Real Madrid edged past Juventus with a 1–0 win in a tight tactical battle at the Bernabéu. Jude Bellingham’s second-half strike proved decisive as Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Jr and Brahim Díaz created relentless pressure against a deep-sitting Juventus. Despite Wojciech Szczęsny’s replacement, Michele Di Gregorio, making several fine saves, Juventus could not find an equaliser. Israel Schmidt de Azevedo breaks down the structure, pressing patterns and tactical flow that shaped the match.
Real Madrid’s early kick-off came just days after their FIFA Club World Cup Round of 16 match, and it showed in a contest that began evenly but gradually swung in their favour. Juventus started brighter, creating chances early on before Real’s quality and control took over. The Italians settled into a counter-attacking shape while Madrid dominated possession and dictated tempo.
At seven minutes, Marcus Thuram tried to bypass Real’s press with a chipped pass to Enzo Cambiasso. The ball deflected off Federico Valverde, and Dušan Vlahović reacted with a delicate flick into Cambiasso’s path. The Argentine found Pierre Kalulu on the run, but his cross was cut out by Marco Asensio. Jude Bellingham cleared the loose ball as Real survived an early scare.
When pressing, Real Madrid formed a front three with Kylian Mbappé central, Bellingham on the left and Brahim Díaz on the right. Behind them sat a midfield four. Valverde wide right, Vinícius Jr left, with Aurélien Tchouaméni and Arda Güler operating centrally. The back line resembled a narrow three, with Éder Militão central, Asensio to his right and Carreras tucked in left, much like Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen structure.
Juventus countered with width, using Kalulu and Cambiasso as advanced wing-backs and pushing their midfield close to the back line to escape pressure. Kenan Yildiz and Weston McKennie moved wide to become wingers, supporting Vlahović up front.
In defence, Madrid narrowed their back four near the penalty area, compacting the middle with Tchouaméni and Güler shielding the defence. Bellingham dropped deeper, while Vinícius and Brahim tucked in to help, forming a five-man defensive unit. Mbappé stayed high, waiting to exploit space on the break.
Juventus built attacks through a narrow front three of Vlahović, Yildiz and McKennie, supported by Kalulu and Cambiasso as wingers. Thuram and Koopmeiners sat behind them, dictating play, with Rugani, Lloyd Kelly and Gatti forming the defensive trio.
At 10 minutes, Yildiz combined with McKennie, who spun past Militão and fired from distance. Courtois read it well, diving low to make the save. Four minutes later, Cambiasso cut inside and found Gatti, whose effort from range was again stopped by Courtois.
Juventus’ high press relied on McKennie and Yildiz pushing forward, with Thuram and Koopmeiners close behind to overload Real’s build-up zones. Cambiasso stepped into midfield, creating a flexible line of three, while Kalulu and Kelly dropped deeper.
Real adjusted by spreading their centre-backs, Militão and Asensio wide, with Carreras and Valverde high on the flanks. Tchouaméni dropped close to the defence to help in possession, and Güler supported transitions. Bellingham drifted between lines, combining with Brahim and Vinícius, while Mbappé waited to exploit gaps in behind.
At 25 minutes, Vinícius fed Mbappé centrally. The Frenchman switched play to Valverde, who threaded a pass to Brahim Díaz. His effort forced a comfortable stop from Di Gregorio. One minute later, Tchouaméni’s strike from a corner deflected off Kalulu and went narrowly wide.
The pattern of play was now clear: Real attacking with width and patience, Juventus sitting compact and countering when possible. When defending, Juventus dropped their wing-backs into a flat back four, with McKennie and Yildiz tracking back, while Vlahović led the press alone.
At 34 minutes, Mbappé combined with Arda Güler to create space in the box. Güler beat Kalulu with a clever feint and crossed to Brahim Díaz, whose header was deflected behind by Cambiasso. Moments later, Vinícius drove forward, linking with Mbappé, who forced another fine save from Di Gregorio.
Real’s momentum continued. At 43 minutes, Mbappé embarrassed Cambiasso with a sharp turn and cut-back, setting up Militão, who fired over the bar.
Juventus almost hit back on 50 minutes when Lloyd Kelly released Vlahović behind the defence. Courtois raced out and denied him with a quick reaction save.
Seven minutes later, Vinícius broke past three defenders and hit the post. The rebound fell kindly to Bellingham, who slotted home for 1–0.
Real pressed for a second as Valverde, Bellingham and Mbappé tested Di Gregorio several times between the 65th and 71st minutes. Juventus, pinned deep, relied on their goalkeeper and Gatti’s last-ditch blocks to stay alive.
At 86 minutes, Juventus had one final chance. Gatti played an excellent long pass to Loïs Openda, who found Jonathan David and received the return. Openda hesitated, allowing Asensio to recover and block with a crucial sliding challenge.
Just like in their FIFA Club World Cup tie, Real Madrid secured a 1–0 win through control and patience. Juventus showed resilience and organisation, but Real’s tactical shape and attacking precision proved too strong.
Embed from Getty ImagesWritten by Israel Schmidt de Azevedo
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