Barcelona ‘steals’ Real Madrid’s DNA

Not long ago, Real Madrid were feared across Europe for their ability to come back from the dead. Two years ago, when they last lifted the Champions League trophy, they did so by overturning a semifinal against Bayern Munich in the dying minutes at the Bernabéu, when all seemed lost. In 2022, Madrid won La Decimocuarta, a title remembered as the Champions League of comebacks, with Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City all suffering the same fate. It was a campaign defined by resilience and late drama, a reputation forged on defiance.

Those comebacks were praised and envied across the continent, emblematic of a special gene within the club – an unshakeable belief, an insistence on fighting until the final whistle. To beat Madrid, you could not afford to leave them even a thread of life, or they would eventually prevail. That sense of inevitability became part of their identity, a warning to every opponent.

Two years on, that comeback Madrid appears to have vanished. Over the course of this season, the team – first under Xabi Alonso and now under Álvaro Arbeloa – have fallen behind on the scoreboard in 10 games. Of those, they have managed to turn things around just once, against Mallorca at the Bernabéu on matchday two of LaLiga. Every other time Madrid have gone behind, they have either drawn or lost. The numbers underline a stark decline in a once-trademark strength.

Comebacks take the air bridge

Madrid and Barcelona have always been communicating vessels. What no longer works in white now seems to function perfectly in Catalonia. The team that currently carries the comeback gene is Barcelona. Under Hansi Flick, Barça are becoming specialists in flipping the script. Momentum has shifted across Spain’s fiercest divide.

This season, Barcelona have played 33 games across all competitions. In half of them – 16 in total – Flick’s side have found themselves trailing at some point. What was once routine for Madrid has become second nature for Barça. Of those 16 games, the Catalan side have come back to win nine, more than half. Those recoveries have propelled them to the top of LaLiga and into the Champions League knockout stage without detours.

Joy, as the saying goes, moves by neighborhood. What was once a source of pride for Madridistas is now celebrated by Culés. Comebacks are just one of several unresolved issues facing Real Madrid this season – and one that cuts especially deep, given their recent past. A defining trait has slipped away, and with it a sense of fear that once surrounded them.

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