Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale still need to work on their partnership after Real Madrid are held by Atletico madrid... 
On
a night when Atletico Madrid’s defence once again showed why it is one
of the toughest to break down in Europe all three Real Madrid forwards
were unable to get the better of their rivals. Bale was often the
brightest of Real’s front three but his miss was still the clearest.
Bale
will not find too much consolation in the fact that he linked well with
Ronaldo in the first half. With Atletico Madrid’s left-back position
still bearing a Filipe Luis-shaped hole, Bale attacked at will and he
looked for Ronaldo with his crosses as the Portuguese found himself in
centre-forward territory regularly throughout the first 45 minutes.
Cristiano Ronaldo is confronted by a supporter at the end of the 0-0 draw on Tuesday night
Ronaldo gives the fan a hug after a frustrating night at the Vicente Calderon for Real Madrid
There
seems little doubt the man who is fast approaching Real’s all-time
goals record will finish his playing days as a central striker and he
came into this game with a scoring rate of a goal every 74 minutes and
seven goals in his last three matches.
Bale
had scored five in his last four games. Ronaldo had hit 15 in his 20
Madrid derbies; Bale had only netted one goal against Atletico, but what
a goal it was – the strike that won the Champions League final. But
neither man could find the finish to give Real a vital away goal.
Both
Bale and Ronaldo scored in extra-time in Lisbon and only an incredible
performance from Jan Oblak prevented them from doing so in the first
half.
Bale
had embraced his pal Luka Modric just before kick-off and the Croatian
midfielder did his best to feed him at every opportunity.
Gareth Bale misses the best chance of the match early in the first half as Jan Oblak saves
Ronaldo is squeezed out by Atletico midfielders Mario Suarez (left) and Gabi
When
free-kicks came Real’s way they were almost all taken by Ronaldo,
although Bale was allowed to run over one – and in fairness to Ronaldo
all the set-pieces were awarded on Ronaldo’s favoured left-side of the
penalty area.
In the second half as Real’s momentum faded so did their deadly duo’s influence on the game.
Bale
apologised to Ronaldo after one misplaced pass. He probably shouldn’t
have because he would have received the ball sooner if Ronaldo had not
intercepted it before he reached him.
Their
understanding on the pitch still looks like it needs some working on
but they will remain the biggest threat to Atletico in a week’s time.
Bale stretches to control the ball as Atletico's Turkish winger Arda Turan looks on
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