Real Madrid picked up a late win over Villarreal in the Spanish La Liga earlier tonight, but it wasn’t enough to guide them to a title win.
Luka Modric and Karim Benzema scored late on in the game to secure all three points for Los Blancos, but Atletico Madrid ended up winning the title.
Real Madrid have finished two points adrift of the Champions, and they will be bitterly disappointed with a trophyless season. Los Blancos have now failed to win a trophy for the first time since the 2009/10 season.
Zinedine Zidane will be under immense pressure to get his side firing once again, and it will be interesting to see if Real Madrid can bounce back strongly and reclaim their domestic crown next season.
Here at Anytime football, we look at the five major talking points from tonight’s contest.
Stagnant first half
After a slow start to the game, they struggled to create too many chances in the first half.
The home side started the game needing a win, but they lacked the quality and the urgency at the start of the game.
Villarreal took the lead through Yeremy Pino on the 19th minute, and Real Madrid were lucky to grab a couple of late goals to secure the three points.
Absence of Toni Kroos
The German midfielder has been a critical player for Real Madrid since his move to Spain, and Los Blancos struggled to control the tempo of the game in his absence.
Despite enjoying a lot of possession, the Spanish outfit were lacking in precision and sharpness.
Zidane’s men missed the German’s purposeful passing throughout the game.
Injury to Hazard and the return of Ramos
The Belgian missed today’s contest due to an injury, but club captain Sergio Ramos was back on the bench after recovering from his injury problem.
Hazard has been a major disappointment for Real Madrid this season. The Spanish outfit should look to move him on following a series of unimpressive performances and unreliable injury history.
Ramos remained on the bench for Real Madrid tonight, and he will be disappointed to have failed to guide his side to silverware.
Benzema’s impressive season
The Frenchman has been a shining light in Real Madrid’s season this year.
He has scored goals consistently for the Spanish giants, and tonight he scored the all-important equaliser on the 87th minute to get his side back into the game.
Benzema has 30 goals to his name in all competitions.
Trophy-less season
Real Madrid ended the season without a trophy, and they will be massively disappointed with their performances this season.
They have been below par in the League and the Champions League so far, and the squad needs a major rebuild this summer.
Despite scoring two late goals, they missed out on the title because of Atletico Madrid’s late win over Real Valladolid.
