Name-dropping
Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo…the list of Real Madrid’s attacking stars could go on and on.
However, goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois believes a former Stoke striker would have made the difference this evening.
Real made 42 crosses this evening and only connected with seven, which is clearly a very, very poor success rate.
And Courtois mentioned the need for big man in the box if you’re sending in crosses, bringing up an ex-teammate of his.
He said post-match: “We crossed a lot, but we didn’t have a player like Joselu.”
The Belgian also seemed to take aim at some of his teammates, adding: “We need to start playing as a team, not as individuals.
“We need to start being honest with ourselves.”
Courtois would then go on to name-drop Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior as his brutal assessment continued.
He said: “We are a team, but sometimes I feel like we play too individually, when they double-team Vini or Kylian, sometimes it works out, but 3, 4 times, it doesn’t.
“If we want to win, we need to be better.”