t scored 4 goals against Madrid: Robert Lewandowski had succeeded with the Borussia Dortmund shirt on 24 April 2013. In La Liga then you have to go back to prehistory: the last poker against the blancos was signed the Basque Esteban Echevarría Olabarrieta, player of Oviedo, on December 21, 1947! Michel replaced Castellanos in the 72nd minute, depriving the Argentine of the possibility of printing his hand against Madrid, something only one player in the history of Real has achieved, the same Echevarría just mentioned who turned 100 on 16 January.
THE ONLY INSPIRED
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In the final came the second goal of the blancos, signed by Lucas Vazquez thanks to the 17th assist from Vinicius, with the stadium ironically singing to him “How scarce you are”. No, the Brazilian, nervousness aside, is not in short supply and was the only one truly inspired by a distracted and disinterested Madrid. And now of course Ancelotti will have to deal with the usual noisy bad mood that accompanies every Madrid defeat. He would have gladly avoided it.
April 25th – 9.50pm
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