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This proved to be nearly an ideal outing for Xabi Alonso's squad, as they overcame Barca 2-1 during the Clasico to increase their lead at the summit in La Liga with a five-point cushion.

Jude Bellingham notched his maiden goal in the league along with key pass this campaign following a tough period recovering from surgery on his shoulder.

Kylian Mbappe continued his lethal touch when scoring, while the manager's strategy in his first Clasico on the sidelines proved like a charm.

Yet the issue surrounding Vinicius came to the forefront yet again.

Unhappy with being substituted, Vinicius ranted as he walked directly past the coach and headed to the dressing room, before coming back on the sidelines several minutes.

Manager's Approach Gets Positive Outcomes for Jude Bellingham

As first Clasicos go, it was a solid start, considering seven of Madrid's previous eight managers were defeated in their debut league match against Barcelona.

Following the laissez-faire method under Ancelotti did not deliver earlier, his structured approach delivered an important victory.

An expert commented, His plan was perfect. The home side were impressive, while Barcelona didn't play well because of what Real Madrid were doing.”

“Without the ball, they applied pressure for as long as they could, and if they were beaten, they retreated in a structured manner, everybody even Vinicius.”

Their defensive setup in two layers with a gap of five to 10 metres. The opposition were unable to break through.”

The new system appears to be beneficial for the midfielder, as he in the past was essentially asked to cover multiple roles in midfield and beyond.

On paper Bellingham started wide right, but in practice he was allowed to move centrally and either assist the attack or get into scoring positions.

Balague stated, Employing the French midfielder in the middle, you get greater energy and more ways to shut down the channels.”

As a result them to deploy Jude on the right flank. Undoubtedly he would have been asked to monitor the runs of Mbappe in possession and had space, and he located him repeatedly.”

He was told to enter the area and be around the edge of the box, where he is very dangerous. Additionally, he moved centrally to block central spaces creating Barca's task very difficult.”

Strained Relations Exposed

There's no doubting that Madridistas love Vinicius, his chant were sung repeatedly by the passionate home supporters.

Yet multiple numerous stories lately that Los Blancos might think about selling him if the right offer arrived.

Vinicius has a year left under his current terms come the end of the season, but negotiations for an extension have not progressed.

The player's reaction after coming off late in the game indicated issues. After the full-time whistle, he was held back as he attempted to confront Lamine Yamal.

Balague commented, He will face backlash for good reason, since it displayed poor sportsmanship for Rodrygo who replaced him.”

However, from a young age, he has existed in a hostile world, and perceives that everyone is against him.”

Such thinking is difficult to shake, notably when you feel on the verge of the top star, then the club drives the axis towards Mbappe as the star.”

“This season he has perceived that the organization isn't protecting him. There are stories, perhaps from within, or not denied by the club, that they might accept if someone paid a quarter-billion euros to sign him and sell him.”

He is aware of this, so when he was taken off – justifiably, because Vinicius stopped dropping back as required – to him he thinks ‘why me, why me again?.”

Building bridges will be tough to build a bridge among the parties and him at the moment.”

Barcelona Style “Struggles”

Following victories in each of the last season's matches, Sunday's performance represented Barca's shaky early form.

Absences have deprived the manager of crucial contributors including Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Olmo, and his system is not effective in their absence.

The expert stated, “It's like the whole team is a little bit less sharp when not in possession, less hungry to recover it, softer to reclaim the ball.”

“It's easier to create chances against them. If the defensive line is flawed, as it wasn't the first goal as Balde failed to step up, the midfield doesn't assist from the attack not challenging the ball-carrier as well as they should.”

Yamal, tormentor-in-chief earlier, was kept largely in check.

“Their stars weren't at their best. The youngster doesn't feel like he's in good form, perhaps he's suffering from injury issues