Mbappé and Vinicius slow Real Madrid, who drop six points

After a sluggish victory over Elche, the Merengues fell in the Madrid derby against Atletico Madrid (1-2) on Sunday, leaving Real Madrid six points behind FC Barcelona in La Liga and relegated to fourth place in the league.

Defeat and lag in La Liga

The 1-2 reversal dealt Madrid another setback, widening the six-point gap with the Barcelona leader. This loss came immediately after the modest success against Elche, which had nevertheless allowed the Merengues to briefly climb back up the table.

As a result, Real Madrid now finds itself in fourth place, far from the European qualification spots, and must cope with the growing pressure from rivals.

Mbappé‑Vinicius, a duo that does not work

The match mainly highlighted the Madrid side's inability to be dangerous: the forwards only shot eight times on target. For two years, the captain of the French, Kylian Mbappé, has struggled to coexist with Vinicius Junior.

José Mourinho's task is to turn these two individuals into a shock tandem, but it will still require time and a lot of work. Against Atletico, neither one nor the other shone, individually or collectively.

Mbappé, deployed as a striker, even hindered his teammate by constantly occupying the left side, literally erasing the Brazilian from the average movement map. The doubts about their positioning, already raised upon his arrival, are now concrete.

After more than two years in the same team, the two forwards still cannot play together, a situation that could become very problematic for the club's ambitions.