Real 2-0 Santander

By: Corey | April 21st, 2008

Real got another important victory against Racing Santander this week to move one step closer to the Liga title. In what was looking like a tough game at Santander, Real acquitted themselves well with an assured performance and two opportunistic goals from Raul and Higs. Because Barca could only manage a 0-0 draw in the Catalan derby to fall back to 3rd place, 11 points behind with Vilarreal a further point ahead of Barca in 2nd. If results go our way this upcoming weekend, what looks like a win for us against Bilbao and a Betis win against Vilarreal coupled with a Barca draw with Depor, we could have the title mathematically wrapped up.

But let us not worry about those things, we must simply concentrate on winning our remaining league games and guaranteeing the title regardless of what other teams do. Pepe and Ramon Calderon had both said that the team wants to win the title as quickly as possible, as to avoid the final day rush we had last year. I agree, and another solid win against Santander has put us well on our way.

I was pleased with the match all in all. We could have created a few more chances, but Santander has a pretty stubborn defense. We also have yet to learn how to defend set pieces, as such basic things as marking in the box, heading a ball out of danger or pushing forward after a partial clearance. Basic things I know I learned in 7th grade on my travel team, but something the Real players dont grasp yet. Schuster needs to do some serious training in this area, because Santander, specifically Cesar Navas, should have put Santander ahead on a few occasions.

Consider it luck of a champion, but we did our part to win the match and Santander did not, so we pick up points and move on, it seems to be a luck we lacked in the previous 4 years, which Barca had so much of. And as is football, the cycle has shifted our way once again. Here are the match highlights:

Match Stats
Racing Santander Real Madrid
Shots (on Goal) 15(2) 15(5)
Fouls 10 16
Corner Kicks 9 4
Offsides 1 2
Time of Possession 41% 59%
Yellow Cards 4 1
Red Cards 0 0
Saves 3 2

Racing Santander: Toño; Pinillos, Moratón, César Navas, Ayoze; Jorge López, Duscher, Colsa (Orteman, min.81), Serrano (Smolarek, min.57); Munitis (Pablo Álvarez, min.65) and Tchité.
Real Madrid: Iker Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Heinze; Gago, Diarra, Sneijder (Baptista, min.89), Robinho (Higuaín, min.75); Robben (Balboa, min.86) and Raúl.
Referee: César Muñiz Fernández. Booked Serrano (min.17), Moratón (min.34), Tchité (min.49), Pinillos (min.51), Cannavaro (min. 80).

Goals:
0-1 (min.13): Raúl
0-2 (min.90): Higuaín

Matchday 33 of La Liga played at El Sardinero Stadium. Attendance: 22,000.

First Half:

Santander came out full of life, winning a few corners early on and generally looking lively, while Real was content to figure out its opponent and sit back. With the tandem of Gago and Diarra in the center of the pitch, Real looked content to absorb pressure, clearly unworried with the little attacking options Santander could muster. Oscar Serrano was a joke all game, flopping around with supposive ‘fouls’ and Tchite was useful with the ball, but didnt look like finishing any of the great chances that came his way. Kind of like Higuain.

Sneijder was motoring around the field while Robben and Robinho were switching flanks the whole first half, an interesting tactic that I had suggested a few weeks ago, but it just does not seem to work as well as I thought it would, Robben looking particularly useless with the ball at is feet while Robinho looks to be in another confidence crisis which is never good. But none the less, in the 13th minute a neat midfield interchange resulted in the ball squirting out to Robinho on the left and he looped the ball towards an on-rushing Raul to get the slightest of touches on and put it into the net. 1-0 Real with a classic Raul-esque goal that brought back memories of his glorious career.

The next 20 minutes or so were pretty stale, until Tchite had an excellent feed in from Munitis in hte 36th, only to mishit his shot a bit allowing Iker to get his boot on to it and deflect it wide. Then in the 39th Robben had a purposeful run (for once!) although he dallied on the ball far to long. When he did pick out a pass it was to a static Sneijder who did well with his shot but it was an easy save for Tono. From the a couple of corners/free kicks towards the end of the half, Santander came agonizingly close a few times, most notable a broken play where an Santander player was able to volley the ball high into the air from his back where Cesar Navas jumped to meet it, putting it just wide of the post. No Real player even jumped for the ball!!! Pathetic.

Marcelino was disappointed in his men as the half drew to a close and they had little to show for being the better side of the opening 45 minutes. Real were living dangerously not with their overall play, but with their poor defending on set pieces, one of the only ways a team like Santander scores typically.

Second Half:

The second half began with more Santander pressure, Canna doing well to dive in and keep Tchite out. Robinho had a decent chance when he was put in by Diarra on the right, but his shot was straight at Tono. Tchite then had a bicycle kick chance that he put wide after a cleared free kick was sent back in by a Santander player. Racing were looking dangerous on the counter, so it was down to Real to hold the ball a little more to cut out the threat.

Real obliged, holding the ball more and a great chance was created for Robben, as he was sent in well behind the defense with only Tono to beat. But he ended up sending his volley wide of the post, capping off yet another poor performances from a player I have lost all faith in. The money we spent on him looks to be an absolute waste.

Raul was given a chance to end the game with a close range shot that Tono did well to block. The ball squirted out and Tono and Raul collided, allowign Higuain an open net, but the ref blew for a foul and the goal was disallowed. Soon after Balboa was introduced to the match and I had instant boners as my favorite player was brought on. He had a chance himself that was blocked before he and Julio Baptista played an almost comical passing movement that the Santander players just watched go by. Balboa was then left with a little space to have a shot, which I know he would have put away but instead he faked before laying it off to the right where Higuain stepped into a side footer that flew past Tono. 2-0 and the 3 points were in the bag.

The celebration from the team was immense, as everyone got in on the dog pile on top of Higuain, realizing they were one step closer to a second succesive league title. A win is a win, and although it was not the best performance from Real, it was an appropriate level of play for an away game at a very good team. Gago for me was immense, he really came into his role in this game. He intercepted alot of passes while he was breaking up play a little too. Having Diarra didnt help, but Mamadou was useless moving further forward then Gago.

Raul played well as usually, and the defense was rarely to troubled, Canna looking a little long in the legs when confronted with Tchite’s pace. But Pepe did well with any of the advancing midfield players will Sergio Ramos made Serrano looks just plain silly.

Phil Ball had his own lavish praise for one of the players all of you out there and the press thing is no good and on his way out this summer, one Mamadou Diarra, who I think played a very solid game. The credit will be given to Gago for doing well, but you must look no further then Diarra as the enabler of such a good performance.

Although there is nothing wrong with Cantabrian cuisine, as I stared down onto the pitch on Sunday night, Madrid simply looked better-fed. Apart from the tiny Cannavaro, who tickles and tackles like some infuriating little bug, never leaving the opposing forwards alone, the rest are fairly hulking dudes.

Pepe is scarey, and is beginning to look rather good. Sergio Ramós is no shirker, and Heinze is more physical in his approach than the average Spaniard. And then there’s Diarra, protecting the back line anyway. Nothing much gets past him, and I fail to see the problem that the Madrid press has with him. Particularly in away games, where there is less obligation to win with a bit of style, Diarra is the perfect player to have in your ranks. The fact that he’s about to win his sixth consecutive league title (four with Lyon and one last year with Madrid) does rather suggest that he might have had something to do with those successes, and he does the simple things right - cutting out any passes that stray into his zone, dispossessing anyone who tries to run at him and then playing the ball either short or long with more accuracy than he is credited with.

Colsa tried to do the same for Santander, but he just wasn’t up to it. Diarra made it look simple, which is the difference between the side that will win the title and the side who might, still, manage a fourth-place finish.

This is why we bought him folks, and its why he wont be leaving any time soon. He is the new Makelele, our water carrier, who does all the heavy lifting so that players like Gago look good with everything that Diarra doesnt do, mainly pass. But if you really consider it, Diarra’s work allows Gago to intercept passes because no one is gonna point their touches at him, they know its a waste. All I am sayin is, if you want to continue to win titles, then Diarra must stay on board to do that.

Balboa:

Javier Balboa received a warm welcome in Santander, where he played for Racing last season while on loan from Real Madrid.

“It was a tough match. Racing is a competitive team. This was another step in the right direction. We have a match against Barcelona on the horizon. We have an important lead over Villarreal, but we cannot forget that winning the title is very difficult. I am very happy that Racing is having such a good season. The team holds a special place in my heart. It deserves to be in the Champions League.”

“Winning the league has always been a dream of mine and it would be the best reward after such a complicated season. I only want to continue working hard and providing assists like the one today. We proved we’re a tight-knit group by the way we celebrated. We’re close to the league title. I am very happy about the way the Sardinero crowd welcomed me. I want to contribute my share to this team. I feel like a needed player and one that can be counted on at all times.”

Bernadine:

Although Bernd Schuster was pleased with his team’s victory over Racing Santander on Sunday, the Madridista coach knows they can’t begin celebrating the league title just yet.

Do you feel like a league champion?
We’re not champions until the mathematicians say so. We knew we could move one step closer with a victory. The players are very happy with the match they played.

Did Real Madrid win by playing well?
It was a good match. We played well against a brave opponent who plays good football and doesn’t just wait to capitalize on mistakes. [Racing] tried to play its form of football, which entails a lot of movement out of the midfield and into attack. That’s why it was a good match, and that’s why they are doing well in the table.

Did the match remind you of that which you won in Bilbao?
It was similar in terms of defense. This was the second time we played with a complete defense, and it provided a lot of security, especially during set pieces, which are one of Racing’s strong suits. Out defense plus Diarra was a sure thing. We were able to fall back and seek the counterattack after scoring the first goal.

Do you think Diarra was a little slow when it came to defending?
He extends our reach and helps out in attack. That’s his style. He hasn’t played recently and needs to get back into the swing of things. It was a back and forth game for both teams and there was a lot of space between every line, which doesn’t help at all when it comes time to defend.

You can mathematically be proclaimed champions next week. Can you quickly assess your first season?
We still have to play, which is why I don’t want to evaluate anything right now. We built a new team with a new coach and we’re just doing our job. No one has given us anything. We’ve worked for it all. We have a lot of improving to do before next season, but this team has accomplished many important things. Whether it’s been pretty or not is another matter.

Casillas:
“It’s an important victory, not just because we won three points, but because it increases our lead on opponents like Barcelona. We are happy to have won in such a difficult stadium. The first goal by Raúl calmed us down somewhat. Then we had two or three good chances to wrap it up, but Racing played hard and we knew that could do damafge of set pieces on such a small field. Our defense was great. We’re calm knowing we got out homework done”

“You can’t sound the victory bells just yet, although we’re only a small step away. We have everything going for us, but we can’t count our chickens before they hatch. We’ll wait to see what happens with our upcoming matches because we still face opponents who have a lot to play for. We’re close to winning the title and we cannot let it escape. We’ve been on top from the very start and I think we deserve to win the title again.”

Heinze:
“It was a very important victory, but I’m not celebrating just yet. The team was solid in defense and effective in attack on what was a tricky pitch. It was an important statement to the rest of the league, but there’s still one more step before winning this title.”

Higuain:
“I am very pleased with the victory. All we can do is have fun but with caution. There’s still a lot to play. We have to continue working hard. These three points were very important, but so was the team’s attitude.”

“It was a very important triumph. The team played great, managed to win on a tricky pitch, and extended the lead. Now we have to maintain it, but we’re going to be prudent because we haven’t taken care of business just yet. This was, however, an important step towards the league.”

Short and sweat this week folks, I am at the business end of the semester, so things are a little hectic. I will have a match preview up for you on Thursday. HALA MADRID!