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Jose Mourinho Still Perfect in Derby (Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid)
Despite not having Cristiano Ronaldo or the strongest Real Madrid lineup facing them, Atletico Madrid continue to fail in the Madrid derby, losing at home 2-1 despite taking an early lead through Radamel Falcao, only to be countered by an own goal from Juanfran and a game winner from Angel Di Maria, giving Jose Mourinho his sixth win out of six matches in the Derbi madrileño.
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Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo Has Luka Modric to Thank For
Who knew that Cristiano Ronaldo would be this bad once again facing his “alma mater”, but still good enough to score two goals? The bigger surprise was Luka Modric entering the match, and actually taking over it after a season of nothing but being criticized for being a terrible failure with Real Madrid.
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Real Madrid – The Ongoing Transformation of Cristiano Ronaldo
There’s something about the Nou Camp that makes Cristiano Ronaldo bring out the best of him, unlike his first two seasons with Real Madrid, or when he visited there with Manchester United. Despite some opinions earlier this season, Ronaldo is only getting better as a finisher and a player, something that began even before he came to Spain.
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Real Madrid – Xabi Alonso Finally Figures it Out
Most of the spotlight goes, obviously, to Cristiano Ronaldo, for another incredible display of what a counter attacking finisher should be. But the foundation for the goals and everything Real Madrid did in a magical night for them was the defense, led by Xabi Alonso and Raphael Varane, in a nearly flawless performance against the most difficult of opposition.
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Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo, Star of the One Man Team
He didn’t start or didn’t even show up on the score sheet, but without Cristiano Ronaldo coming in off the bench, Real Madrid would have drifted even further away from the top spot in the La Liga, despite all the accolades thrown at Kaka for a rare performance both in terms of length and in quality.
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Real Madrid – Mesut Ozil & Angel Di Maria Didn’t Come Through
Maybe Jose Mourinho has a point in deflecting the blame from his own players to the way Manchester United played, but in all fairness, Real Madrid needed more from Cristiano Ronaldo, and more from the talent around him, that didn’t step up – especially Angel Di Maria and Mesut Ozil.
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Real Madrid & Jose Mourinho Needed More From Cristiano Ronaldo
It’s not over yet, but the smell of defeat was in the air. Jose Mourinho had no answers to the Manchester United defense, or a couple of great saves from David de Gea. What he needed the most was Cristiano Ronaldo at his best for more than one half, and more than just a single goal. That didn’t happen, and Real Madrid find themselves not too far from ending their season in February.
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Real Madrid – When Cristiano Ronaldo Gets Everything Right
All it took for a potentially complicated match for Real Madrid, as many tend to be this season, was Cristiano Ronaldo deciding to continue his amazing home form this season, scoring a second consecutive Bernabeu hat trick before making his early exit from the game, to get some rest with the Champions League in mind.
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Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo Setting a New Kind of Record
Losing matches on the road isn’t something new for Real Madrid this season, dropping three points away from home for the fifth time this season. The real change comes from Cristiano Ronaldo, scoring the first own goal of his career in the only real incident in a terrible match for the La Liga champions.
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Real Madrid – Cristiano Ronaldo Better With Mesut Ozil & Angel Di Maria
At this stage of his career, it doesn’t really matter if the thing that truly motivates Cristiano Ronaldo is titles or individual success. He’s not going to win mister popular as long as the other greatest player in the world is around, but he can play at the same level, almost all of the time, and especially when Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria look like themselves.