- Copa del Rey. Benzema masterclass destroys Barcelona and puts Real Madrid in Copa del Rey final
- Barcelona. Araujo's advice to Vinicius: If he dedicates himself only to playing football, he will be an even better player
As the hours pass after Barcelona's painful drubbing at the hands of Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, it is logical to try to explain what happened.
In the heat of the moment, Xavi blamed Real Madrid's magnificent second half, Barcelona's failure to take their chances when they had them, and the psychological weight of the goals just before and after the break.
With a bit more perspective, the conclusion can be taken a step further. It is clear that Barcelona suffered from the fact that four of their first team players were injured.
The substitutes were unable to compensate for their absence. But it was not just a question of starters and substitutes. In general, the Clasico singled out a number of players who were not at the required level.
Marcos Alonso
There have already been several games this season in which the player from Madrid has suffered when he has had to play at centre-back.
Xavi persists with the idea, but the truth is that he doesn't look very comfortable and suffers in the big games in that position.
In the move that led to Vinicius' goal, he could have fouled the Brazilian to stop the counter-attack.
Jules Kounde
The French player did not have his best night either. He created uncertainty on more than one occasion when coming off the ball. He was too much on edge.
He failed on the second goal. Rodrygo drags him out of position and creates a gap that Benzema takes advantage of to finish comfortably.
Sergio Busquets
Again, we saw how much he can struggle when he is not well supported in midfield. When he has De Jong, Pedri and Gavi alongside him, it's another matter. Wednesday's game could have been his last Clasico.
Sergi Roberto
Another who had a bad game. In the move for the second goal he was in a position to stop Modric as he advanced towards the edge of the area.
The problem is that he was on a yellow card and he knew that if he stopped the Croatian, he could be out on his ear. The price his team paid for that decision was very expensive.
Gavi
It's very easy to take him out of the game. It's debatable who started the mess with Vinicius, but it's clear that the Andalusian's reaction was worthy of a yellow card.
And from that moment on, Gavi's game was different. He had to restrain himself because he was carrying a yellow card.
It is essential that Barcelona work on this issue with the player because opponents have already taken note. They know that wind the player up and get a reaction.
Robert Lewandowski
The Pole is a goalscorer, that's for sure. The Pichichi is there to prove it. But, even though Xavi was annoyed that the subject was brought up in the press room, we have to assess the standard he is offering this season.
He hasn't been as effective when he has a top team in front of him. There are the games against Bayern Munich, Manchester United and several Clasicos to show it. In the last match against Real Madrid, he only had one shot on target.
Ferran Torres and Ansu Fati
We can put both players in the same box as their contribution was similar. They did very little. They came into the game at a very difficult time, true, but they didn't improve what the team was doing.
It's no use having names on the bench if when they come on, they don't live up to what is expected of them.
Xavi
The role of the coach in the whole affair cannot be ignored either. It is clear that Xavi's standing at Barcelona is considerable. It already was when he arrived because of his legendary status at the club. Even more so now that the team has improved and expects to win LaLiga.
The team's slump after the half-time break in the Clasico is significant. And if it's attributed to the psychological effect of Los Merengues' first goal, that's what half-time is for.