Immediate Reaction: Atlético Madrid 1-2 Real Madrid

Atlético Madrid 1-2 Real Madrid (Rodrygo Goes & Fede Valverde). Here is the immediate reaction to the derby walkover. Still to come: press conference best bits, player ratings and the ManagingMadrid podcast.

The highly anticipated Madrid derby had finally arrived, amongst all of the nasty noise surrounding the game. The man himself Vinícius Júnior was in the starting line-up looking to rise above the talk around him off of the field. Joining him were most of his typical starters, with Aurélien Tchouaméni starting in the midfield for his first Madrid-derby. Eden Hazard was amongst the players on the bench. With the main captaincy candidates absent, Luka Modrić captained the team today. One thing was for sure, if Real Madrid were to score today, especially with Vinícius involved - then there would be plenty of angry home fans. That, and a lot of dancing.

The first half was as tense as you’d expect, with both teams clashing and coming together at multiple times in the opening few minutes. The home side created the best early chances, with defender Felipe hitting the roof of the net with his header - and Yanick Carrasco shooting just wide. The crowd were as noisy and hostile as I had seen them, but they were to be silenced by the young dancing South Americans in no time. Rodrygo Goes was the first to cut out the noise, as Aurélien Tchouaméni played a fantastic pass over the defence for the Brazilian to poke home. To the home crowds despair, there was plenty of dancing with Vinícius Júnior in the celebration. Vinícius wanted one for himself, and after playing a fantastic give and go with Luka Modrić before heading towards goal - with his effort striking the post. Luckily, the ball fell straight to Fede Valverde who smashed the ball past the trying defenders on the line. 2-0 at half time, and Real Madrid were cruising.

By this point it had become more of a training exercise for Real Madrid, with the visitors taking almost full control of the game. The added control and calmness brought little in the way of chances with it. Until the last ten minutes, there wasn’t really a single clear-cut chance - but Atlético found the better openings if anything. They did manage to pull one back late on, when former Real Madrid man and Castilla graduate Mario Hermoso latched his body onto a corner delivery to give his side some late hope. This did up the intensity in the final moments. This culminated with a red card for goal scorer Hermoso, albeit a harsh one - for an altercation with substitute Dani Ceballos. Real Madrid then managed to soak the pressure up expertly, and comfortably saw the 2-1 score line out to claim the win in the derby. How happy are you with that result? Check out the MangingMadrid podcast later on to join in with the celebrations!