Real Madrid – Barcelona: the Catalans wreak havoc at Santiago Bernabéu (0-4)

Barcelona slayed another beast, adopting the same philosophy that Hansi Flick had instilled since he walked in. An extreme high line that trapped Real Madrid on twelve occasions and a direct playing style through and over a disjointed block saw them banking four goals and clinging to the top of La Liga.

Tactical analysis and match report by Achraf Lamdarhri.

It has been long since stability prevailed over Barcelona's sky, as Hansi Flick brought back this trait to the Catalan house. Barcelona throttled Bayern Munich in a sophisticated way, breaking the Bavarian knot that has been a nightmare for the Catalans. Barcelona needed the man deemed responsible for the famous adversity to take over and tarnish his former team to revamp their European image as one of the old continent’s mammoths. Moreover, it looks like La Masia has every answer to the first team question, as it keeps feeding Hansi Flick with reliable gems to flourish in the most stressful stages. Iñaki Peña, Pau Cubarsí, Alejandro Balde, Marc Casadó, Lamine Yamal, and Fermin López were the six players who have been promoted from La Masia and made up the starting eleven against Bayern Munich.

For Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti still hasn’t figured out a plan to make his team meet last season's power. Gaps between their lines, laziness from some players in the press, and desynchronized movements out of possession contributed to the disjointed look that Borussia Dortmund and Celta Vigo exploited in recent days. However, giving up is not in Real Madrid’s book, as they are accustomed to rising from the ashes and turning results around whenever . . .