Real Madrid welcomes Racing Santander to the Bernabeu after an international break which saw all of Real’s international players qualify for this summers World Cup. Albeit with “Hand of God” type plays and stubborn defending in the case of Portugal. But they are there, so now attention is turned to the league program, and a struggling Santander side that sit 17th in the table. While it seems like a good tune up match before El Clasico, this will not be an easy contest, with Santander giving teams a hard fight, although they always seem to lose out in the end. If you have followed La Liga for a few years you will know that Santander is one of those teams that flirts with relegation every year, only to bounce back in a big way, either a late run that saves them, or more recently, a mid-season change in form that gets them into a European place.

Racing recently fired Juan Carlos Mandia, whose questionable lineups and tactics got them in to a hole. The management was smart enough to see there was not going to be much of a change in form under Mandia, so they removed him early enough for a new coach to get that change in form going. And that new coach is well known to Real Madrid fans. Miguel Angel Portugal, former technical director (Valdano’s job) of Real Madrid, and also a former coach of Santander, has been put in charge until the end of the 2011 season. Congratulations to him for getting the job, but his first game back will be a bittersweet one I am sure.

Pedro Munitis captains the side and exemplifies the fighting spirit of the side, despite its poor form. The little man runs around the field like a chicken with his head cut off (sound like someone we know?) but also has enough quality to make plays happen, and is usually involved in anything good Santander does offensively. He recently talked to Marca about visiting the Bernabeu and new coach Portugal. Its worth a read if you have the time. Also the official site has put together some interesting statistics if you care to have a look.

At home, Santander has been weak this season. 10 goals in 10 games usually will translate to more then 7 points, but shipping 19 goals will do the trick. The interesting thing to note about Santander is that they are very strong away from home, picking up 6 of their 7 points on the road with a goal differential of 0 (7 to 7). You could look at that as the park the bus when they are on the road, or you could consider the results. They beat Malaga and drew Almeria, Atletico and Zaragoza on the road, which sounds like a team that is fighting off relegation.

Defensively they have been horrendous, despite some big names in the back. On-loan Barcelona player Henrique, former Espanyol player Marc Torrejon, former Huelva player and South African, Nasif Morris, Lazlo Sepsi, Pablo Pinillos and Moraton are all probably names that resonate with La Liga fans. An injured Ze Antonio, Jose Angel Crespo and Christian Fernandez rounds on the defense, but the inconsistency of partnerships and the relative lack of organization from new arrivals has hurt Santander after loosing Eze G to Real in the offseason.

Its hard to say who Portugal will use against Real, but my money is on Torrejon and Henrique as the central partnership. The two have had less then half a season to gel, so they probably still have some communication errors, but Henrique is a classy performer and Torrejon is a hard man, although lacking in some of the positional grace Henrique has. Having not seen them play together, I could only say that neither is particularly strong in the air based on their heights, so crosses in to the box may be the best way to score on them.

Flanking them could be Crespo, Pinillos, Christian Fernandez or Lazlo Sepsi. Sepsi and Christian Fernandez are both left backs, which means its a toss up based on who performs better in training this week. Sepsi has four starts to Fernandez’s 6, so that may be an indicator of who gets the nod, but I know little about either player. At right back, Pablo Pinillos is getting up there in the years at 35, so he is swapping with the Sevilla loanee Crespo when he needs rest. After an international break you would expect Pinillos to be more then rested for the trip to the Bernabeu. I will say that when you are that old, your legs do not have the kind of speed they need to play at a high level, so a Marcelo type could race past him pretty effortlessly in the right situations. He is an experienced campaigner and second captain of the side though, so he will have a majority of the organizing duties.

Santander have statistically allowed very few early goals (0-15 minutes) and late goals (76-90+), but have shipped 8 in the 16-30 minute range, which means that once they get settled in to a game, they get too comfortable and opportunities present themselves. As you can read about a little further down the post, Esteban Granero has commented that Real will be looking for an early goal in this game, which makes sense, but it cannot be to early.

The midfield may be the reason why the defense has had such a torrid time, with the double pivot Mandia preferred often providing little coverage for the defense, but also little going forward. Papa Diop has looked out of his depth after moving up a division in the summer, while Medhi Racen has only shown fits and starts of the solid form he demonstrated last year. Gonzalo Colsa has been a more consistent performer, and is one of those players in La Liga, a dime a dozen I suppose, that is so good at the horizontal passing game that helps maintain possession. He can move forward effectively though, with a cannon of a shot on him, so he would be considered a priority for Xabi and Lass to mark.

Out wide Santander has two players who often flatter to deceive with their undeniable talent but lack of consistency. Oscar Serrano is also one of those stereotypical La Liga geniuses who can turn it on and look like a world beater, but most days looks disinterested in the game, and frustrated by a physical battle. A Capi of Betis or Jesuli of days past for Celta Vigo is the type of player I am referring to. Often disappointing, but when he is one, he is a hell of a player. He showed his considerable talents with a well taken goal against Barcelona, but despite having little pressure on his position he often goes on walk abouts in the middle of matches. Arana is a journeymen, also making the move from the Segunda this summer, and having seen a little of him, I would not consider him to be overly dangerous to the point where Marcelo could probably mark effectively at left back. Maybe Im underestimating Arana though?

Off the bench there is the other temperamental genius in Luis Garcia, he of the phantom goal which took Liverpool to the Champions League final a few years back against Milan. After indifferent form with Atletico, he was very publicly booted out to Santander where he has appeared off the bench 5 times already. He has a nice resume of clubs, but he seemed to have lost his creativity after injuries with Liverpool. I would not consider him all that dangerous either, but you never know. Toni Moral, another journeymen who played with both Barcelona and Real’s B team, also rides the bench often for Santander. A winger with some pace, the only reason his name resonates with me is because he had an obnoxious pony tail in one of the older FIFA games.

Also in support for the midfield are two youth team products with promising futures. Edu Bedia is a Spanish youth international central midfielder who 12 times last season. I believe he is currently injured right now, but he has a handful of caps for the u-20 and u-21 team. Also in the ranks is Sergio Canales, a very promising 18 year old winger/striker who has two substitute appearance for Santander this season. It has been rumored that Real have scouted the player in an attempt to bring him in to the Castilla setup next year. Santander has a fairly productive youth academy, with striker Ivan Bolado also one to watch out for.

Up front Munitis and Tchite had a fearsome partnership going last year, and with Nicola Zigic they were scoring boat loads of goals. Tchite is a quick player with decent feet but his finishing has always been suspect. In two seasons with Santander he has only scored 14 goals, and has two to his name this year. But along with Munitis there is an element of pass and trickery on the counter attack that Real’s back line must be aware of. Munitis himself is a highly skilled playmaker, and his abilities on the ball have not wained with his age. If he is to drop deep and then run at the defense, Lass would have to track back to mark him as this sort of movement could pull a center back to far out of position, leaving gaps for Tchite to run in to and receive the ball at his feet.

In support of Tchite and Munities is Alex Geijo, a Swiss journeymen with a rather paltry goal return from his time with second division outfits Xerez (at the time) and Levante. On-loan striker Xisco (Santander has 5 loan players, not quite as many as Xerez but still a lot) also fills out the ranks for Santander. He has had an up and down couple of years, and so far the move to Santander has not worked out for him.

In goal Santander can count on the always reliable Tono, who has played with Santander since 2005.

Its a crap shoot considering a new coach is getting his first game with the team, but here is my predicted lineup.

—————-Tono—————–
Pinillos—Torrejon—Henrique—Fernandez
Arana——Lacen—–Colsa——Serrano
———-Munitis———————
——————Tchite————–

When attacking, they will look like a 4-2-3-1, but defensively it will be a 4-5-1, with Munitis pressuring the center midfield players just as much as Lacen and Colsa will. Expect fast counter attacks and a heavy barrage of long balls from out the back for the quick strikers to try and get to the end of.

Real Madrid News:

Granero interviewed about the Santander match.

SQUAD LIST:
Goalkeepers: Casillas, Dudek
Defenders: Arbeloa, Albiol, Garay, Metzelder, Pepe, Marcelo
Midfielders: Gago, Diarra, Drenthe, Xabi Alonso, Van der Vaart, Granero, Kaka
Forwards: Raul, Benzema, Higuain

INJURIES:

Cristiano Ronaldo: Arthritis-bone edema in right ankle. Training with the team.
Guti: Bruised left quadriceps. Medical treatment and rest. Compression bandage.
Van Nistelrooy: Strained left triceps surae. Medical treatment and physiotherapy. Gym work.
Lass Strained right adductor. Medical treatment and physiotherapy. Gym work.

Albiol hyper-extended his left knee in Spain’s victory over Austria on Wednesday, so he will probably be rested as a precautionary measure. The guy has played a lot of minutes so far this season and he is starting to break down physically, so a rest is in order. He has been past fit for the match, but I would still like to see him rested in favor of Garay and Pepe. I also think Ronaldo will not make this match, as he still needs time to recover physically. A substitute appearance against Zurich in the midweek is not out of his grasp though. Sergio Ramos is suspended for the match after seeing red in the Madrid derbi. Other then that we have no other injury concerns, unless one of the international is carrying a knock.

Lass and Ruud worked out in the gym and they will miss the match due to minor strains.

With a few injuries to account for, the lineup should shake out like this:

————-Casillas————-
Arbeloa—-Pepe—-Albiol—-Marcelo
———-Xabi—-Diarra———-
—–Kaka————Granero—–
——–Higuain–Benzema——–

Id like to see Granero used, and it has been rumored that Guti will be included in the match squad. Since Guti is “injured” again, we will have to wait another week. Both players have had the international break as rest and trained normally, but so has Marcelo so he may be preferred to either of them to start. I would not mind using Marcelo at left back simply to accommodate one of them in the midfield though, with Arbeloa at right back and Albiol in center with Pepe, dropping Garay. Most likely Marcelo will be used at left back and one of VdV, Granero or Guti will be in the midfield though. Id like to experiment with Garay at left back none the less, or give Albiol the rest he deserves and use Garay in the center.

Higuain and Benzema will be the probably starting pair, although both Raul and Ruud had the break to train normally as well so they are certainly in contention. Benzema was hardly used by France and Pipita only played one game with Argentina so both are not overly fatigued. Van der Vaart is also an option of the bench.

In terms of beating Santander, there is no one way to beat them that needs to be highlighted because they are a poor side with a number of frailties. The midfield battle should be won by Real, and their wide players should be easy to contain. Other then limiting chances on the counter, Real may want to lure Santander out of their own area more often by playing deeper the usual at home. Its probably going to be a ten man defense a majority of the time, so varying the approach is a much. Chances need to be created for the strikers, not just the midfielders, so crossing, through balls and little chips over the defense is what will un-do Santander. Varying the attack will keep them on their toes, but something we have not seen much of this season is quality of service.

Other then Guti, can you recount a time when a player fed a striker with a great ball, or presented a clear cut chance? It has not happened all that often in Guti and Ronaldo’s absence, so we need to start connecting with our forwards more. The midfield dominates the game and scores a majority with of our goals, with the strikers getting goals off rebounds or interplay between themselves. Its part of the evolution of the team, but it needs to happen soon because against Barcelona we will have to be better then how we have played recently. The first half of the Milan and Atletico games were promising, but again, chance creation for the strikers is a must.

Im not going to say that its the midfields fault completely that the forwards get not service though. Movement off the ball also needs to be improved in the coming weeks. To often Kaka and Granero/Marcelo end up passing the ball backwards because the forwards are standing absolutely still. They need to make better runs, usually in a horizontal motion in behind the defense, in order to get open for passes. Or they need to find a way to get more involved in the play. Benzema and Higuain do well pulling out wide, but often Benzema drops to deep for his and the teams own good, and Pipita can be to stationary sometimes. The same goes for Raul.

The game is not on GolTV yet again, so we will have to rely on streams from nefarious sources. Am I the only one who has noticed that many of the streaming sources have become increasingly unreliable in the past few months? Is this the death of the illegal streaming community many of us rely on to see games because our moronic cable provides and television stations continue to overlook Real Madrid games, or football as a whole? I dont want to predict a doomsday scenario, but it seems to me that its getting harder and harder to watch an entire match without interruption these days.

None the less, leave your match comments here on Saturday. It has been a long time since we had a live blog, but I assure you when a game is actually on television, I will do my best to provide you with one. HALA MADRID!

And check back tomorrow for the podcast to be posted here as well as on the OwnGoalNetwork and iTunes.

The popular opinion these days is that Real Madrid midfielder Guti is past it, and his pre-madonna attitude is affecting not only his form, but the morale of the whole team. His controversial flare up with Manuel Pellegrini a few weeks back during the disaster at Alcorcon, which was subsequently denied as having ever happened by both player and coach. Yet Guti has not been in the match day squad since then, and a curious incident where Pellegrini told the press Guti was injured and would not feature immediately after the Alcorcon game. Problem was a half hour later Guti declared himself fit in a subsequent press conference after training. The intrigue began…

I for one thought of the incident as a fabrication of the dailies in Spain. Marca in particular has always had it out for the mercurial if often troubled Guti, and I dismissed the blow up flat out. I mean, Guti and Pellegrini had a good working relationship, with Guti stating that he stayed in Madrid this offseason because of Pellegrini’s confidence in his abilities. The two were seen conversing during almost every training session, so to me that meant that Pellegrini, like Schuster, had a handle on Guti’s difficult personality and that his trust in the player would inspire him to a great season. The first few games this year, that was the case, with Guti in inspirational form, with several assists and a couple of goals as well. All was well in the Real Madrid camp.

The defeat to Sevilla right before an international break was a turning point this season though. The press, without another jornada to discuss, laid in to Pellegrini, the players and the club for actually loosing a game to a Sevilla team that will be a title contender this season. No one seemed to take the game in to perspective and remember the team was still in flux, and the over reaction to the defeat was compounded by Cristiano Ronaldo’s ankle injury at Marseille which was further injured when he appeared for Portugal during that international break. That he still has not returned has thrown the balance of the squad off since.

Shortly after the Sevilla defeat, a seemingly easy cup tie with third division neighbors Alcorcon would be come a nightmare, with several players who had little playing time this season, either because of injury or coaching decision, yielding a 4-0 victory to the modest outfit. Guti, captain for the night with Raul and Casillas not playing in the match (Raul entered the match later on), was unimpressed by the lack of spirit and effort that were on display by many of his teammates. Although Guti himself was not having a good game either, he was still imploring his teammates to pick themselves up and win the match. But when Guti does not have a good match, he is one tackle away from a red card, and that is exactly where he found himself after the first half of the match. He was withdrawn by Pellegrini to save him from getting ejected, which was a smart move by Pellegrini given Guti’s prior history.

Guti took offense to this substitution and had some choice words for Pellegrini. He also made lewd gestures to the home fans after he was whistled and ridiculed as he sat away from his teammates on a separate bench. Having watch the game, I saw that Guti was trying to instill some Morbo and Madrisimo in the second string Real team that was being played off the park by a third division team. The fact that it got much worse when Guti was withdrawn just went to show that Guti was right. Despite the huge outlay of money for new players this summer, many of the left overs from the Calderon era were still foreign players that did not have the right class for Real Madrid. Guti hinted at this very point in a recent interview with Intereconomia TV, which will be broadcast in Spain this Sunday night.

“It’s a difficult situation for both of us,” he said off his relationship with Pellegrini before adding that “things are not going well” at the club under the guidance of Florentino Perez.

“Some foreign players do not understand the values of Real Madrid,”

“I’m a guy who never stops, day and night. I like to enjoy the night with my friends. When I am 60-years-old I won’t be going to a discotheque until six in the morning. I am now, [incomplete]“

To get some clips of the interview, go to AS.

Just those three clips would be enough to land him in hot water with the club. And maybe it should, but what would that do? Would it stop Guti from expressing his opinion to the media? Probably not. There are a whole bunch of negative consequence associated with these excerpts from his interview, but I take issue with the discotheque (club) comment. Guti is married, has a child, and is 33. He has been a professional football for 15 years now. Yet he still feels the need to go out to clubs til the wee hours of the morning? As Cesar said “Nothing wrong with going out, but the way he said it it’s just inexcusable. He doesn’t give a crap about the club, it’s all about him.”

Id agree partially with Cesar in that his clubbing habits contradict his status as a captain and his complaints on the pitch at Alcorcon about his teammates lack of commitment to the cause. But then again, does he have a point about the lack of commitment and fight in the international players?

Id like to hear your opinions on this question. This is not a question of xenophobia of course, Real Madrid has a rich tradition of incorporating foreign players. What I think Guti is hinting at is the foreign players that were on the field against Alcorcon, namely Metzelder, Drenthe, Van der Vaart and Benzema do not have the kind of passion for the crest that they need to. Having watched those four play, I would have to agree with him there. But that just my speculation. What is your take on Guti? Im sure we will have a wide array of opinion on our ‘33 year old prospect’.

Real Madrid 2-0 Getafe
Santiago Bernabeu 80,000 attendance
Jornada 9 10/31/09
Sr. Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz

MATCH STATS
Real Madrid Getafe
Shots (on Goal) 23(8) 17(7)
Fouls 9 11
Corner Kicks 2 5
Offsides 5 1
Time of Possession 41% 59%
Yellow Cards 2 1
Red Cards 1 0
Saves 7 6

Real Madrid got a 2-0 result with ten men against neighbors Getafe in a dull mini-derbi that was more therapeutic then anything for the Real squad. Manuel Pellegrini decided that the lack of width was holding Real back from its full attacking potential, and use yet another formation this season, while Getafe coach Michel played it safe with a five man midfield and tight lines. The game was very methodical, with possession firmly in favor of the home side at 60-40 despite the man advantage for Getafe, but a few minutes of industry from Gonzalo Higuain put the game out of reach for the visitors.

Its worth mentioning that before the sending off of Albiol, Real were content to knock the ball around the midfield with little pressure exerted on the Getafe goal. Once the man advantage was apparent, the game opened up a little more, but Getafe still kept their lines compact as not to give any hope to a Real Madrid flash attack. Real on the other hand looked more lively down a man, with more space in order to operate inside their own lines, and a heightened sense of urgency given the dire need for a result after a tough week.

Lineups

Real Madrid
Casillas
Sergio Ramos
Pepe
Arbeloa
Marcelo
Albiol (Red Card)
Lass
Xabi Alonso
Kaká
sub Van der Vaart 84′
Higuaín Goal 54′, 57′
sub Raúl 78′
Benzema
sub Gago 62′

Getafe
Ustari
M. Torres
Cata Díaz
Mario
Mané
Celestini
Pedro León
Boateng
sub Albín 53′
Parejo
sub Adrián González 69′
Soldado
Manu
sub Gavilán 61′

As you can see above, the move many of you were calling for finally took place, with Arbeloa at left back. Our first choice back line was finally on display, but not for long. Marcelo was pushed further forward in a bid to spread the opposition and Higuain starting as a faux-winger, a position he sometimes occupied under Juande Ramos last season to great effect. With a double pivot and Kaka behind lone striker Benzema, the formation looked awfully reminiscent of the defensive approach Juande took to every game. The Real management did not like this approach, so how could Pellegrini get away with it? Kaka for Sneijder or Raul was a big upgrade, and obviously the injury to Ronaldo affected such a formation, but it was history repeating itself none the less.

Real opened the game with a dominant 10 minute spell of possession, but there as not cutting edge to this advantage as Getafe effectively soaked up pressure and let Real play with the ball. Around the 13th minute Getafe began to take more initiative in the game, and were counter attacking more effectively. Real were trying to keep possession for as long as I can, but as often seen this season, we were more concerned with holding on to the ball that our ability to create chances was often lost. Kaka was the only player in the first half who really gave it a go offensively, with bot Higuain and Marcelo ineffective in spreading the Getafe back line like Pellegrini had hoped.

On the 27th minute the game turned, with a miserable call from referee Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz, who adjudged Albiol to have brought down Soldado, and as the last man back, was given a straight red card. Such lapses in judgement were a cloud that hung over his head at Valencia, and perhaps he could have gotten out of such a situation, but the call was still poor. In real time and on replay you see Soldado running backwards and trying to lean in to Albiol for position as the ball is in the air. Soldado wants to trap the ball with his back to goal, as a header on would give Getafe nothing with no on rushing players. Both Soldado and Albiol have a fist full or jersey each, and when Albiol shifts to address the ball, Soldado tumbles backwards as he loosed his balance. He bought that call, as it could have gone either way, and I would have blown for a foul on Soldado, who was backing in. The Bernabeu let the ref have it, but the call stood and Pellegrini’s eyes drooped like that cartoon dog (name Droopy) at the prospect of playing 60 minutes a man down.

I did say that the game changed at this point though, because after Pedro Leon put the resulting free kick wide, Real began to use the ball more effectively and Lass was dropping deeper and pressing for the ball more. Kaka and Lass were my star performers of the first half, as each did their assigned tasks well, and if it was not for effective screening from Celestini and Boateng, and a compact defensive line, we may have had a goal or two. Benzema and Higuain were not making a whole lot of trouble for the Geta back four though, and with Marcelo switch to left back, Sergio Ramos pinched and Arbeloa moved to the right, we had a more compact shape as well, and attack down the middle we would.

The only action of note for the close of the first half fell to Soldado, who spaced himself well behind Sergio Ramos for a headed chance that he put right at Casillas. Last year he had a similar chance from the opposite wing, Esteban Granero the provider, and he powered that home. This year Soldado looks short on confidence, as he is often left alone up top with little support. Certainly Dani Parejo provided little service or danger to the Real defense today to free Soldado from the shackle of Pepe. Real went in to the break with the better of the possession, but it was quite clear that either Pellegrini needed to make a change or the game would continue to move along rather mundanely. Cesar and I both suggested pulling Marcelo and putting Granero out there, which would reshuffle our back line with Lass at right back, Arbeloa back to left back. We were wrong to suggest that move though…

Pellegrini did not make any changes, and the second half continued in the same fashion as the first. Although the pressure was on Pellegrini to make a move and get the win, Michel clearly knew he would have a tough time justifying a 0-0 draw to ten men Real if he did not introduce a more offensive scheme. In the 53rd minute he introduced winger Albin for the defensive midfielder Boateng. Pellegrini did not have to make a move, Michel did it for him. It may have been a blunder by the rookie tactician, but it was a gamble that did not pay off. Geta effectively surrendered the center of the pitch to Lass and Xabi Alonso, and soon the dividends would be reaped. Benzema won the ball at the half way line, and moved the play wide to Marcelo. Marcelo deliberated on the ball but seeing an outstretched hand curled in an early cross the cleared Cata Diaz and hit Higuain on the chest. Pipita controlled perfectly and side footed past Osky for the 1-0.

A great ball by Marcelo, and an exquisite take by Higuain, who was given a gift but showed nice patience to control, take a touch and then finish. A striker who is maturing for sure. That goal could hardly be blamed on Michel’s substitution, but the next one could have. Three minutes later an isolated Celestini was stripped in the center circle by Lass. With Miguel Torres already pushed up the field, Benzema found space on the right and began to move forward with the ball. He cut in slightly, drawing both center backs which allowed Higuain to make a diagonal run that Benzema fed, and after two touches Higuan fired past Osky for the 2-0. In a few short moments the Getafe central midfield had yielded Real the killer 1-2 punch, and the game was over after that.

Pellegrini reacted by adding to the dominance of the center midfield, withdrawing Benzema for Gago. Getafe’s wingers rarely troubled Real’s flanks, even with the introduction of Albin and later on Gavilan, both dangerous players on their day. Lass and Xabi were cutting the supply to Parejo, who looked a shadow of the lad who played so well for Castilla, and Pellegrini tightened the screw by using Raul as another body to defend centrally, effectively nullifying the substitution of Adrian Gonzalez. It was not a tactical master class by Pellegrini, but a mistake by Michel that won it for Real. Getafe were not dominated the midfield by any stretch of the meaning, but they were keeping Kaka from getting the ball as much as he did, and if he did get the ball they were effectively double teaming him with the center backs. With just Celestini, he was over run, and the supply to Pedro Leon and Manu was cut short.

It must be said that both wide players were poor today, and Parejo was ineffective in the final third, often disposed with no outlets to turn to. Soldado was wasteful of a chance or two, but this was more a win of attrition then style. And that is how it had to be for Real. Pellegrini now takes his team to Milan with the confidence of containing an effective counter attacking team, but with the knowledge that they will have to come up with another way to win against AC Milan as the center midfield will be a battle. The idea from Pellegrini was correct, to stretch the play, but with Kaka so vertical in his approach, and Higuain and Marcelo not proper wingers, is he kidding himself in to think that would work?

I suppose we will have to wait and see on Tuesday, but its a win under the belt and another hopefully to come.

Watch More Football Videos at MySoccerPlace.net

Pellegrini’s Post Match Comments:

“I don’t think we benefitted from the red card because I believe it was unfair and because we had great spirit from the start.”

“I think it’s best for others to analyse the team’s performance. It was important for me to offer the fans a game like this. They helped us throughout the match.”

“This was a very important game because we earned bad results last week. We are still leaders in La Liga and in the Champions League and we hope to make a comeback in the Copa del Rey. This was a key encounter with which to turn our recent situation around.”

“I’m not worried about what people say about us. I think we are all very much involved in what we do and we must remain distanced from what others say.”

“This was a special game for the Club because we need to keep earning points. I hope this triumph allows us to perform well in Milan and to stay alive in every championship. Every game is difficult.”

“We knew it would be hard for us to change our style. I don’t like teams that counterattack and I wanted to change that. It’s hard with new players and a new coaching staff. We are finding it difficult at times and it will continue to be this way. We haven’t conceded a single goal in six of our nine games and that’s very positive. We are one of the least scored upon teams.”

“Higuain’s situation on the team has always been very good. He couldn’t play before because he’s been injured. He is as important as Benzema. He’s always been very involded and he is gradually doing better. He is essential to us and he will stand out.”

“Sergio Ramos is a very good centre back. He is versatile, which is very important. I regard Marcelo as a left back and Arbeloa can play anywhere. We’ve been forced to make changes to avoid our men from getting too tired.”

“I liked my team’s spirit above anything else. Personal and collective performances may vary, but spirit is constant.”

He makes a few interesting points. First, that he himself will rarely instruct his team to counter attack. Much like Del Bosque and Aragones, he is a possession manager. Thats all well and fine, as I am too, but we have lacked a cutting edge in creating chances that still worries me. The two goals by Pipitia were nice, but can we attribute them to collective team play, or even an individual moment of brilliance? Not really. Higuain has show he should be a starter, and as I mentioned during the match, Benzema has shown he should not. He missed a few great chances, two of which had to be goals. He was caught offside often, and his movement off the ball is lacking. The pass to Higuain was a nice contribution, but as a striker you must score, and he has done that to few times so far. Raul has more goals and only a few more minutes if that tells you anything.

Second, Sergio Ramos was superb at centerback. Raul Albiol has shown he is not up for a physical battle, and several strikers including Soldado (Negredo roughed him up) get the best of him in the air. Ramos had none of it and kept Soldado quite. Pellegrini sees Marcelo as a left back, so do not warm to the idea of Arbeloa at left back. Rotations may see him play there a few times, but Marcelo is #1 at left back, and with Drenthe so terrible, Arbeloa is essentially #2 at left and right back. Makes you wonder why Torres was sold? He played pretty well defensively today, but like many have mentioned, contribute little going forward. Against ten men he still stayed in his own half a majority of the time, but then again Arbeloa is similar. I dont understand the rational?

Third, team spirit improved considerably today with a rejuvenated Lassana Diarra and the absence of both Raul and Guti from the starting lineup. I still see both as key players, but they are not essential like they use to be unfortunately. I will never demand they be off loaded or even benched, but if the coach decides to bench them, I accept it. Both have been great servants and will continue to be, but coming off the bench will be their role in the coming months. I think that is not a sign of disrespect, but a willingness to allow them to prolong their career with Real. It is hard to handle the aging of club legends. Perez clearly wont even toe the line after dismissing Hierro so arrogantly, so its a complex situation. But both still deserve a place in the squad, as they have contributed well this season when called upon. The new reality is players like Ramos, Higuain, Casillas and Granero (eventually Negredo and Parejo) will be the spine of this side, and I feel safe in knowing we had a hand off from one generation to the next.

My man of the match has to be Pipita, but as mentioned above, Lass, Sergio Ramos and Kaka played well today also. Barcelona could only get a point up in Pamplona, a late own goal by Pique gifting Osasuna an unjustified goal. I say this because I watched the game, and Barcelona were unlucky to not get a few. Osasuna also should have had Flano sent off for a last man back tackle on Ibrahimovic, but to no avail. There is the problem, as Barcelona should have had a man advantage and probably a win, and we should not have been a man down. The inconsistency of calls in Spain is mind blowing, but its what makes La Liga what it is I suppose. You wont hear my crying out for justice for Barcelona to often though. A win is a win, and we will now move forward. Leave your comments on the match below please. HALA MADRID! And Happy Halloween!

Original article as found at AS.com. Thanks to labomba for the heads up on this article, it was written a week back and although its been in my posts queue, I have yet to get to it.

We all know Real has a few weaknesses, each of which we have seen in fits and starts so far this season. The space on the flanks, the crowded midfield, the simple task of marking our immobile strikers all ring a bell, but the problems the team have had with set pieces seems to be the biggest weakness, and one that is not new to the team. And while set piece organization and defending may be a problem for this team, there is a greater issue in simply clearing high balls, either with the head or foot. AS first pointed to the number of goals conceded by Real from set pieces was an astonishing 57 goals in the previous five campaigns. That averages out to 11 goals a season from set piece situations!

Add to that total 3 this season from set pieces, as well as several in the preseason, and you have to wonder what is going on in the Real defense? Many have pointed to the lack of defensive organization because of the loss of Cannavaro. I rebuke this point by simply pointing to the statistics. Cannavaro played three seasons out of the last five seasons, so while he was organizing the defense 33 goals were conceded from set pieces. Hardly an argument. Another is the lack of height in the Real Madrid team. Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Mahamdou Diarra, and Christoph Metzelder all provide above average height to the defensive core, yet we are still lacking. Another line of thinking is in that the coach does not practice these situations in training, leading to a lack of practice in dead ball scenarios.

On several occasions Real have conceded because their is either no one marking the player who scored, in the case of Renato and Riki, or there is no one on one of the posts. Albiol and Garay have both been exposed as particularly weak in the air, unable to effectively challenge for the ball during set pieces, and in the case of Albiol, to get to the ball first when playing against a more physically robust player such as Negredo and Luis Fabiano. The long term absences of Metzelder and Pepe over the past season was also a problem, and the inability of Gabriel Heinze and Ivan Helguera to clear balls, much less make contact with them, contributed a great deal to that five year total.

Much of the problem with set pieces seems to be the man marking. To often the center backs pick out the tallest players (rightly so), but after that there is a break down in the who-has-who communication inside the box. We saw that Raul left Renato unmarked against Sevilla because he appeared to be playing a zonal marking, standing further out in the box. This failed because the other players who needed to maintain the closer areas to the goal had either pushed further forward already or had chased after the ball that was initially cleared to the wing. The other problem I have noticed is Casillas. He is not very good at claiming high balls, often staying on his line when he needs to challenge for the ball, and he often does not set his wall properly. His lack of command in the area is a problem, despite his seniority (and captainship) on the team.

AS points out that Pellegrini, while coach of Villarreal last season conceded 14 goals in 14 games, 6 of which were from headers. Casillas and Guti had a very public spat about positioning on a corner which was caught on camera. Marcelo, Gago, Ronaldo, Albiol and Garay have all been found wanting in the air this season, and it seems that the problem is a long term one for the team. Of course Marcelo, Drenthe, Gago, Lass, Guti and countless other former players were relatively short. In the case of Marcelo and Drenthe, their inability to win headed challenges and clear the ball effectively has contributed to a good portion of the conceded goals in the past two seasons, and indeed this season these frailties have been exploited yet again. Not only is set piece defending weak, but defending centered balls has been a problem for the team.

Marcelo often is to afraid to challenge in the air for the ball, which Navas found out all to easily. Marcelo rarely jumps for a headed ball, instead planting himself before clearing the ball back wards. Drenthe has a similar issue, watch film and you will see neither jumps for a ball as often as they should and when they do, they fling themselves into the air without keeping their eyes on the ball. Mahamdou Diarra, Sergio Ramos and Pepe seem the only reliable players to clear a ball, while Ronaldo is great in the air, but has already shown that his marking is less the stellar as he was responsible for the second Zurich goal conceded. When it comes to clearing center balls and low crosses, I think the blame lies not only with Pellegrini, but the ethos of the club. We put to much stock in always doing things in an attractive manner, so when a player has a chance to hoof the ball up field he may choose to settle the ball. There was apparent against Liverpool last year when hoffed balls forward were never properly dealt with by Real players, giving Liverpool a second chance to settle and move forward. It was disastrous to say the least.

When in the box, you always clear the ball to wide areas or out for touch, its a simple principle taught to every level of academy player. Yet the pressure to maintain possession and/or play the ball out from the back is often to adhered to in dangerous situations. Set pieces and defensive duties are never treated the same way attacking is at Real, so such problems persist. As Pepe and Albiol play more together, and players like Ramos, Arbeloa and Mahamdou Diarra return to the team on a regular basis to provide height and/or organization, the problem will slowly abate. But we also must look at this as a long term problem that a coach should be working on, and players should pay careful attention to. Centered balls, corner kicks and free kicks belong in only place. The stands. It may not be pretty, but it is better then conceding because no one jumped for the ball.

Preventing centered balls is also a problem that Marcelo and Drenthe are often to blame for. Half the battle is not letting the opposition player get a ball in to the box, but we have let 16 centers on average from the left, five more than on the right. We average 27 centers per game at the Bernabeu and 36! away from home, which is outrageously high for a team like Real. 14 times those centers met the head or boot of the opposition team in 6 league games. The fact that only one goal was scored seems miraculous, but in the case of the Valeron miss against Deportivo, or Casillas robbing Perotti and others, its playing luck and nothing more. Compare those stats to Barca, who allow 17 centers per game at home and no wonder they are winning more comfortably! We are fourth worst at centers allows, ahead of only Getafe, Deportivo and Osasuna. Thats not acceptable for a team that is challenging for the league title.

Tell me what your thoughts are on the set piece/center ball deficiencies that Real has exhibited over the past few seasons.

I searched “international break” in Google images and that was what came up on the second search page. If the image looks familiar (besides being hilarious and very creepy) its because almost a year to date I posted the same image as the intro to a international break post of news. Funny how these things come full circle. It has been slow on the news front recently but we have several interesting blurbs out of the Real Madrid camp to go over today. Lets get started with some good news on national team call ups.

Four Real Players Called Up To The u-17 Team For The World Cup, Several Other Called Up For A Mini-Tournament In Preparation For Euro Qualifiers

Real was pleased to announce a whole host of players were called up for various youth teams. Here is a sampling:

La cantera del Real Madrid sigue dando muestras de su buen estado de salud. Para el próximo Mundial Sub-17 que se disputará en Nigeria han sido elegidos para representar a España cuatro canteranos del Real Madrid: Pablo Sarabia, Alejandro Fernández, Kamal y Álvaro Morata. Los tres primeros son integrantes del Juvenil A, mientras que el delantero Álvaro Morata pertenece al Juvenil B. Estos jugadores se concentraran en la Ciudad de Fútbol de Las Rozas a partir del próximo martes 13 de octubre, y partirán hacia Nigeria el día 22 de octubre.

España permanece encuadrada en el Grupo E, donde se tendrá que enfrentar a Estados Unidos, Emiratos Árabes y Malaui en la fase de grupos. Su primer rival será el conjunto norteamericano que se enfrentará a España el 26 de octubre a las 19.00 horas, el segundo encuentro será ante Emiratos Árabes el 29 de octubre también a las 19.00 horas, mientras que la Selección Española jugará el último partido de la fase de grupos ante Malaui el día uno de noviembre a las 16.00 horas. Los cuatro jugadores madridistas esperan hacer un gran torneo y ayudar al combinado nacional ha conseguir su primer Mundial en esta categoría. Hasta el momento la Sub-17 se ha quedado a las puertas del triunfo en tres ocasiones en las que fue subcampeón en los años 1991, 2003 y 2007.

Por su parte, los jugadores Alfonso Herrero, Derik Osede y Enrique Castaño participaran en el Mini Torneo de clasificación correspondiente al IX Campeonato de Europa Sub-17. El guardameta Alfonso Herrero entrena con el Juvenil C a las órdenes de Luis Miguel Ramis, mientras que Derik y Enrique Castaño pertenecen al Juvenil B. En este Mini Torneo la Selección Española se enfrentará en la fase de grupos a Islas Feroe, Lituania y Rumania. Además hay que destacar que el jugador del Real Madrid Martin Kozhuharov ha sido convocado por la Selección de Bulgaria Sub-18 para jugar un encuentro amistoso el próximo 21 de octubre ante Austria.

Sarabia and Alejandro Fernandez are names I am aware of but the other two I have never heard much of. Kamal is an immigrant child who has been called up to Spanish teams before, but I know little else about him. Good news to see we will be represented in the Spanish selection for the u-17 World Cup. Likewise for this mini-tournament Spain is participating in as a warm up for Euro qualifiers. Derik Osede, whose picture is above, is a player I have paid particular attention to. A strong and skilled central defender, he is one to keep an eye on for the future.

Pellegrini Does An Interview With UEFA.com

If you would like to watch a video interview of Manuel Pellegrini from uefa.com, click here. UEFA does a good job with these interviews and op ed pieces they put together on their site, so check it out. I liked it.

Real Drawn Against Neighbors Alcorcon

This one is 100% in Spanish. I was able to read all of it. Lets see if you can do the same. No one said I didnt have to be lazy during the international break, aka blogger vacation.

La Agrupación Deportiva Alcorcón milita en el Grupo II de Segunda División B, donde también juega el Real Madrid Castilla. Llegan a los dieciseisavos de la Copa del Rey tras eliminar a Palencia y Lagun Onak. El año pasado, se clasificaron hasta el último partido del playoff de ascenso a Segunda División, donde cayeron derrotados ante el Real Unión de Irún.

El Alcorcón milita en el Grupo II de Segunda División B, el mismo en el que está encuadrado el Real Madrid Castilla. Actualmente, son séptimos. Han ganado tres partidos, empatado dos y perdido otros tantos. El balance goleador es de siete tantos a favor y cuatro en contra.

El conjunto del sur de Madrid quedó exento de la primera ronda de la Copa del Rey. En la segunda ronda eliminó en su casa al Palencia al ganarle por dos goles a cero. En la tercera ronda visitó Azpeitia para ganar por un gol a dos al CD Lagun Onak. Estas primeras eliminatorias se disputaron a partido único.

El Alcorcón no había llegado tan lejos en la Copa del Rey desde hace trece años. El pasado curso, fue el mejor en la historia del equipo amarillo. Quedó tercero en Segunda División B y se clasificó para las eliminatorias de ascenso a Segunda División. Tras eliminar a San Andreu y Alcoyano, perdió el sitio en la categoría de plata del fútbol español a manos del Real Unión.

Del equipo del año pasado quedan muy pocos jugadores. Hasta 18 nuevos jugadores han llegado al equipo amarillo. Son el segundo equipo menos goleado de su grupo (4 tantos en siete partidos, 0’57 por encuentro). Los tantos se los reparten entre Borja -tres-, Cascón -dos- y Rubén Sanz e Íñigo López con uno cada uno. Uno de sus defensas titulares, Gómez, pasó por el Juvenil A del Real Madrid.

EMPAREJAMIENTOS DE LOS DIECISEISAVOS DE FINAL DE LA COPA DEL REY:

Alcorcón – REAL MADRID
Cultural Leonesa – Barcelona
Marbella – Atlético de Madrid
Puertollano – Villareal
At. Ciudad – Sevilla
Alcoyano – Valencia
Rayo Vallecano – Athletic
Hércules – Almería
Salamanca – Racing
Celta – Tenerife
Recreativo – Sporting
Murcia – Deportivo
Xerez – Osasuna
Valladolid – Mallorca
Zaragoza – Málaga
Getafe – Espanyol

The Roberto Carlos Train Is Gaining Steam

Cringe worthy to cite goal.com I know, but it was the only place I could find the translated blurb from Guti for an interview he did with AS. Full length AS article here if you can read Spanish. If not, goal.com is here. Go at your own risk, its a land of the lost some say….

Guti:

“Roberto is a great left sided player. I’d welcome him with open arms. We would be delighted if he comes, but it’s up to the club,” Guti told AS.

I said this in an earlier post when Roberto Carlos was at the Bernabeu for a meet and greet, but I guess I will have to say it again. I do not think he can return to this team. His age is certainly permissive, but his abilities were waining when he left us, and I would assume he is still on that downward slope as his career winds down. A triumphant return for the legend would be nice, but I expect him to have a retirement game in a few years at the Bernabeu, Real vs. Inter most likely, or maybe Fener. Returning as a coach is fine to me, actually I encourage it because Real needs more positional coaches, something that French, Dutch and German teams have an abundance of and helps them produce highly specialized players, as opposed to our cantera left backs usually starting life as a center back or defensive midfielder. Lets hope we do get to see the big grin of the Brazilian on the Valdebabas pitch in the future, but not as a player unfortunately.

Castilla Players Training With The First Team

Luis Hernandez and Felipe Ramos both trained with the Real first team on Wednesday and Thursday, but on Friday we had more Castilla goodness in training, with Marcos Alonso participating in work outs. YUSSSSSSSSS! New left back time?!? Lets speculate. The need for a new left back solution is pretty apparent with the poor performance of Marcelo against top class opposition, and with Pellegrini seeming to not trust Drenthe fully. Marcos Alonso to me is a perfect solution because he presents a defensively solidity that neither of our left backs can provide. Whether that translates to the first division remains to be seen, but having watch him play for the u-20 team, I think he was excellent. Lets keep our fingers crossed though.

The other thing I want to point out is that Luis Hernandez, while maybe not ready for a first team appearance like Marcos Alonso seems to be, is being groomed for one eventually. Javi Velayos has been injured recently so Hernandez has been getting starts over Opare at right back, and this may be in response to using Arbeloa on the left and Sergio Ramos needing cover at right back. That may be reading to much in to it, but I like that Pellegrini consistently is giving training opportunities to Castilla players. Cristian, Ruben Ramos and Mateos have all trained with the first team previously, so if we do get in to an injury crisis, Pellegrini will probably look to the cantera which I think is a positive. Give the lads a chance, its the least you can do. Most will surprise you.

Pardeza Attends Real Training For Chat With Pellegrini

Some may call it the dreaded vote of confidence, but I disagree. If most clubs are in dire straits and the coach gets a thumbs up from the club president then that may be a sticky situ. But in this case, Pardeza came to training to today to chat with Pellegrini for a bit, and as MARCA put it, give him a message of tranquility and confidence in his abilities. Maybe so, but I think Pardeza and Valdano go to training pretty regularly to talk to Pellegrini about the squad and get his input so they can report back to the board and Perez. Its not really anything out of the ordinary and I wish the papers would stop the back handed hints that Pellegrini is on the chopping block. He lost one game for christs sake! No matter though, just wanted to keep everyone abreast of what was going on today and calm some us down further.

Roberto Carlos, one of Real Madrid’s greatest ever players and possibly the club’s best left back (we can debate that if you would like to), returned to the Bernabeu recently for a little tour of the ground and an interview with the official site and a few other news outlets. International breaks for ex-internationals are usually even more boring then for non-international players, because they know what they are missing. Roberto Carlos though is not one to sit idly by, so he took a trip to Madrid!

Here is a brief excerpt of his interview with the official site:

“I felt marvelous things when I stepped on the pitch again. I lived so many great moments at the Bernabeu…”

“The greatest of my achievements is the fact that fans still remember me with affection. You can’t put a price on that. I will never be able to thank them enough for it.”

“This Trophy Room has part of my heart in it.”

“I lived very happy moments with Real Madrid. I was lucky to win three European Cups. This new team is very exciting. It has some of the best players in the world and I believe it can achieve great things if it continues to improve. I watch Real Madrid’s games whenever I can. I think they are doing a great job and I’m sure they’ll do even better. They’ve only lost one league game and they’ve had a strong start in the Champions League. I think the new project is very ambitious.”

“Marcelo is a great player who is working very hard. I’m glad things are workimng out for him on the team.”

“Madrid is a marvelous city. It would be nice to help the Club in any way I can.”

It is always nice to see former players having such an affection for the city and the club. Roberto left at the right time, when his powers were waining and even though he did not go out on a high in terms of form, he won a league before he left. But, even though he wanted to continue playing first team football, and Champions League games at that, he may have left to early. More time with Marcelo may have been great for the young Brazilians game, because despite what Roberto Carlos says, Marcelo is not a great player.

There has been talk of Carlos coming back to Real to play. He says he would do it for free. Well I would play for Real for free to Roberto, it does not mean I will get the chance. I do not think it would be wise to bring him back as a player, even if would hurt the wage bill. As a coach, definitely! But even then, he say he wants to play in Brazil for a year or two still, so it will not be for awhile. If he does some day come back to Real to coach that would be great, he could teach many of our young lads how to play the position properly.

Los nervionenses host Real Madrid in the Sanchez Pijuan this Sunday in the first game between top teams in La Liga, and its sure to be a cracker. Both teams are in great form, with Sevilla only conceding once (4 League wins) since their opening day defeat to Valencia, and Real has won all of its games in the league so far, scoring the most and conceding the least. If we could somehow throw Barcelona on the field at the same time, Spain may explode with goals. Not a very good joke, but the best way to illustrate my point is to show the stats, so here you are, a comparison of the two team’s goal production and form (click on the pictures for a better view).

Sevilla

Real Madrid

As you can see, they are pretty even in terms of goals scored and conceded as well as form, but notice that Sevilla scores early and then controls the game while Real has scored a majority of its goals in the second half, with an astounding 6 in the final throws of a game. Real again showed that they were a second half team with 3 in a 6 minute span against Marseille, while Sevilla spread their goals out across second half, but looked decisive when Rangers tired. Both teams are in tremendous form, with Real yet to drop a point and Sevilla only having the lose to Valencia as a blemish to their record. Both offenses are firing on all cylinders, and the defenses have remained water as of yet. Something has to give this Sunday then….

Sevilla Team News:

I really can never attest to hating a team, it just is not logical. How could one hate an entity, a badge or a stadium? Many of us Real fans hate Barcelona for various reasons, and of course the feeling is mutual. The same goes for the Basque teams and Atletico (all teams I suppose). But with Sevilla, I feel the hate that their fans have for Real, its palpable in the Sanchez Pijuan at times, and I think its because Sevilla knows its on the up, and Real was the easier of the two teams to know off the top. Probably is not the case any more, but this match is hot blooded just like our tradition Madrileno derbis or El Classico is. This is a big game for both teams, and I have to say I am not as confident in the win as I have been all season.

The team has shown itself to be more then capable of winning on the road, but it has yet to show that it will play its own game (even that is a little fuzzy) on the road, instead of nullifying the opponent and then exploiting their weakness. With the reception certain to be hostile in the Sanchez Pijuan, Real will probably be a bit rattled in the early going. But fear not, because there is a way to beat Sevilla, and its all to simple I am afraid. Win the midfield battle, and you rob them of the possession they need to run a complex offense and the wing play that their forwards rely on for service.

Jimenez has a large and deep squad at his disposal, with several quality role players. Sometimes you look at a team like this and say to yourself, “How are some of these guys not getting upset with such little playing time like they would at a Real or Barcelona?”. Not really sure, but Jimenez is man managing them well so far. Sevilla has a great keeper in Andres Palop, one of the many who were rejected by Valencia only to become exceptional players once they left the Mestalla. I still rate him higher then Villarreal’s Diego Lopez, although I think Del Bosque has his mind made up for the WC already in terms of keepers. Palop is a match winner for Sevilla, and other the claiming a corner or center, there are very few flaws to his technique. Sound like anyone you know who wears gloves to work?

In the defense I see frailty more because of my own prejudice then actual performance this season. While Konko has been terrific this year, and likewise Fernando Navarro, I do not rate Squillaci or Escude all that highly. I watched Squillaci play a lot when he was with Lyon, and he always seemed to have the worst judgement when competing for a ball. All to often he would end up fouling the player because he took the physical route to a tackle, as opposed to the more elegant route of stripping a ball or a toe poke. He is hard nosed in a sense, but he is also beatable in a physical duel because he is not all to impressive physically. Although 6 feet tall, he is not great in the air, unless you count climbing on players backs, and he is slow to go down for a slide tackle. Escude in the same sense is not impressive physically, but he reads the game well. They make a good partnership, but they can be found out.

Konko is a quick player, something of a poor mans Dani Alves if you will. He attacks a far bit and combines well with Jesus Navas down the wing. Limiting his contribution offensively may be key to limiting the attacks of Sevilla. As wing play is so important to the team, keeping Konko and Fernando Navarro in their own half will help limit the amount of danger from the wings. Sergio Sanchez provides covers at right back and Dragutinovic at center back. I always liked Sergio Sanchez as a player, and his moved to Sevilla was no surprise, but I do not see him winning the starting job from Navarro, such is the difference in style that Sergio Sanchez may be to negative and immobile a player to fit in. Adriano also provides an option at left or right back, and is one of those role payers who seems to do a great job whenever called on. He started against Rangers and scored, so we may see him in the midfield this weekend.

The center midfield acts as a ball collection machine and organizes play, if nothing else. That is unless Renato is playing. Traditionally Jimenez will use Didier Zokora and one of Romaric, Lolo or Duscher to keep the opponent from having to much freedom in the midfield. The double pivot also helps in closing down some of the space left on the wings by the attacking fullbacks. Against Bilbao Jimenez sensed Chaparro was going to a brute and kick Sevilla to death, so he used Renato in the center of midfield, and he ran circles around them. Lolo was deployed to do the kicking, and he looked pretty good. I imagine Lolo and Zokora will reprise their partnership against Real, as they did against Rangers, and keep things simple in the center. Zokora is a good passer from right to left and vice vera, but force him to put a ball on the ground in to space for Luis Fabiano, and well your asking to much. Lolo I can not say much of his passing skills, but his physical style has endeared him to the fans as he will put in a tireless effort to win the ball back. If Lass is to 50-50 for this game, I want Mahamadou to do battle with these two.

Renato is an option, but I think Jimenez, despite being at home, will keep his cards close to his chest and use him as a second half substitute. Fazio could also fill in, but he is more of a stop gap player still, able to cover multiple positions included center back. I do not expect the central midfield to be overly ambitious, so it is up to Pellegrini on whether he wants to put stress on them, or simply match them man for man and try to push play through somewhere else. The wings are where Sevilla thrives, with the mercurial Jesus Navas and the talented youngster Diego Perotti providing a majority of the chances for the strikers. Both are very dangerous with their speed in skill on the wings, where Real still look a little uncertain in the defense. Jesus Navas use to be a fun player to watch, but his final ball was lacking, but he has improved that aspect of his game, as evident by the Rangers match where he provided Kanoute with a pin-point pass that should have been a goal. Navas also has improved his finishing, with a well taken goal against Bilbao. Although a prototypical winger, he has been cutting inside more often to find chances for a shot, showing that his game is maturing and become less one dimensional. I really like this player, and wish he was with the Spanish NT.

Perotti is less a traditional winger more of a play maker. Not flashy tricks or creative movement, but he remains an elusive dribble with a great final ball and a knack for being in good positions. He also seems blessed with an incredibly accurate shot, able to score from acute angles like his goal against Zaragoza this year. Perotti is still young though, so he does drift out of games when not getting the service he needs from the center midfield, and he typically is replace by Diver Capel (whoever came up with that is brilliant!) in the 60th minute or so. Capel looked so promising but last year he lost his form and showed that like Navas, he can have not just off days, but off months. Capel’s inconsistent play has made him a super-sub if you will, although I have seen nothing to dictate he will get off the bench anytime soon. The likelihood that Adriano starts this game ahead of Perotti means that Capel might not even see playing time. Such is the fall of his stock after being linked with Real and Tottenham for 15 million and several Spanish call ups as a 19 year old. Perotti may do well to take note of what not to do with your career in Capel’s case.

Adriano might start on the left because while he is good at going forward, he may provide a safer option on the flank. Although I think Adriano started against Rangers to give Perotti a bit of rest and keep him from getting hacked to death by the Scots, a little squad rotation will not be in order for Real. Up front Jimenez has four attractive options, although Kone seems to have fallen off the planet and the Real Madrid haunting Javier Chevanton is nothing more then a squad player now. We all know of Luis Fabiano, Kanoute and especially Negredo, and they provide a unique challenge for Pepe and Albiol to deal with, because they will have to use more of their physical attribute then their positioning and cunning in anticipating plays to deal with these three big men. My money is on Fabiano and Negredo starting, as Kanoute was in against Rangers as part of a rotation, and he did not look like his former self despite scoring a tap in. Thus, my expected lineup:

——————Palop———————
Konko—Squillaci–Escude—F. Navarrao
J. Navas—-Zokora—-Lolo—-D. Perotti
———-Luis Fabiano—Negredo———-

Real Madrid Team News:

As of writing this, Ronaldo left the field injured against Marseille. He suffered from traumatic arthritis with bone edema on the right talus bone and a Grade I sprain on the internal lateral ligament of the right ankle. Not good news, and he has to be a doubt for the trip to Seville, although he has until Saturday instead of Friday to prove his fitness. My guess is that he is not pushed into this match, even though it is an important one. We should have Arbeloa back for this match, which is good because Sergio Ramos still is not fully fit for a full game, and Lass should be fine to play after some pain in his right shoulder kept him out of the Marseille match. Gago has a Grade I-II injury on his left thigh muscle and will miss three weeks. Oh darn…

Metzelder and Ruud continue to work out in the gym recovering from their respective injuries, and no time table has been set for either of them to return yet. Because of the busy schedule we have had, a few players were actually rested against Marseille, including Higuan and Granero. Granero’s bench spot was more for his “strop” out of the stadium against Tenerife, but Pellegrini should not be so petty as to keep him off the field for to long. Granero was upset with his own performance, admire his passion for his play. He is still young and the pressure’s of the Bernabeu can get to you. Patience will seem he come through a rough patch of form.

If Ronaldo can not make the match, we have a tactical rethink on our hands, but it also guarantees another game for the revived Guti. He was excellent against Marseille, and I think he will again have a strong game against Sevilla. The three man midfield worked well (worked well as in minus Gago) but it still needs some fine tuning, say in keeping up with the quick breaks that Kaka and Ronaldo like to lead. To often Xabi, Guti and Gago/Lass are way behind play, so Ronaldo, Kaka or the strikers get out numbered. A quick break does not have to end in a chance, it can lead to further possession by pushing the opponent deep in to their own half, and the midfield needs to get above the center circle in order to provide outlet passes to do just that.

The wing backs will need to be very focused on their defensive responsibilities as well, because Jimenez probably will not require Adriano/Perotti or Navas to drop back as often to help defend as they are at home. Marcelo played very well against Marseille so he will probably get the start, and he will have his hands full with Navas. Abriel is not a natural winger blessed with pace like Navas is, so this is a more meaningful challenge, and the two players are like for like in a way. Sergio Ramos will also have his hands full with Adriano or Perotti, although I think for the most part he will be able to handle them, as long as he is fit. He seemed to be a little behind the pace of the Marseille game, probably because he did not have much of a preseason and is still getting in to match shape. He has looked good though so far, so lets hope that continues.

I have been impressed by Kaka and Ronaldo sure, they have been excellent. Xabi and Granero have done a good job for us so far as well, while Benzema has looked good at times, and lost at other times. Garay and Arbeloa, in the few appearances they made were solid, but the player who impressed me most out of the new recruits has been Albiol. Is it any wonder that we have conceded just 2 goals so far this season in the league, 4 goals in total? It has been Albiol, and he has been masterful. And now that Pepe has returned, we have a very formidable center back partnership that will only get better with time. The fact that Eazy G and Metzelder, when healthy, have also played their part and been solid as well is a welcome addition to this squad, after years of trouble in the defense. We could still use work back there, but we are not conceding, and this is so important to winning games.

My lineup for Sunday is as follows:

————-Casillas————–
S. Ramos—-Pepe—Albiol—-Marcelo
—-Guti—-Xabi Alonso—-Lass—-
————–Kaka—————
———Benzema—Raul———-

I think we will only see one change, which is forced in the absence of Ronaldo. Sevilla fans breath a sigh of relief. But, this is now Kaka’s offense to run, and Guti’s passes will be instrumental. I dont want to see Lass moving any further forward then the center circle! He has gotten to ambitious with his runs and has lost a lot of his defensive game because he is always out of position. Sit back and win the ball for us, let Guti and Xabi do the probing and prodding! At least Gago is injured for three weeks, so we wont see him mucking up the midfield.

With Higuain missing sitter after sitter, or in general shooting for the moon, there is no way to justify his inclusion in the starting lineup. He should have scored twice last night, instead he continues to dig himself a deeper hole and make all of us Higuain fans look like idiots. Benzema played well in parts of the game, but I still worry about his compatibility with Raul up front.

On the Podcast I predicted a 3-2 win for Real. I wont even bother guessing the scorers, I never get them right anyways, but here is to a Real Madrid victory. HALA MADRID, HALA MADRID, HALA MADRID! I will be in New York on Sunday, so I am trying to decide between Nevada Smith’s and getting back to my apartment for the game. Since its a 3pm eastern time game, I will probably just head back to Connecticut for the match. Anyone interested in a liveblog, or would you prefer I actually do a review of the match this time? Taking nothing away from Dancy’s work of course. Let me know in the comments.

The podcast is posted here for everyone to listen to, but it would be nice if you guys go over to the OwnGoalNetwork and drop a few lines there, as Kevin has done the bulk of the work for this little venture and we owe him our support. Check out La Liga Weekly and let me know if you guys like the setup of the site and all of that, just for future reference. The podcasts are hosted here, the iTunes link is here, and the OwnGoalNetwork is here.

Hala Madrid! Hey folks, it’s been AGES since I’ve posted anything, and for that I apologize, but Corey has been aces in keeping the content going, and of course, Cesar has also stepped up. You guys are doing a great job, I simply don’t know how you do it without regular TV access to matches.

Anyway, as you may remember, I’ve unfortunately left the Old Continent and returned home to Toronto. I thought all was lost without Sky Sports. But then word got out that Los Merengues were going on a North American tour, and Toronto was their first stop! OMG! WTF!

Alas, the corporate bigwigs at TFC have deemed this their cash cow for the year and have priced their tickets accordingly. Thus those in attendance at tomorrow’s friendly match will be suits and high rollers and not the type who would most enjoy it, ie. me.

In their infinite wisdom, they saw the relentless demand for all CR9, all the time, and decided to sell tickets to the open practice that Madrid would have the day before the match. This also happens to be the day they arrived from Spain, so the players would probably be tired as hell, sore from the 8 hour flight, and not in any mood to be training. And for this they charged us $15! OMG! WTF!

Well, since I couldn’t afford tickets to the match, naturally I stumped up the cash for the practice, the fool I am. I hated the TFC management for doing things this way but dammit, i ain’t too proud to not see my boys!

So yesterday, me and my buddy Rudy left work promptly and headed to BMO Field. Now, if you don’t follow Major League Soccer, you may not know that Toronto has a professional football, er, soccer team. They’re alright. But the stadium they play in is just terrible. I know things were done on the cheap a bit, despite the obvious support such a team would receive, but we’ve been stuck with a crappy sandbox that barely holds 20,000 people and still uses artificial turf because the stadium is required for community use as well.

But can you imagine the outcry if any players got injured on the turf? So for 10 days, and 10 days only, TFC has imported a grass pitch for this match. Naturally, it looks and probably plays much better, and for good reason – it cost $250,000 to install! In addition to the much-rumoured $1mil appearance fee for Real Madrid, you can sorta see why they’re charging so much.

But I digress… Rudy and I rocked up to the stadium, where the security were banning anyone from carrying a camera lens longer than 75mm. For those of you who aren’t photo junkies, this basically means they didn’t want you to take close-up pictures with a big zoom lens. Bad news for Rudy as he had a lens which was just over the limit, so we had to check that in.

After grabbing some food, we made our way to our seats, and waited patiently. They were playing the press conference on the Jumbotron, and soon afterwards, the moment we had waited for was upon us. Los Merengues were coming out of the tunnel! In Toronto! OMG! WTF!

The announcer read through those who were present: Adan, Dudek, Garay… and so on. There was no Sergio Ramos, no Gago (hmm…), no Marcelo, no van der Vaart (and thus also no Sylvie…), no Ruud, no Mahamahou. But Xabi Alonso somehow got all his stuff finished from his transfer the day before and was here. In Toronto! OMG! WTF!

It was rather amusing to hear which players got cheers. With the massive Portuguese diaspora in Toronto, you would be right if you guessed CR9. Honourable mention goes to Kaka, and the players mentioned after them generally got cheers since the almost-sellout crowd got used to making noise. But the players before CR9? Crickets.

The outfield players warmed up through some light jogging around the field, and by light jogging I actually mean a pace that could have been slower than speedwalking. Interestingly, the keepers were off in their own little world: Casillas, Dudek and Adan, along with the goalkeeper coach. After some stretching and what seemed like a half-hour of piggy-in-the-middle, they started an intra-squad scrimmage on a half-size pitch.

Now, from where I was sitting, it wasn’t easy to make out all the players, but I could distinguish most of them from height, hairstyle, and where they were playing. First impressions then? El Pirata Granero looks very good, and Glassman was doing well too. Drenthe put in a couple good crosses (OMG! WTF!), Pepe gave away a couple passes, and Sneijder was his energetic self.

Kaka looks awesome, though he and BSMH (Be Still My Heart) Benzema did get in each other’s way one time and it looked awkward. Again, the biggest cheers were reserved for CR9, who did not disappoint (though, considering he dove once in the penalty area – in practice! – one has to wonder if this constitutes a disappointment or not).

Sadly, the practice ended after the scrimmage, with some of the players kicking souvenir balls into the stands. Rudy and I also knew where the team was staying, courtesy of our friend and Real @ The Offside reader Apollo. We actually spent half an hour waiting in the hotel lobby, but the team snuck in the back entrance and went straight to the hotel restaurant which was blocked off from us commoners. Alas, we only peeped a glimpse of Pepe’s alien head. OMG! WTF!

Anyway, the practice lasted barely over an hour, and Rudy and I came away not knowing whether we’d been ripped off or not. I suppose if it’s not immediately obvious, then it’s not, but still. For Canadian Madridistas, today’s match will be shown live on GolTV which is on free preview for this month, at least on Rogers. Channel 428, or 501 for the HD feed.

Check out the videos I got below, though I apologize if they’re a little jumpy… it’s hard staying still with those little dinky cameras!

Since its the end of the season, I figured it was time for this kind of post. The one where we look at the squad for next year and determine who should stay and who should go. Also, I will be adding players from the Castilla team that should be promoted and given a shot to round out the numbers, and discussing the positions where we may need to dip in to the transfer market with possible targets. Below is a list of current players in the squad. Those in bold are who I expect to stay next season, while those not in bold are probably on their way out. No discussion of new signings, just taking inventory here. I am going to split this up into parts based on the keepers and defense, midfield and forwards. So here is part one with the keepers and defense:

Goalkeepers:

1 Iker Casillas
13 Jordi Codina
25 Jerzy Dudek
30 Antonio Adán
29 Felipe Ramos

Idealism is the key to the goal keeping situation at Real Madrid. Because lets face it, barring injury, no one will take the #1 jersey from Iker Casillas until he is at least 36, if not older. Its a difficult situation from the Castilla keepers because they are pretty good, but they have the best in the world in head of them. Jordi Codina found that out, and I fully expect him to go to Xerez or any one of the promoted teams this summer. It seems like a good fit, and he is a La Liga quality keeper, so why not move on to further your career. He should not be to banged up about never breaking into the starting role, as Casillas is, like him, a cantera player, so that softens the blow. Best of wishes to Codina!

Dudek is worthless, I hated this guy since the day we signed him. I knew he would never play, but it was also because it was such an obvious sign that the management did not trust Castilla players to backup Casillas, which is stupid. I could see one of Felipe Ramos or Antonio Adan going out on loan IF Castilla is not promoted to the Segunda, while the other will probably be Casillas backup. This means that the Castilla keeper spot will be open next year if one of Ramos or Adan is loaned and the other promoted to the first team.

This is because Real Madrid C obviously has two very talented keepers. Tomas and Aitor are both very good keepers, with both winning caps and junior levels for Spain. So one of them will have to make the move up next year. Also, I suppose that Real will bring in a goalkeeper in the off season if one of Adan or Felipe Ramos is loaned or stays with the Castilla team.

Center Backs:

D5 Fabio Cannavaro
D3 Pepe
D21 Christoph Metzelder
D26 Mateos
## Ezequial Garay
## Christoph Schorch
## Agus Fernandez
## Gary

So let me first say that while Fabio Cannvaro is an excellent player, he is simply to old to play with Real for another season. He has been a stalwart for our club over the past three seasons, but I think it is time for him to go back to Italy. We have Garay coming in and I suppose that Real could be on the look out for another central defender. Since Cannavaro already signed for Juve, it seems that moving him out wont be to much of a problem. He has worked wonders in calming Pepe down (barring the Getafe game), so his influence will hopefully be long lasting in a defensive stalwart in Pepe.

Pepe is gonna recover from the Getafe game incident, and when he does he will definitely have a new partner. He will also most likely be the one to take Garay under his wing even though they are only a few years apart. I do not know who Real is planning on signing this summer as a central defender, but this is one of the rare occurrences where we really have no grounds for speculation because the president is not elected yet. I would advocate a central defensive signing, but I would also say that with Pepe, Garay and a signing that the fourth center back should not be Sergio Ramos. It should be a youth team player, i.e. Gary or Schorch. That is if Metzelder is not retained. If he is, then there will be no room for that youth team player.

If a player like Gary is finally signed to a permanent deal, then he could be promoted to the first team, but since he is on loan with Castilla, he cannot play for Real. I did not know that until I looked it up, which makes sense as to why he never was played by Schuster last year. But this year he is fully owned by Real, so I expect him to move up or leave for good. Mateos will be sold, as he does not have La Liga quality. Schorch is sort of an unknown quantity. I have personally never seen him play, as Castilla games are pretty hard to catch, but he has high ratings. I do not know what his situation is for next year. He shaved his head recently though, so there is some news.

Agus did not do well on his loan last year to Celta, and although he has been ever present for Castilla this term, he will be released/sold in the summer because of his age. He is approaching 23, so he needs to start playing somewhere else. I cant say he was of the required quality Real needed, but I wish him luck in the future. Castilla is gonna have a tumultuous offseason with center backs, although the arrival of Matteo Mussachio will help things a bit. He is a highly rated youngster fro River Plate that Real signed this past year. Expect big things from him, unlike Juan Forlin of Boca Juniors, who has had little impact this season.

Pepe and Garay would be a nice partnership, but I believe Metzelder will be retained for another year. If they were to sell Metzelder, we would have Pepe and Garay, with Sergio Ramos and maybe Heinze as coverage. That to me is not sufficient. Metzelder stays, although I would rather he not see to much playing time. His performances at the end of the season have either been really good, or as in El Clasico, pretty average against an opponent with a lot of pace. A good backup, but he himself has admitted that leaving might make sense for his career, although he enjoys playing for Real. A youth team player would be nice, but given that Gary and Schorch really have no experience, and have not made moves towards the first team this season, I have a hard time believing a coach and/or the management will be so trusting of either of them.

Wing Backs:

D4 Sergio Ramos
D2 Míchel Salgado
D22 Miguel Torres Gómez
D27 Javier Velayos
D16 Gabriel Heinze
26 Chema Anton
12 Marcelo

Its pretty obvious that Gabi Heinze must go as far away from Madrid as possible. I dont think any sane Real fan likes this guys playing style, and his horror defending has been costly the past two seasons. There is interest (not sure if its genuine) in him from the EPL, so if an offer comes in, take it! Miguel Torres to me is the perfect left back for us. He is good at just about everything, although not outstanding in anything at the same time. He brings solidity and consistency to the left back position, something we really need given Sergio Ramos’s up and down season, and the always chaotic central defensive pairing.

I Miguel Torres being the starting left back and Marcelo being his back, although Marcelo also can be used on the wing. Marcelo is still a left back in my eyes, he simply needs to mature and become more responsible in his positioning and the timing of his runs. A good backup for sure, either at left back or on the wing. Likewise Drenthe, who is also a left back still in my eyes. But he will probably be gone, so I dont count on him. Its nice to have utility players like that, as if Torres himself is not one already. Which leads me to the right back spot.

Torres is also a great backup at the right back spot. So if he is my starter at left back and my backup at right back, we are stretched a tad thin here arent we? The solution is simple. Use youth team players as cover! There is absolutely no need to buy Maicon or Maxwell from Inter Milan, or Philip Lahm from Bayern etc etc etc. Good players they are, but we need to stop looking for quick solutions and start developing long term plans. Which is why I say we go with Ramos and Torres as starters, Marcelo backing up Torres, Torres backing up Ramos, and two youth team players being used in emergencies at either spot. Javier Velayos as a right back I believe is first team ready. He made the bench against Vilarreal, so Juande sees something in him that should merit a workout in the pre-season with the first team. I would not sign a right back given our plethora of options there.

Daniel Opare is not, and I know alot of fans have been clamoring for his inclusion, but I dont think he is ready yet. He has not had a full campaign under his belt with Castilla, so give him more time. Velayos on the other hand is in his second season as the starting right back for Castilla, and has been one of the best players of the side. Give him a chance this season. At left back, Chema Anton lost his place in the Castilla team to Marcos Alonso and looks almost certain to be released this summer. I dont see him making it to the first team now, his form has dropped off considerable from reports. He played in 25 games this year, but something fishy must be going on if he was to loose his place to a Juvenil A player. He is only 20, so he has time, but I fear the worst for his Real career.

Michel Salgado of course needs to move on as well. He has been a great servant to the club, and while we know he wanted to retire with Real, he probably should go play in Saudi Arabia for a year or two before retiring. He will have a testimonial match for sure, and I can see him getting involved in football administration some day.

The key here is to make it clear to Torres he will be the starter for Real at left back. If he knows that going in to the season, expect big things from him.

Not much of an update, but some more news on my favorite canterano, Ruben de la Red, as he looks to return to action after fainting back in October. A body of tests have been run to determine the source of the episode, and he has been kept out of the game all year as a precautionary measure until the tests are conclusively in his favor. It is in everyone’s best interest that we avoid another Antonio Puerta situation, may he rest in peace.

English article here, Spanish one here.

He has one more series of tests that should determine if their is a genetic heart problem, but otherwise the other tests, which were primarily cardiac tests. Carlos Diez, Director of Real Madrid’s Medical Services, along with a panel of experts from around the world examined Ruben’s test results which were started December 3rd. The verdict was: “The player fainted due to efforts that had a probable cardiological origin.” So now the genetic tests become the primary focus, and if those come out with no serious concerns, Ruben will be cleared to play next season. Hooray!

Many of us have been clammoring for his return (health permitting) as he is essential the solution to our midfield problems next season. A central midfielder with creativite abilities and astute positioning, who can help out defensively as well. Essentially a much better Fernando Gago to partner Lass or Mamadou Diarra next season. We might have our wish, but the most important thing is to make sure his health is not at risk while playing football. Lets hope this last series of test gives him the confirmation he needs to continue his career.