Immediate reaction: Alcoyano 2-1 Real Madrid (AET)

Alcoyano 2-1 Real Madrid AET (Militão). Amazing. Here’s a quick reaction. Still to come: player ratings, the post-game podcast, any post-game quotes and additional reviews.

These early cup games offered an exciting opportunity to get a closer look and provide minutes for emerging and young players in previous years. Much of the excitement before this game was severely hampered after the events of Martin Ødegaard yesterday – and while it was nice to see Andriy Lunin and Víctor Chust delivering the debut, seeing Lucas Vázquez start his nineteenth consecutive game was nothing but confusing. Lunin and Chust ended up being two of the most positive factors of this first half.

After taking the formations, any remaining expectations that I had left for the game were quickly washed away as the game became as one-dimensional and mundane as the silent, empty stands around the teams. With the exception of a few Isco foot blows and an occasional abrupt delivery inside the area, Real Madrid struggled to break Alcoyano’s defensive form in the first half. The only time Mariano noticed himself was when he felt compelled to bend down to catch the ball and go it alone, but he failed on several occasions.

Alcoyano was well organized, and his 41-year-old goalkeeper impressed with his safe hands and amazing acrobatics. It was interesting to see former Real Madrid academy player Alberto Rubio start and play well on the right side after having completely forgotten about his existence. Real Madrid had an immense possession of the ball, but had very little impact. The goal before the break was well scored, with Marcelo putting a good ball in the area and Éder Militão getting it right to score Real Madrid’s first goal.

The second half produced much less to review. I didn’t see much sense in Karim Benzema entering just after the middle of the road. Lunin had a more unstable second half, avoiding some efforts that seemed comfortable. Vinícius wasted it by hitting the man and pulling the goalkeeper. Moments later, Alcoyano equalized in the corner kick. Vinícius Júnior fell asleep and never got up for the shot again. The ball passed through the crowd and reached the scorer also did not shout competence. What can these two significant errors in a minute mean to Vinícius Júnior?

The extra time may have seen Real Madrid bring the big guns, with Marco Asensio, Toni Kroos and Eden Hazard coming in – but it didn’t bring much action in the first period. Real Madrid created some opportunities, but Alcoyano goalkeeper José Juan Figueras did not want to, in what must have been the best performance of his life. The home team dropped to ten men in the final segment after a silly challenge in Casemiro. Although Real Madrid increased the pressure, Alcoyano surprisingly took the lead with a genuinely good counterattack. Total disbelief … Real Madrid are out of Copa Del Rey and this time they have fallen to the embarrassing side of football history …

Stay tuned for player ratings along with the post-game podcast later …