LIVERPOOL vs REAL MADRID | Champions League - League Phase Match #4 | 04.11.25 | 21:00 CET

I'd like to hear your suggested lineup and set up.

 

I'd play GG.

 

Instead of?

 

One of our big star attackers has to see the bench or play on the right. I don't know how this would work in the big games but I'd like to see it against the minnows at least. I want GG to get in the box like he did to great effect in the CWC and not play too deep like he did in the only game he started this season, again Espanyol. I'm not saying this is a permanent solution, but it is one that needs to be tried at least.

 

Xabi hasn't even allowed Gonzalo to play through the middle when Mbappe and Vini were on the field. He stuck him to the RW.

 

I don't know what is up with that.

 

I had to share this. This was too good.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQrpqeYkRjG/?igsh=NXA3bDZpaXFmZmow

 

Gonzalo Garcia played on both wings for Castilla and played as a RW for Spain's U19.

 

I know that, but his best position clearly is in the middle.

 

His heat map overall says his a CF so he is just that

 

Del Bosque was the Boss when Flo arrived, which is probably the reason not to renew him. Flo couldn't take credit for building a historic team without turning the club into a circus that was no longer seen as a credible title threat. So he did that, fled then came back to "save" the club from ruin.




Mourinho had the clout or Kaka would have played alot more (injuries obviously didn't help). Sad situation, very similar to James, but Flo would rather have his marketing poster child on the filed and lose than play a team full of Khedira's and DiMaria's and win.



I think Carlo was at that point where it was obvious he had earned the credibility to be given more control and that was the moment management decided to go in a different direction and so rather than get him proper reinforcements for midfield and defense the spent the transfer money on giving Kylian Mbappe a ginormous signing bonus and told him to also find playing time for some Braizilian next Pele project.

 

PSG ran 122km vs Bayern 125.4km

Liverpool ran 110km vs Real Madrid 106km

We are currently 17th in the UCL in terms of distance covered.

Vini and Mbappe run the least of course.

I know Vini doing his walking a few times and simply let Bradley move forward unchallenged. I know he's not the only culprit..just something I noticed.

Not good enough.

 

They have been better this season but the game against Liverpool had last season vibes. Neither player is a leader.

 

How do their distance covered compare to Salah? I thought Vini ran back more than him but I dont know how they stack up officially

 

Xabi Alonso's high-press system at Real has some significant holes, which Liverpool exploited perfectly.

The main issue for me was the absolute mess on Real's defensive right flank. It's clear that their attempt at a high press, similar to the Barcelona game, failed miserably because of Vinicius Júnior's decision-making. He kept pushing forward into the midfield instead of marking the opposition's full-back (Bradley), essentially handing Liverpool the entire wide channel for free. This broken press created major gaps and gave Liverpool high-quality chances, especially for Salah on that side. Vinicius had to foul Bradley and take a yellow card because of the huge advantage created by his initial tactical error.

Another critical issue was our defensive line playing always without cover. This three-on-three marking felt super risky. Huijsen was constantly forced to step out to cover and create an extra man, leaving his own marker (Szoboslai) open in a dangerous central area, which led to a close call saved by Courtois. That lack of a stable backline was a ticking time bomb.

And let's not forget set pieces! It seems this is a deep-rooted problem for Real Madrid. We are 14th in La Liga for set-piece defense. The goal we conceded to McAlister came from a corner where Liverpool's movement, especially the blocking action by McAlister and Wirtz, perfectly eliminated a marker and opened up the scoring zone. It felt like a pre-planned vulnerability.

It wasn't all one-sided, though. Liverpool had a small issue early on on their defensive right side (Salah's side), where Bradley's movements left space for Carreras to exploit. But credit to Arne Slot, he fixed it quickly by instructing Gravenberch to tuck in and cover the half-space between the full-back and center-back, neutralizing Real's vertical play on that flank. The only real threat Real had in the first half came from a quick long switch to Vinicius that exploited a moment when Gravenberch was slightly central.

Overall, it was a tactical masterclass by Liverpool and a real exposing of the weaknesses inherent in Real's current defensive structure, particularly the over-reliance on a flawed high-press execution.

What did you all think was the biggest tactical mistake Real Madrid made? The Vini press error or the no-cover backline?

 

No, I didn't. What is said there?