Neither el Madrid nor Mbappé

Five games, three losses. Those are Madrid's red numbers in this Champions League, the team's lifesaver so many times, after being dejected at Anfield. The puncture will be associated with the figure of Kylian Mbappé, called to rescue a team that has half the squad offside and that He walked clumsily, soulless and, at times, disappeared. Missing the penalty that could have ruined the team reflected what his first steps in Madrid are. He is at zero in the big games and this time he has no alibi: He had the whole gang and the whole hierarchy. The company was not very pleasant either: imprecise Brahim, inconsequential Güler, transparent Mendy, poor defense after the break. With only one shot on goal and with the twenty-fourth team, on the border of elimination, It seems increasingly difficult to explain that you do not need to go to the market.

Ancelotti's adversity turned him into eleven. The medical report only allowed him to choose between Fran García and Mendy at left back and between Arda Güler and Ceballos in the center of the field. and he stayed in the middle: the most pessimistic defender and the most optimistic midfielder. In a way, as expected. Also in the occupation of the countryside, with a two plus two in the center of the field: Camavinga and Modric to hold the team, Güler and Bellingham to launch Brahim and Mbappé. The Frenchman already got off on the wrong foot. A loss due to distraction ended with Darwin Núñez facing Courtois. Asencio avoided on the goal line, after the Belgian's rebound, a disaster that he himself could have caused with a touch as involuntary as it was suicidal. That's Liverpool: the application of the maximum sentence to any loss of the rival.

Attack and retreat

Arne Slot did not touch a line of his manual. Covered with the Irish Kelleher and Bradley for the absent Alison and the touched Alexander-Arnold and chose youth player Jones for the rotating playmaker position. A team made to attack and that went out to attack, as its public demands, but with withdrawal always in mind. That has been the Dutch coach's addition to the legacy that Klopp left him. It can be seen with the naked eye and can be read in the results in more detail.

That This is Anfield that appears at the end of the locker room tunnel is not only a reminder of the responsibility assumed by the locals, but a warning of what awaits the visitors. He understood it Madrid, which behaved without the ball, at the start, as in its best moments last season: sacrificed, supportive, concentrated, not at all permissive. With the ball the situation worsened: few exits, little threat, little precision. And Liverpool's midfielders are two good stoppers. Gravenberch, Slot's work of redemption, bites. Mac Allister is more British than just his surname. Before the break both were reprimanded.

The truth is that as the minutes passed, Liverpool began to harass Madrid on Courtois dangerously. The Belgian saved with his body a forced shot by Darwin Núñez, who shortly after crossed a header next to the post. In them Luis Díaz saw himself with the same lack of success. Jones also sent a high shot. Salah and all kinds of atmospheric phenomena loomed over Madrid. Ancelotti's team found itself in a siege very similar to that of the Etihad last season. It only existed in defense. Arda Güler and Bellingham were a brush and not a brush and Bradley won the fight against Mbappé, which is saying something. The Frenchman walks very out of tune on his feet, whether they give him his band or take him out of it.

On the other hand, they weathered the storm well. Camavinga, leader of Madrid's energy transition, Modric, because he has a doctorate in games like this, and the entire defensive quartet. Asencio, attentive to everything and everyone, and Valverde, who one day will also be tasked with driving the bus or serving the catering, especially.

From error to error

That Madrid order turned into chaos after the break. Liverpool became heavy with the pressure, left the white team without air and no way out and ended up finding the goal they deserved. A simple Mac Allister-Bradley wall was enough to finish a cross shot by the Argentine already in the heart of the area. Bradley himself had warned before. Afterwards, he again forgave Mac Allister. The chain of misfortunes grew with Camavinga's muscle injuryuntil then the best midfielder on the team. The squad is already in its bones without a single gesture being appreciated in the club to ask for help in the market.

Ancelotti took advantage of the mishap to restructure the team. The entry of Lucas returned Valverde to the center of the field and Ceballos arrived to take power away from the center of the field red. And without deserving it, the game gave Madrid an opportunity. A flagrant stomp by Robertson on Lucas Vázquez ended in a penalty that the tormented Mbappé threw poorly. The shot was parried by Kelleher. Wood to the fire.

The mistake was very inopportune, because with Valverde in his place and Liverpool satiated, The meeting was beginning to reach a point of balance. In favor of the work, in addition, Salah rowed, who also ruled out the penalty that Mendy committed on him, between filthy and overwhelmed. However, Madrid was already accelerating towards perdition. And there he found himself after the second goal, a header from Gakpo who was only monitored at the penalty spot with his eyes. Liverpool were satisfied. And he did not want to bring his victory closer to the trickle.

Follow the Diario AS channel on WhatsAppwhere you will find all the sport in a single space: the current news of the day, the agenda with the latest news of the most important sporting events, the most outstanding images, the opinion of the best AS brands, reports, videos, and some humor from time to time.