Luka Modric says Real Madrid paid the price for giving Barcelona too much space during the Clasico on Saturday evening.
The La Liga champions emerged with a 4-0 win from the Santiago Bernabeu thanks to a brace from Luis Suarez and a goal apiece from Neymar and Andres Iniesta. While Barcelona were outstanding on the day, Real were appalling and gave their opponents a free pass to run at them due to a lack of numbers in midfield.
The home fans voiced their displease throughout, booing and jeering the home team for one of the worst displays in a Clasico in recent memory.
Talking to the media afterwards, Croatia playmaker Modric stated: “They’re a very good team when they have space to play in, and that was the problem. We weren’t compact out on the pitch and we gave the other team a lot of space.
“We have to play as a team, because when we do that and we all fight hard, we’re a really good side. It’s not the first time that this has happened to us and we have to improve. It’s a difficult moment and we have to pick ourselves up and try to improve.”
Speaking about the criticism from the stands, Modric said it is to be expected and the Real players now need to work hard to make them happy again.
“The fans aren’t happy and that’s normal. They’re entitled to back the team or criticise the team. Today we deserved the criticism. But we have to pick ourselves up and learn from this. Now we have to show character. We’re Real Madrid and we can’t give in or drop any more points. We have to get ourselves out of this situation.”
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