What kind of match was this, exactly?
Ancelotti paced anxiously along the touchline. He had lost the composure and calmness he had shown in the first half.
It was 4–4, and with stoppage time included, there were nearly ten minutes left in the match.
For teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona, that meant any result was still possible.
Without a doubt, this was the highest-scoring El Clásico in recent years. Both sides had played at their level. Ancelotti himself felt that his tactical arrangements had been sound, while Martino had likewise proved his coaching ability.
How should he put it?
Ancelotti felt that this had been a tactical feast full of targeted strategies.
As Real Madrid's Head Coach, he was furious about the three penalties awarded in the second half, because they had been unreasonable. But on a football pitch, even unreasonable things had a certain logic to them.
Barcelona's passing and possession, as well as the individual ability of their attacking players, were simply too strong.
Instead of fixating on whether the three penalties had been wrongly awarded—or even on the possibility that the referee had deliberately sabotaged Real Madrid—they had to analyze what lay behind those penalties. Almost every one had been caused by the individual brilliance of Barcelona's attacking superstars.
If it had happened only once, they could have called it a fluke. But when it happened three times, they had to admit that Barcelona's attacking players really were individually stronger. Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Neymar represented the highest level of individual ability in world football today. At Real Madrid, aside from Yang Yang, everyone else inevitably fell a little short.
Messi in particular was not only an outstanding scorer but also a sharp dribbler and an excellent passer.
Looking at the course of this match, Real