Real Madrid had a very frustrating evening on Saturday. Not only did they lose 2-1 at Real Betis, but they are now down to third in the La Liga standings after Atletico Madrid went above them courtesy of a 1-0 victory at home to Athletic Club.
The defeat to Betis was a very poor one for Real Madrid, as they were simply not good enough at the Benito Villamarin. After taking the lead inside the opening 10 minutes, they struggled to deal with the home side, who were on to secure victory courtesy of goals from Johnny Cardoso and former Los Blancos star Isco Alarcon.
Real Madrid’s attacking talent were unable to make an impact against Betis. Aside from scoring, Brahim was quiet, before being replaced by Arda Guler. Kylian Mbappe failed to make his mark before an early substitution, which Carlo Ancelotti commented on after the full time whistle in Seville. Rodrygo Goes was also not effective, and the same could be said for Vinicius Junior, who was only successful in four of his 11 attempted dribbles.
Vinicius’ frustration boiled over in the 86th minute when he was shown a yellow card by referee Alejandro Hernandez Hernandez for dissent. Upon being cautioned, the Brazilian forward made his feelings clear on receiving the booking.
“It’s crazy… Crazy! Sure, sure. As usual. For me it’s always a card. For Vini, it is always a card. Always. Always.”
It is now six yellow cards for Vinicius in La Liga, as well as the one red card that he received against Valencia at the start of January. Ill-discipline is something that the 24-year-old has regularly been affected by over the last couple of years, and Real Madrid will hope that he can avoid receiving no more than three bookings between now and the end of the La Liga season, so as to not incur another suspension.
