Real Madrid and Rangers met each other in a friendly match in Scotland but the Spanish side were unable to beat Rangers in their first pre-season friendly. Real Madrid's trip to Glasgow was a wake-up call, as Los Blancos fell to a 2-1 loss to Scottish champions at Ibrox. The differences in the physical condition between the teams were clear and Real Madrid suffered a lot during the game as Steven Gerard’s men kept constantly attacking and pushing forward leaving no place for Carletto’s men to relax.
Despite taking a very early lead through Rodrygo, Real Madrid were outplayed and second half goals from Fashion Sakala and Cedric Itten saw the home side take the victory. The match was a lively affair from the off as Rangers pressed hard and looked to win back the ball from Real Madrid. The home side, spurred on by their fans, in their 150th anniversary tribute match, were quick to regain possession and played the ball to Sakala, who created several chances against Lunin's goal.
Ødegaard drove with the ball from his own half into the box, setting up Rodrygo and the Brazilian, after a lovely cut-back, fired home with the outside of his boot (8 mins). The Scots responded immediately with a couple of chances through their striker. It was clear which team had played more as the minutes ticked by and, on the half-hour mark, Kent had a great chance to equalize. But with everything on his side, he smashed the ball against the crossbar.
Ancelotti brought on Arribas after the break, and just after coming on he won back a ball that ended with Rodrygo's shot from the edge of the area, although the effort was off target. Then, the Brazilian forward's link-up on the left flank with Marcelo ended with a cross from the full-back that Arribas headed over. Just when our side were at their best, the equaliser came. Sakala found space and beat Lunin with a powerful shot in the 55th minute.
More fresh legs came on in the second half: Marvin, Gila, Morante, Dotor and Miguel. Mario Gila, Iván Morante and Carlos Dotor made their debuts for Real Madrid in this match. The three Castilla players came on in the second half in place of Chust, Ødegaard and Blanco. It was exactly Miguel who hit the post in the 70th minute after overlapping Marcelo on the left. The team was reduced to ten men after Nacho was sent off and the game went Rangers' way. The Scots struck the winner through Itten, after coming on and pouncing on a loose ball to make it 2-1. Real Madrid, who went in search of a late equaliser, will play their next pre-season game against Milan on 8 August.
For Rangers, this was the perfect way to prepare for the start of their competitive season next week and to celebrate their 150th birthday. As for Real Madrid and Ancelotti, they have three weeks before competitive action resumes. There's a lot to work on and the team needs to do more improvements because the time flies and starting the season as good as possible is crucial if they want to have a successful year.
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