After watching Real Madrid lose its first match in three months, Carlo Ancelotti had one simple message for his players: The holidays are over.
Madrid’s run of 15 consecutive games without a loss in all competitions came to an end Sunday when it slumped to a 1-0 defeat at modest Getafe in the Spanish league after a nearly two-week winter break.
League leaders Madrid fell behind early when Getafe striker Enes Unal stole the ball from defender Éder Militão near the goal and beat Thibaut Courtois. Luka Modric’s shot off the woodwork in the first half was as close as Madrid got to an equaliser.
Even though Madrid remained in control of the league — with an eight-point lead over second-place Sevilla — Ancelotti chastised his team for its attitude.
“We can’t get carried away by this loss,” Ancelotti said. “We are still leaders and are excited about what is to come… A player who normally stands out for his defensive play gifted them their goal. It seems we didn’t finish the year well. We were lacking focus, lacking commitment. This must be a wake-up call. My team looked like it was still on holiday.”
While Madrid had got back several players — with the important exception of forward Vinícius Júnior, who had been out due to COVID-19 — Barcelona earned a 1-0 win at Mallorca with a team badly hit by the coronavirus.
The absence of 10 first-team players gave the rarely used Luuk de Jong the chance to finally show his worth as a striker since he joined Barcelona on loan at the end of the summer transfer market as a bargain replacement for Antoine Griezmann.
Barcelona travelled to Mallorca with 10 players from its “B” team after a spate of COVID-19 cases.
Coach Xavi Hernández had to align a front line with De Jong flanked by youth players Ferran Jutglà and Ilias Akhomach.
De Jong, who had failed to earn consistent playing time, succeeded in providing a potent attacking threat for the visitors.
The Dutch striker tapped the ball onto the post moments before he produced a superb bicycle kick that rattled the crossbar. He then headed in his goal when he reached a cross by Óscar Mingueza at the far post just before halftime.
Barcelona still needed a stoppage-time save by Marc-Andre ter Stegen to rise to fifth place, one point from the Champions League spots.
