Real Madrid beat Leganes 3-0 on Sunday to capitalise on Barcelona dropping points again.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side picked up from where they left off before the international break, when they beat Osasuna 4-0, and were once again reliable in defence and attack.
Kylian Mbappe put his side ahead in the 43rd minute after a great pass from Vinicius Junior. Federico Valverde made it 2-0 in the 66th minute before Jude Bellingham wrapped up the scoring.
“It was a good game from start to finish, solid, focused. Vinicius did very well inside. The team controlled the game very well,” head coach Ancelotti said at the post-match press conference.
Madrid have 26 points and are second in the standings, four points behind Hansi Flick’s leaders with a game in hand. They have begun to move away from the significant doubts generated by consecutive defeats to Barcelona and AC Milan.
Here, The Athletic analyses the game’s key points: from the progress of Mbappe and Bellingham to Valverde’s changing role and Wednesday’s Champions League against against Liverpool at Anfield.
Mbappe continues to improve
For the first time this season, the 25-year-old French striker played on the left wing from the start of the game, switching roles with Vinicius Jr.
“(Mbappe) has more experience playing outside than inside. Vinicius arrived on Thursday (from his international commitments with Brazil) and he was fresher than Vinicius,” Ancelotti explained afterwards.
The decision came after Mbappe had trained for two solid weeks at Valdebebas, having not been called up by France manager Didier Deschamps.
There was a clear aim at Madrid for those training sessions to help Mbappe regain his fitness. He looked sharper against Leganes, as seen from the impressive ball-carrying figures in his player dashboard below.
Against Leganes and playing on the left, Mbappe looked more comfortable. Barely four minutes into the game, he had his first chance but missed the target with a shot that went too softly into Marko Dmitrovic’s hands.
A few minutes later, the Frenchman was flagged offside in another move that could have led to a goal.
For his part, Vinicius Jr performed well in his first game as a centre-forward this season, continually looking to combine with Mbappe.
After the break, the Brazilian striker played another pass for Mbappe on a counter-attack, but Dmitrovic denied the Frenchman again.
“I have a very good relationship with Vinicius, he’s a great player,” Mbappe told the club’s official TV channel after the game.
(Oscar Del Pozo/AFP via Getty Images)
Mbappe is not at his absolute best but Madrid’s star signing has already scored nine goals in 17 games across all competitions this season and continues to improve.
Regarding his on-pitch role, Madrid’s coaching staff believe that the decision has to be made for each specific opponent.
With Vinicius Jr playing so well, Mbappe is unlikely to permanently take his place on the left wing. They will keep rotating during games, as Ancelotti has explained many times publicly.
How did Valverde adapt to his new role?
With Dani Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez out injured, Ancelotti has run out of senior right-backs.
The club have been monitoring players from the academy, including the promising 17-year-old Jesus Fortea, but they have decided to be patient.
So, like Aurelien Tchouameni deputising at centre-back or Eduardo Camavinga at left-back, midfielder Federico Valverde was chosen to fill the gap.
In the second half against Osasuna, following Vazquez’s injury, Valverde was moved into defence. Against Leganes, the Uruguayan was one of the game’s outstanding players from right-back. He handled himself well defensively but also led the game in total progressive passes (eight, see dashboard below) and was second in involvement in offensive sequences (six). He also added a great goal from an indirect free kick in the second half to cement Madrid’s victory.
For months now, Ancelotti has considered it a “must” — as coaching staff describe it — to train this move, which consists of taking a free kick with a touch before shooting.
“Valverde is a fantastic full-back — after Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez, he is the best full-back in the world. Valverde’s problem is that he can play in many positions on the pitch and the coach’s problem is to choose which is his best,” Ancelotti said.
It was certainly a special game for Valverde, who wore the captain’s armband for Real Madrid for the first time.
Bellingham is scoring goals again
Despite a difficult start to the season with a muscle injury that saw him miss four games for Madrid and two for England, Bellingham is also returning to his best.
The midfielder was key to the flow of the game against Leganes with an 88 per cent passing success rate (from 56 passes in total), but above all for his efficiency with four long balls and a key pass.
With the score still 0-0, Bellingham waited for a mistake in Leganes’ distribution, stole the ball and gave it to Vinicius Jr to set up Mbappe for the opener.
The 21-year-old looked as comfortable as he did for much of last season and even completed four dribbles.
(Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
After not scoring a goal all season, Bellingham has scored in his last two games, so what has changed?
First, he is back playing as a left-sided attacking midfielder, like he did so well last season. Previously this season, he had been required to play further back and with a lot of defensive demands.
Against Leganes, Madrid’s defensive midfielders were Dani Ceballos and Eduardo Camavinga, who took some of his work.
When playing with only two out-and-out forwards, Bellingham will have more freedom in attack and can increase his attacking stats. The signs look good.
How are Madrid shaping up for the trip to Liverpool?
Before finalising his line-up for the game at Anfield, Ancelotti is still waiting on news about two names: Vazquez and Tchouameni.
Vazquez’s injury to his left hamstring was not as serious as suspected, so he could make the squad — but there are doubts from Tchouameni’s camp that he will recover in time from his sprained ankle.
If they don’t make it to full fitness, Ancelotti is expected to use Antonio Rudiger and the homegrown Raul Asencio in central defence.
Tchouameni, whose last La Liga game was against Barcelona in October, is still recovering from an injury (Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP via Getty Images)
At left-back, there will be a switch, with Ferland Mendy set to play in place of Fran Garcia. Ancelotti said: “These are technical decisions and nothing more. Fran is playing very well, but Mendy is very important for Wednesday’s game.”
In midfield, the puzzle is more complex because it depends on whether Valverde continues at right-back. If so, Modric is the most likely to partner Camavinga as a defensive midfielder.
Bellingham, Mbappe and Vinicius Jr will once again play in the attacking positions — the only doubt is who will play alongside them, especially after Arda Guler’s strong performance against Leganes.
However, Brahim Diaz being rested for most of the game and barely playing a quarter of an hour suggests he will get the nod. Brahim is also trusted more on the defensive side than Guler, which may prove important against the Premier League leaders.
(Top photo: Guillermo Martinez/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
