After suffering four Clásico defeats last season, Real Madrid enacted their revenge against their arch rivals, defeating Barcelona 2–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu.

The pressure was on Xabi Alonso to deliver in his first El Clásico in charge, especially after his woes against Paris Saint-Germain and Atlético Madrid. Not to mention Real Madrid were going against a Barcelona side riddled with injuries and without Hansi Flick on the touchline.

Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring for Los Blancos, but Fermín López brought the Catalans back level in a half largely dominated by the hosts. In the end, it was Jude Bellingham’s 43rd-minute goal that secured all three points for Real Madrid, keeping the Spanish giants in first place of La Liga.

Here’s three takeaways from Real Madrid’s thrilling El Clásico victory.

Real Madrid Finally Exploited Barcelona’s High Line

Kylian Mbappé
Kylian Mbappé torched Barcelona’s defense. | Mateo Villalba/Getty Images

It is no secret Barcelona outsmarted Real Madrid with their high line last in last season’s four Clásicos. Mbappé alone was caught offside a career-high eight times in Barcelona’s 4–0 victory over Real Madrid last October.

The offside flag was raised a total of 25 times against Los Blancos across their four bouts with the Catalans. Even the speed of Mbappé and the vision of Bellingham were not enough to make Flick’s men pay for their high-risk system.

Fast forward to the first Clásico of 2025–26 and Real Madrid finally got the better of Barcelona’s high line. Well-timed through balls and runs in behind from Alonso’s attackers completely carved the defending Spanish champions apart.

Mbappé, in particular, looked poised to score every time he got on the ball, leaving defenders chasing after his streaking form. Led by the Frenchman, Real Madrid finally came into a Clásico with a tactical game plan that they executed to near-perfection; the Spanish giants still saw three goals wiped away for offside, but in the end, those did not matter.

Alonso Built a Defense Worthy of Silverware

Lamine Yamal, Álvaro Carreras
Lamine Yamal (left) was held silent by Álvaro Carreras. | Angel Martinez/Getty Images

Barcelona’s 16 goals against Real Madrid last season were nothing short of an embarrassment for the 15-time European champions. Flick’s men did whatever they wanted against Los Blancos’ injury-ridden backline on their way to a domestic treble.

Real Madrid then invested in a new defense for Alonso, signing Dean Huijsen, Álvaro Carreras and Trent Alexander-Arnold this summer. The latter missed out on El Clásico, but Huijsen and Carreras shined in their first appearances against the Catalans.

After spending the last two weeks on the sidelines, Huijsen returned to Alonso’s XI without missing a step. The former Bournemouth standout was poised under pressure, helping Éder Militão withstand push after push by Barcelona in the second half, especially in stoppage time.

Carreras, meanwhile, did well against Yamal, limiting the teenage sensation to zero shots on target in 90 minutes on the pitch. The winger also lost half of his duels.

Given Barcelona’s slew of injuries, there will be bigger tests for Alonso’s backline moving forward, but Real Madrid could be getting themselves back to championship-winning ways if their defense continues to grow and improve.

Vinicius Junior Is Teetering a Dangerous Line

Beyond Real Madrid’s tactics at both ends of the pitch, Vinícius Júnior took center stage on Sunday afternoon for all the wrong reasons. The Brazil international was on his way to delivering a great showing against Jules Koundé when his temper got the better of him.

Vinícius Júnior took issue with Alonso’s decision to replace him with Rodrygo in the 72nd minute, all-but losing his head as he came off the pitch. The forward stormed down the tunnel while his teammates continued their fight against Barcelona.

He eventually returned to the bench, but the over-the-top reaction from Vinícius Júnior once again puts the spotlight on his relationship with Alonso. The new boss would not even look at his player when he passed him on the touchline.

The last thing Real Madrid need is a long-term issue developing between their superstar winger and their manager. Although Alonso insisted there is “no problem” between himself and Vinícius Júnior, the noise will only continue to grow if more public disagreements keep coming.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Three Takeaways From Real Madrid’s Long-Awaited Clasico Triumph.