Before we get into the current Everton team, what went wrong for former boss Carlo Ancelotti this weekend in the 4-0 Clasico loss to Barcelona? A bad day in a good season?
The answer is half to do with Barcelona and half to do with Real Madrid. The former are hitting serious form having been revitalised by Xavi Hernandez, who’s transformed the team he inherited from former Everton coach Ronald Koeman. He’s built a collective that’s playing progressive football while maintaining order, discipline and defensive structure.
Madrid have also been in good form and obviously secured that incredible comeback victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League this month. But they were missing both Ferland Mendy and Karim Benzema for El Clasico, two key players. They simply didn’t play at the correct intensity and Carlo Ancelotti’s decision-making both before and after the game was abysmal. He’s feeling the heat in a big way this week.
