Against rivɑl FC Barcelona in Texas, Real Madrid suffered their first preseason loss of the 2023–24 season as the Catalans prevailed 3-0 in a heated Clásico that saw seven yellow cards between the two teams.

Ousmane Dembélé, who has been linked to a move to Paris Saint-Germain, opened the scoring with a long-range shot. Fermin Lopez and Ferran Torres then added a second and third goal for the Culés in the closing minutes after both sides’ coaches made a number of adjustments to their lineups.

These three stats can help you better comprehend the game.

25.7: Average age of the starting XI

Some Madridistas might have been shocked to see players like Toni Kroos and Luka Modri omitted when Carlo Ancelotti’s starting lineup was made public. Instead, the Real Madrid midfield had a 22-year-old average age, with Fede Valverde, 25, being the oldest player to take the field in front of the back four.

When 23-year-old Vincius Jnior smashed a penalty against the woodwork on minute 20, it may have been a sign of his youth and inexperience. He stepped up to take the penalty for the first time in his career after Karim Benzema was removed from the game. Although the Brazilian has been spotted practicing in US training sessions, this was his first effort in a genuine match setting. Rodrygo was the only other player on the pitch, it should be added.

In the field of defense, where only Éder Milito was younger than the average age, there was no such shortage of experience. Thibaut Courtois, David Alaba, and Dani Carvajal, the three players over 30 in the lineup, are all in the back five. According to some sports experts, Ferland Mendy was the only athlete on the field at “peak” age at the age of 28.

As both Kroos and Modri played over 30 minutes with their introduction at 58 minutes, substitutions demonstrated that there is still plenty of life in them. The midfield diamond’s average age increased from 22 to 28.3 as a result of this move. Kroos shone out in particular, recording two crucial passes during his cameo.

Barcelona, on the other hand, featured a lineup with a 27.3-year average age. That knowledge may have come in handy at some crucial times. Even yet, Barcelona’s seasoned players like Ilkay Gündogan and Robert Lewandowski were comparatively quiet for the Catalans, adding to the intensity of the opening hour or so of play.

29: Shots from Real Madrid, compared to Barça’s 12

It’s fair to sɑy that Real Madrid’s opportunities and play-making domination were not reflected in the final score of this match. Without going any further, the shots total reveɑled that Real Madrid attempted more attempts than their competitors combined, although they were unsuccessful in converting any of them.

It also serves as a warning to Real Madrid. Although fears about the future and where goals might come from after Benzema have been allayed by five goals in two games, there is still work to be done. Vini alone made an astounding 11 efforts, with only one being successful and three hitting the woodwork. Rodrygo has five more. Joselu just took 17 minutes to score two.

Although there were 16 chances inside the box as opposed to seven for Barça, they were not converted. Chances were often of high quality. Only five of the 29 tries were successful, forcing Marc-Andre ter Stegen to take action. A further four struck the wall. Shot accuracy of 17.2% as contrast to the Catalans’ 58.3% made the difference.

Real Madrid also ruled territorially. Real Madrid played 21% of the game in their defensive third, whereas Barcelona played 35% of it. Ancelotti’s side had all the necessary components, but the dish wasn’t quite successful.

14.2%: Real Madrid’s win rate in Clásico friendlies

Barcelona had previously won three of the five Clásicos played outside of Spain, and this one was no exception. Fede Valverde scored a third goal to make it 3-2 in the extra 30 minutes to give Real Madrid their most recent triumph in the Super Cup in January 2022. As a result, Real Madrid will have to wait longer than 41 years to defeat Barcelona outside of Spain. In a 1-0 victory in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, on May 30, 1982, Vicente del Bosque scored the only goal.

Dallas residents were hoping to see Real Madrid defeat Barcelona on US soil for the first time in history, but they were eventually let down because Real Madrid has yet to ever defeat Barcelona.

Additionally, this was the 42nd encounter in so-called exhibition games, and Real Madrid has a dismal track record in them with only six victories. There had been 12 draws and 23 victories for Barça in the previous 41. Real Madrid would have a win rate of 14.2%, which is much lower than the 40.2% average for competitive play. It’s quite obvious who these friendly games actually important to, though Xavi’s answer would probably depend on his mood.

The focus will now shift to the first competitive Clásico of the season, which is set to take place in late October when Real Madrid visits Montjuic in La Liga.