No Courtois, no Vinícius and 38% of the ball: Madrid let Barcelona have it, broke behind their midfield, and Mbappé scored both goals in a 2–1 win.
The numbers
| Real Madrid | FC Barcelona | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 38% | 62% |
| Shots | 10 | 18 |
| Shots on target | 5 | 6 |
| xG | 1.94 | 1.19 |
| Touches in opp. box | 24 | 36 |
| Corners | 6 | 6 |
| Fouls | 11 | 15 |
Result the chances deserved: Real Madrid 55% / 22% / FC Barcelona 23% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Lunin, Valverde, Konaté, Huijsen, Cucurella, Bernardo Silva, Tchouaméni, Güler, Bellingham, Diomande, Mbappé.
FC Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Joan García, Xavi Espart, Cubarsí, Gerard Martín, Cancelo, Rodri, Pedri, Lamine Yamal, Fermín López, Gordon, Raphinha.
Barcelona subs: Balde (30', for Xavi Espart, injured), Frenkie de Jong (74', Fermín López), Adeyemi (85', Gordon), Gabriel Jesus (86', Raphinha). Barcelona coach: Hansi Flick. When Balde came on, Cancelo moved from left-back to right-back, opposite Diomande (Yahoo Sports, Ara).
Goal minutes, subs and cards from LaLiga and FotMob (FotMob has Adeyemi on at 84'). Real Madrid's report has the winner at 88', and Ara has the goals at 42' and 62'. Booked: Tchouaméni (46'), Gordon (84'), Huijsen (90+2'), Mbappé (90+4'), Balde and Adeyemi (90+6'; FotMob has Balde at 90+4'). Cancelo's studs caught Diomande at 56' and went unpunished (Sky Sports, Real Madrid). Javier Iglesias Villanueva was on VAR (Ara). Shots on target, corners and fouls from Sports Mole. FotMob's player of the match: Mbappé (9.0). Attendance 62,055 (LaLiga).
Key moments, move by move
- Bernardo Silva moves the ball to the left, and Cucurella slips Diomande in behind Cancelo.
- Diomande runs on towards the byline and crosses low.
- Gerard Martín tries to clear it at the near post.
- The ball hits Mbappé and goes in off his right thigh.
- Barcelona play a short corner on the right.
- Pedri turns and plays a reverse pass to Raphinha on the right of the box.
- Raphinha takes a touch and shoots low with his left foot, through Bellingham's legs.
- The ball goes past Lunin inside the far post.
- Bellingham spins away from his marker in midfield.
- Güler plays Camavinga, on at 80', in down the right.
- Camavinga knocks it past Cubarsí and gets to it before Joan García.
- He squares it, and Mbappé taps it into the empty net.
Give Barcelona the ball, follow their wingers, break behind Rodri and Pedri
- Two forced changes: Lunin started for Courtois, out with flu, and Diomande on the left for the suspended Vinícius (SI). Bernardo Silva and Tchouaméni were the double pivot, with Valverde at right-back (FotMob). On paper it was a 4-2-3-1; without the ball it was a mid-to-low block (Yahoo Sports). Barcelona had 62% of the ball and 18 shots to 10 (FotMob).
- Full-backs on the wingers: Cucurella followed Lamine Yamal and Valverde helped to stop Gordon (Yahoo Sports). Yamal took five shots worth 0.51 xG, but created no chances and completed 47 of 76 passes (Opta Analyst). Ara called Cucurella the key defender against him.
- Breaks behind the pivot: Rodri and Pedri gave the ball away 13 times each, and Tchouaméni made 11 recoveries, the most in the match (Goal). Madrid broke at once, through Diomande on the left and Bellingham's carries (Yahoo Sports). Their 10 shots made 1.94 xG to Barcelona's 1.19 from 18 (FotMob).
- The changes on both sides: Xavi Espart went off at 30', and Cancelo switched to right-back to face Diomande. Raphinha equalised at 61'. A minute later Valverde went off injured, and Barcelona had their best spell (Yahoo Sports); Lunin saved Gerard Martín's header at 66'. Camavinga came on at 80' and set up the winner at 87' (LaLiga). Mourinho said forwards struggle to attack the space behind Barcelona's line, so he sent midfielders instead: he told Camavinga to attack it (SI), with Tchouaméni staying back to protect the defence (El Gol Digital).
Tactical scenes
Barcelona had the ball for long spells, but Rodri and Pedri lost it often. Madrid broke straight into the space behind them. A loose pass from Pedri released Diomande before half-time, and he was one-on-one with Joan García but hit the side netting. At 50' Bellingham and Mbappé had a two-on-one, and Bellingham's pass did not find Mbappé (Yahoo Sports, Real Madrid, Sky Sports).
Evidence: Madrid made 1.94 xG from 10 shots, about 0.19 per shot, against Barcelona's 1.19 from 18, about 0.07 per shot, with 38% of the ball (FotMob). Rodri and Pedri gave the ball away 13 times each (Goal). FotMob match page · Real Madrid match report · Yahoo Sports: the tactics board
Recreate it in FM26
Real Madrid · Mourinho's deep 4-2-3-1 at Camp Nou · 4-2-3-1Show cardHide card
Mourinho's deep 4-2-3-1 at Camp Nou
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Lunin | Goalkeeper | Line-Holding Keeper |
| RB | Valverde | Full-Back | Holding Full-Back |
| RCB | Konaté | Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Huijsen | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Cucurella | Full-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RDM | Bernardo Silva | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Tchouaméni | Defensive Midfielder | Screening Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Güler | Wide Playmaker | Tracking Winger |
| AM | Bellingham | Attacking Midfielder | Central Outlet Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Diomande | Winger | Wide Outlet Winger |
| ST | Mbappé | Channel Forward | Central Outlet Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Attacking TransitionCounter-Attack
- Passing DirectnessMore Direct
- DribblingEncouraged
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementLow Block
- Defensive LineDeeper
- Defensive TransitionRegroup
The idea: A 4-2-3-1 that drops into two banks of four, with a Screening Defensive Midfielder to win the ball, a Wide Outlet Winger left high, and a Channel Forward to run behind. It needs full-backs who can follow a winger alone.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26 can't reproduce a deflected opener or the 26 giveaways from Barcelona's pivot that fed Madrid's breaks.
Our reading of this match in FM26 terms, not an exported tactic file. Role names as in FM26.
What if? Replay it with a different plan
Our best alternative plan: Camavinga on at 65' (for Bernardo Silva), Carreras on at 70' (for Cucurella). Keep the deep block and the breaks that made 1.94 xG from 10 shots, bring Camavinga's running on earlier and refresh the left side against Yamal. Madrid still win, with more room for error at the end. It moves Real Madrid's win chance from 55% to 59% (xG 1.94–1.19 becomes 2.04–1.09). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer Real Madrid needed
Vinícius Jr
Madrid's plan was to break into the space behind Barcelona's pivot. With Vinícius on the left and Diomande on the right, every break has two direct runners, not Diomande and a passer in Güler, against a back four already reshuffled after Espart's injury.
Nico Williams
Most of Madrid's breaks ran through Diomande on the left, and after Valverde went off Madrid lost their outlet (Yahoo Sports). A winger who runs at full-backs from either flank gives the counter a second fast out-ball when one side is closed.
What the analysts said
“The boys played an extraordinary match: very organized, very focused, with a lot of courage to play out from the back…”José Mourinho, after the match (via Sky Sports)
“At 1-1 we never lost our composure.”José Mourinho (via Sky Sports)
“For me, it was a great victory for the boys, I repeat, against a great opponent, with a referee who I think did a very good job, and a VAR that was asleep…”José Mourinho (via Sky Sports)
“Today sends a good message but we can't think that the season is over, because nothing has been decided.”Kylian Mbappé, to Real Madrid TV (via Sky Sports)
“Against the ball they gave us not so much space.”Hansi Flick, Barcelona coach (via Sky Sports)
“You could see today we missed also the freshness.”Hansi Flick (via Sky Sports)
“It is difficult for any attacker to attack space against [Barcelona]; the only solution is to do it with your midfielders.”José Mourinho, post-match press conference (via SI)
“I told Camavinga, go and attack the space.”José Mourinho, on the winner (via SI)
Madrid gave Barcelona the ball and won the Clásico on the break.
What's happening. Madrid won 2–1 at Camp Nou, and Mbappé scored both goals, the winner three minutes from time. It is Barcelona's first league defeat of the season and cuts the gap at the top to three points. Madrid did it without Courtois, who was ill, and without the suspended Vinícius.
How it works. Madrid let Barcelona have the ball in front of their block, but not between the lines. The full-backs followed the wingers, and Tchouaméni screened the middle. When Rodri or Pedri lost the ball, the first pass went straight to Diomande or Mbappé. A side that defends like this needs few touches to score. The cost is a long night without the ball, and Barcelona's best spell came once Valverde went off injured.
What the shots say. FotMob rates Madrid's ten shots as better chances than Barcelona's eighteen: about two goals' worth against a little over one. One reading: the plan made the better chances, because breaks into open space are worth more than shots through a crowded box. The other: the opener was a deflection, Barcelona had more touches in the box, and Lunin's save at 66' kept it level. One moment the other way and this is a draw.