What a night from the other day! That Wednesday, August 2 at Soldier Field, where an MLS squad survived with diginity against all of Real Madrid, with which it went toe-to-toe at various parts of the match, and to which it did not lose in regulation. It took the penatly shootout lottery, where the MLS All-Stars bent a knee by a score of 4-2 against the white “Goliath” after ending up drawn 1-1 after regulation.
“Most fans were Real Madrid followers, something we expected, but atmosphere of the game in Chicago has been spectacular,” said a smiling Tim Howads, goalkeeper for the MLS All-Stars. “We demonstrated that this league is growing year after year and player by player.”
That was well demostrated. It is a shame that, at the start of the mathc, in the stands appeared that infamous yet popular chant among the Mexican fans when the keeper clears. It was a stain in the party that luckily one lasted a few minutes, and the disappeared.
Young Real Madrid striker Borja Mayoral was elected the MVP of the match after scoring a goal following a pass from another great young players such as Dani Ceballos, both young prospects at Real Madrid being the great protagonists of the match.
“Ultimately, us forwards like to score. I also know I can play well and do it better,” said Mayoral, who is fighting for a spot with the two-times running European champions.
“I leave happy because scoring a goal with this jersey is always fabulous,” said the 20-year-old Mayoral.
Although the match seemed even, the statistics were overwhelmingly in favor of Real Madrid, which had 30 chances at goal, the third best mark in the history of the 22 All-Star games, and the most in this format against a foreign team. Meanwhile, the MLS squad only had three shots within the posts all match, equalling its worst mark.
For its part, Real Madrid, not featuring Cristiano Ronaldo, showed it is not at peak form this preseason around the United States, which it closed without obtaining a victory in four matches, ending with a balance of two losses and two draws (which it resolved in penalty kicks with a loss and a victory). This was something manager Zinedine Zidane himslef defined as worrisome.
“When you have four games without winning, it is about a bad run that shows something is not going well and, therefore now with the tour being over, we must return home and analyze all aspects with serenity,” said Zidane. “It is important that we leave without injuries, but we also have to think well about everything.”
“We have to keep in mind that we faced a good team from MLS with international players that showed, on the field, that the future of MLS continues on the right track of growth. Also, we finished an entertaining match the fans enjoyed, and that is what is most important,” added the French.
More Top Picks Best Kegerators
Zidane is aware that the true competition for the team is around the corner with the European Super Cup match against Manchester United, in Macedonia, coming up on August 8.
“It is not a secret to anyone that we still need to improve, but we have worked physically very strongly, which helps a lot so the team has that fuel to last the whole year. That is positive, but we still have things to improve, and I am sure when the competition begins, we will be much better, said Costa Rican Real Madrid keeper Keylor Navas.