Real Madrid have struggled to defend all season, keeping just three clean sheets in La Liga so far, but matters have got even worse since Antonio Rudiger has come into the side.
The German defender was touted to make Los Blancos’ defence impregnable this season but is yet to find his form. After David Alaba was ruled out for several weeks, Rudiger came into the side against Villarreal and struggled to cope with the onslaught. Various reports emerged that Carlo Ancelotti was not happy with the German international.
Against Barcelona, the criticism only got louder. Rudiger was at fault for the first goal as he sold Eduardo Camavinga short with a pass, while not covering himself in glory on the other goals. Marca did not spare him either.
“A horror of a match. Features in two of the goals. With problems throughout the game to play out from the back, a bad ball to Camavinga ended in Barca’s first goal. In the second, he poorly defended a desperate situation in a two on one. He was a continuous danger with the ball at his feet.”
Rudiger was responsible for losing the ball 8 times over the course of the game, but generally struggled to deal with the Barcelona attack. Together with Dani Carvajal, he was called out as the largest culprit for the defeat.
As Nacho Fernandez contracts expires, starved of minutes due to Rudiger, some might wonder if Nacho has a chance to win his place back in the coming games.
