Zinedine Zidane is no stranger to Real Madrid, and the pressure is back on the legendary player and coach after Los Blancos’ embarrassing 2-1 defeat by Alcoyano in their first – and last – Copa del Rey match in 2021.
Going into overtime against Alcoyano was bad enough, but ended up losing the game? Unconscious. Real Madrid cannot miss matches like this for a third division team, and it was alarming how dull they looked.
The meringues held the ball for much of the match, but did not help it in terms of the chance of creation, and strikers Vinicius Junior and Mariano Diaz seemed totally ineffective and inept against Alyocano’s defense. Zidane’s adjustments proved too small, too late.
After the defeat, Zinedine Zidane said that he does not see the defeat for Alyocano as a “disgrace”. Here is the quote from Adriana Garcia of ESPN.com:
“I am the coach, the responsibility is mine. I am responsible. We played against a third division team and we should have won, but it is not a shame. “
Zinedine Zidane cannot bear another loss like this
I can understand why Zidane would hesitate so much to call the result a “disgrace”, because he doesn’t want to throw the players under the bus or even diminish the opponent’s quality.
But that performance was a disgrace. If this game is not a “disgrace” for the madridistas, then I don’t know what else is. Because that was humiliating.
Few players can say that they played well in this game. Lucas Vazquez and Eder Militão did everything they could, and Marcelo and Isco were much better than in previous matches. But Vinicius, Mariano, Alvaro Odriozola, Casemiro and so many others did not appear to be on the field. Considering the importance of Case and Vini to Real Madrid in the 2019-2020 title campaign, their poor displays were especially disappointing.
Zidane changed the situation for Los Blancos in December, the last time he faced the hot seat after his second loss to Shakhtar Donetsk. This defeat for Alcoyano is a new low for Real, so more work needs to be done by EVERYONE at the club. Zidane is the one who disputes the most, but alone cannot be held responsible for these poor performances. They disappoint as a team and must respond as a team in turn.
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But make no mistake, this result was really a shame. Real Madrid cannot play so badly again. There would be consequences, with Zidane feeling most of them.