Real Madrid fell to an unexpected Champions League defeat by Lille on Wednesday night in what was the first meeting between the clubs.
The reigning European champions had started well on matchday one against Stuttgart last month, but struggled to find any sort of attacking rhythm or consistent threat in this one. Too many players in white were underwhelmed, with Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Endrick flying too much under the radar. Kylian Mbappe and Luka Modric couldn’t save him from the bench either.
For their part, Lille played with confidence as they deserved to share this stage with the mighty Madrid. The game plan was careful, considered and executed to perfection. It wasn’t a backs-to-the-wall job by any means, but it was a solitary Jonathan David penalty that won it in the end.
How the game developed
Madrid’s pressure cost them their first chance of the night, a goal from Vinicius Junior after winning the ball high upfield, but a relatively simple save for Lille’s Lucas Chevalier. However, the visitors failed to capitalize on this moment and, if anything, Lille looked more at ease as things progressed.
Neither side had another chance until Endrick saw a gap and slotted through, but could only hit the finish on Chevalier’s body as the keeper rushed over. Lille had an even better chance to break the deadlock when Andriy Lunin leveled David’s close-range header, but then rose to tip the Canadian forward’s rebounding effort onto the post.
Lille’s brave approach was rewarded in first-half stoppage time when David converted from the spot. Eduardo Camavinga, who had been regularly closing down attacks, got in when the ball caught a stray arm and, after a VAR intervention, resulted in a penalty.
Madrid almost grabbed an instant equaliser, but Chevalier was quick again to keep out Vinicius Junior’s clean shot. Endrick’s follow-up missed the target, albeit by an invisible deflection.
Lille remained the stronger team in the opening exchanges of the second half, prompting Carlo Ancelotti to throw caution to the wind and bring both Mbappe and Modric into the game. Endrick, for whom it was a rough night apart from his one self-made chance, was hooked.
Even with the changes, Madrid were still not clicking in the final third and chances were few and far between. Dani Carvajal was an unlikely source when he sent Vinicius Junior’s right-footed cross wide of the target.
Madrid looked to have pulled away on a couple of occasions late on, first when substitute Arda Guler’s far post caused havoc and Antonio Rudiger saw his effort cleared off the line, before Chevalier did enough to deny Jude Bellingham. From the resulting corner, Rudiger was thwarted again. But the final whistle delighted the home fans without any mad attack.
GK: Andriy Lunin – 7/10 – Back in the starting line-up for the injured Thibaut Courtois and showed he has lost nothing with a superb first-half double save. No chance with the penalty.
RB: Dani Carvajal (c) – 8/10 – At times he got forward more than any Madrid player, but his defensive coverage was also excellent for the most part. It seemed to be everywhere.
CB: Antonio Rudiger – 7/10 – Very good defensively. Two late chances held on to equalise.
CB: Eder Militao – 6/10 – Defended well in open play, notably on one occasion after following David and beating the Lille striker. Tactical sacrifice early in the second half.
LB: Ferland Mendy – 6/10 – It is unclear whether his withdrawal at half-time was tactical or fitness-related. It didn’t seem like it was because of his performance.
RM: Federico Valverde – 5/10 – He saw a fair amount of the ball, but never seemed to do much of it.
CM: Aurelien Tchouameni – 6/10 – Passed a lot, but mostly sideways and backwards. It was down to the back four as Militao came out to make more attacking changes.
CM: Edward Camavinga – 7/10 – You wouldn’t know that this was his first game of the season after more than a month out with injury. Everywhere putting out fires. Lighting up the penalty with a missing arm was an isolated strike, but unfortunately a costly one.
LM: Jude Bellingham – /10 – Really struggled to impose his quality on the game.
ST: Endrick – 4/10 – He was the first starter for the club, but did little to improve Madrid’s general lethargy. A burst of pace created a great chance but he barely touched the ball otherwise.
ST: Vinicius Junior – 5/10 – On the periphery of the game. It was disappointing because the moments he was involved in were usually Madrid’s best.
Substitutes
SUB: Fran Garcia (46′ for Mendy) – 6/10
SUB: Luka Modric (57′ for Endrick) – 5/10
SUB: Kylian Mbappe (57′ for Militao) – 5/10
SUB: Arda Guler (67′ for Camavinga) – 6/10
Subs not used: Sergio Mestre (GK), Jacobo Ramon, Jesus Vallejo, Lucas Vazquez, Rodrygo.
manager
Carlo Ancelotti – 6/10 – Certainly proactive with his changes when it was clear that Madrid needed more. But the players on the pitch, both at the start and at the end, should have been enough.
