La Liga 2021/22: How Ancelotti’s confident Real Madrid controlled Atlético Madrid in the derby – tactical analysis

The first Madrid derby of this La Liga campaign was played on Sunday. Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid found the net twice and took all three points against Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu. Although this was not the most entertaining game from the goal threat perspective, tactically, it was a great battle between “El Cholo” and Carletto. This tactical analysis will explain how Madrid took control of the game and put in a more convincing performance despite the xG of both sides being 0.55.

Lineups

Real Madrid only had minimal changes after winning the UEFA Champions League game against Inter. Rodrygo and Luka Jović started on the bench as Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio returned to the lineup. The rest were the same players who started in the midweek fixtures, and the 36-year-old Luka Modrić must be appreciated for his successive high-level performance without much rest.

Although Simeone played his team in a 3-4-2-1 against Porto, he reverted to a more conservative 4-4-2 formation away from home. An interesting point to note was the proper full-backs: Kieran Trippier and Renan Lodi were not starting. Marcos Llorente and Mario Hermoso were filling these positions, they formed the backline with Felipe and Geoffrey Kondogbia.