Real Madrid were pushed to the brink by bottom-of-the-table Elche on Tuesday night, needing a dramatic late goal to escape the Estadio Martínez Valero with all three points intact.
José Mourinho's side appeared to be cruising to a comfortable victory after establishing a 2-0 lead, seemingly set for a routine away win against a side operating with a fraction of Madrid's resources. Under La Liga's financial fair play regulations, Real Madrid are permitted to spend 14 times more than Elche on players and coaching staff, underlining the gulf in resources between the two clubs.
However, the match turned dramatically as Elche fought back in the second half, with Abiel Osorio and Fer Niño both finding the net to level the score and stun the visitors. Real Madrid also missed several opportunities to extend their lead earlier in the match, with Vinícius Júnior among those failing to convert clear chances.
With the game delicately poised and Elche pushing for an unlikely winner in the closing stages, it was ultimately Carlos Espí who settled the contest, scoring a late goal to break Elche's resistance and hand Real Madrid a hard-fought victory that keeps their season on track, while leaving the struggling home side searching for answers to their current predicament.
Speaking after the match, Mourinho did not hide his frustration despite the result. "Three points and nothing more," he said. "The problem seems obvious to me. It's harder to know why but it's easier to understand that there are matches that seem over but in the end, aren't. Matches where we have three, four, five chances to finish them but don't. After failing to do so, it feels like we go from ease to losing control. With the changes I made in the end, I took all the risks. We won but I could have lost."
The match was also notable for events before kick-off, when both sets of players were handed T-shirts bearing the slogan "Todos somos caballas" ("We are all mackerels"), a message of solidarity with residents of the Spanish exclave of Ceuta following the arrival of an estimated 80,000 migrants, largely from Morocco, in recent months. Three Real Madrid players — Vinícius Júnior, Kylian Mbappé and Ibrahima Konaté — chose not to display the shirts as they walked out onto the pitch, a decision that drew criticism from some quarters for appearing insufficiently supportive of Ceuta's citizens amid the ongoing migration situation.
Vinícius Júnior's underwhelming display on the pitch, combined with the T-shirt controversy, has done little to quiet doubts about his current form, following recent speculation linking him with a move away from the Spanish capital.
Real Madrid will now turn their attention to a Madrid derby against city rivals Atlético, set to take place at the Wanda Metropolitano this weekend, with the exact date still subject to broadcaster scheduling. The fixture comes just before the international break and offers Mourinho's side a chance to put in a more convincing performance after their scare in Elche.
For Elche, meanwhile, the narrow defeat represents another setback in what has already been a difficult campaign, as the club continues to search for the results needed to climb away from the foot of the table.
Based on reporting from Guardian Football (Football Daily).