Another great and important win for Ancelotti’s men. Real Madrid continue to keep up the pace and head into the international break as LaLiga leaders as the differences in the race for the top of the table seem to be very narrow for this season. The first derby of the season saw our team come out on top at the Cívitas Metropolitano, building on their spectacular start to the season, having won all nine games played so far (six in LaLiga, two in the Champions League and the European Super Cup).
The win this evening was set up thanks to a great first half, in which Rodrygo and Valverde were on the scoresheet. Ancelotti's side were solid in the second half, but Hermoso reduced the deficit in the 83rd minute. The game was even and both teams said their own. But however, Real Madrid was quick and clever enough to outplay the opponent by getting the most from their chances and scoring two times in a bit more than 30 minutes from the start. Madridistas had entered the pitch with a clear idea and fully focused.
Atlético made a decent start and threatened early on from a set-piece with 6 minutes on the clock. De Paul whipped in the free-kick and Felipe headed over. Madrid responded 13 minutes later in resounding fashion. Tchouameni played a perfectly weighted pass in behind the home defence and Rodrygo arrived to open the scoring from close range. The hosts went in search of an equaliser with Griezmann's long-range effort after 25 minutes, but Courtois pulled off a fine save to keep out the shot.
As the half progressed Ancelotti‘s side began to control the play and they got their reward in the 36th minute. Modrić linked up with Vini Jr. and the Brazilian found his himself one-on-one in the area with Oblak. The forward’s shot was pushed onto the post by the keeper, but the rebound fell to Valverde who turned the ball in. The home side then applied the pressure as they looked to get back into the game and on 40’ Courtois was on hand to deny Carrasco. As Colchoneros saw themselves down to 2 goals before half time, they felt the pressure which kept increasing as the minutes went on, making everything even more difficult.
Real Madrid serenely dominated with the proceedings after the restart, trying to manage the game as efficiently as possible. Atletico really struggled to get back into the match, at the end of the first and the start of the second. It wasn't until the introduction of Angel Correa that they started to create something, but with Thibaut Courtois still looked very solid on one side and the spaces being left in the backline while trying to find the goal on the other side, Atletico did not seem very likely to make any surprises.
However, the hosts managed to pull one back as fortune favoured Atletico. A 83th minute corner kick struck Hermoso on the shoulder and found its way into the net. The Atletico defender was then sent off after collecting a second yellow card on 90’. The first one came for getting in the face of Dani Carvajal and the second one for shoving Dani Ceballos as Atleti had a corner. The Whites held on to secure the spoils in the Madrid derby and maintain their 100% winning streak in the competition and not only!
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