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| Real Madrid squeezed their rivals Atletico on Sunday, cruising to a 2-0 win that feels decisive in the context of the title race. Diego Souto/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images |
Some are ready to crown Real Madrid, whose lead at the top now stands at eight points over Sevilla, who have a game in hand. I'm not ready to do that just yet, but Sunday night's Madrid derby, 2-0 scoreline aside, looked for long stretches like men against boys.
Diego Simeone won't like that, but it felt as if Real set the tone and the tempo and toyed with Atletico the rest of the way. Luka Modric and Toni Kroos dominated the middle of the park. Eder Militao and David Alaba snuffed out virtually all danger at the back. Vinicius Junior was there to serve up the sort of assists that seemed unthinkable a year ago, when he was much more of a "head-down" player. And Karim Benzema was there to break the ice, with a brilliant, technical finish, before heading off into the dressing room at half-time to let his body rest.
In some ways, Real Madrid play in a way that's different to Europe's top sides. They sit in a lower block, they look to hit you in transition and they give their quality players room to improvise. That's not how most big boys get it done, but it feels like it's very much a choice rather than a necessity, something tailored to the opposition. When they want to speed up, they can. When they choose to press you, they can. And when they want to let Kroos and Modric do their thing and pass you to death, they can do that too.
It's the usual issue. Simeone has 15 or 16 great players, but very few automatic choices. And when he does make changes, the guys coming in are often very different. Nobody does what Lemar does. Matheus Cunha, who got the nod up front ahead of the banged-up Luis Suarez, has a unique skill set. Joao Felix is unlike anybody else, as is Kieran Trippier.
Against most opponents it won't matter much, because Jan Oblak makes (or, based on this season, made) stellar saves and there's enough talent to get one or more goals at the other end. But against quality teams, you either come up with a bespoke set-up to catch them off-guard, or you often pay the price for the lack of chemistry.
