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This proved to be nearly a flawless day from Xabi Alonso's squad, who beat their arch-rivals by a 2-1 scoreline during the Clasico to increase their advantage in first place of La Liga with a five-point cushion.

Bellingham notched his inaugural domestic strike and assist this campaign after a tough spell healing from surgery on his shoulder.

The French forward showed his clinical touch in attack, and Alonso's tactics in his inaugural derby as coach functioned like a charm.

However the Vinicius Junior question came to the forefront another time.

Unhappy at his substitution, the star forward protested as he walked directly past Xabi Alonso and headed off the pitch, then reappearing to the bench several minutes.

Alonso System Gets Results from Bellingham

As first Clasicos go, it was a solid start, considering the majority of Madrid's last eight managers were defeated in their first La Liga match against Barca.

Following the relaxed style from the previous coach did not deliver in the previous campaign, the new tactical system yielded an important victory.

A specialist observed, His plan was perfect. Real Madrid were very good, and the visitors struggled because of Madrid's tactics.”

Defensively, they applied pressure consistently, and when bypassed, they fell back in a structured manner, everybody including the forward.”

The team's shape in two layers with a gap of five to 10 metres. The opposition struggled to penetrate.”

The tactical change looks to be positive for Bellingham, as he previously had been tasked to carry the midfield in the center and more.

On paper Bellingham was positioned on the right, but actually he could to move centrally and either support Mbappe or crash the penalty area.

Balague stated, With Camavinga in central midfield, it brings more dynamism and more ways to close down the spaces.”

This led to them to position Bellingham wide right. Certainly he was instructed to monitor the forward's positioning when he had the ball and had space, and he found him repeatedly.”

His instructions included to enter the area and operate on just outside the box, where he is very dangerous. He also came inside to block central spaces and make Barca's task very difficult.”

Strained Relations Revealed

There's no doubting that Madridistas love Vinicius, his chant were sung repeatedly by a fervent Madrid fans.

However multiple numerous stories in recent months that Real Madrid could entertain allowing his departure if the right offer were to come in.

He will have a year left under his current terms when this term concludes, yet negotiations for an extension have stalled.

The player's reaction after coming off with 20 minutes left indicated tension. Post-game, he was held back when he moved toward the Barcelona player.

Balague noted, He will face backlash for good reason, as it demonstrated disrespect toward his replacement who came on for him.”

Yet, growing up, he has lived in a challenging environment, and perceives that everyone is against him.”

Such thinking is difficult to shake, notably when you believe near the best player, and the organization shifts the focus towards Mbappe as the main man.”

During this campaign he believes that Real Madrid isn't protecting him. There are stories, possibly leaked by the club, or not denied by the club, that they would be open an offer worth €250 million for him and sell him.”

He is aware of this, so when he was taken off – justifiably, because Vinicius stopped dropping back as expected – in his mind he thinks ‘why me, why me again?.”

“It will be difficult to reconcile between the club and him currently.”

Barca's Approach “Crumbles”

Following victories in each of the last season's derbies, the latest display represented their uncertain start to the campaign.

Injuries have left without the manager of important stars such as the Brazilian winger, the striker and Olmo, and the approach is failing when they are missing.

The expert said, “It's like the whole team lack sharpness defensively, less hungry to recover it, less aggressive in pressing.”

Opponents find it simpler to attack them. If the defensive line is not perfect, which was the case Mbappe's strike since the defender failed to step up, they receive little support from the attack not closing down opponents in possession as expected.”

Yamal, the main threat of Real last season, was well contained.

The big names did not perform well. Yamal appears in top condition, perhaps he's suffering from injury issues