Both Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos called Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho's El Clasico strategy 'brave' recently.

Kroos was on his podcast when he discussed the Clasico at length, while Carvajal was on an interview with El Larguero.

Speaking on his pod, Kroos said: "Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho were incredibly brave at the Camp Nou. That's a huge difference compared to recent Clasicos. The forwards responded and defended well, like when Barca equalised. They didn't settle for a draw and played very well for 65 minutes."

Meanwhile, Carvajal had some pretty similar thoughts on his former team's big win. He said: “I did not expect Madrid to play so well. I was pleasantly surprised. Mourinho's approach was very brave.”

Real Madrid were incredibly brave and aggressive against Barcelona

They are completely right in what they are saying. Not many fans expected Real Madrid to come away with a win, let alone a win with such conviction in all three areas of the pitch. It was not a perfect performance, by any means, but Mourinho's Real Madrid looked much more confident and determined than they did in the last two Clasicos.

Despite not having a lot of possession, Mourinho's side was able to take the game to the home team, which is something they struggle so much with, especially if a team can bypass their press. Real Madrid were able to do exactly that, and it worked like a charm.

Barcelona were not expecting such a brave and aggressive Real Madrid, and you can tell by the body language of so many Barca players. They were forced into making mistakes they don't usually make, and it was pretty fun to watch.

Real Madrid could have chosen to just sit back for 90 minutes and rely on counter attacks, which is something that most Barcelona fans would have expected from them. Even Real Madrid fans would have expected that strategy from Jose Mourinho, but it was refreshing to see that the club did not end up using it.

If you sit back against Barcelona, you might as well write the win off before the game even starts, because this strategy rarely works against them. But if you pressure them into turnovers high up the pitch, be aggressive and attack with conviction, there is always a chance. PSG did the same thing during the week, and on the weekend, Real Madrid came up with their own version of it. Refreshing stuff.