I dont think I could do justice to the importance of this game, the history and the passion each set of fans has when it comes time for the two teams to meet. Besides the obvious media glamor of all of the star players, this game is one of the oldest rival matches in the world, and the cultural context surrounding the game has always added extra flair to the event. But being an American, and despite doing extensive reading on the history of the match and the cultural effects, I still prefer to treat it as it is, a football game. Call me apathetic, but I am not a Spaniard, so I cant say I hate Catalans or Madrilenos simply because I dont know the people.

So its a derbi of epic proportions, with some of the best players on the planet in both teams, with both sides being the most decorated teams in Spain and the world. The success of the two clubs aside, we must focus on the game not as a historic event, or a revenge mission for the humiliations of last year, but as a top of the table clash for La Liga supremacy. While its great to get wrapped up in all of the extra’s of the match, both teams need this win because it will provide a bit of separation from one another. In a long season where Real is still alive in two competitions, and Barca in three, this game will give one team a little breathing room, and a large psychological boost until the next Clasico.

Here are various media articles on the game for you to enjoy:

Phil Ball on El Clasico.

Since we cant go a week without a shameless plug on Marca, we had a FIFA 10 game played between Xavi and Benzema (who both appear in commercials for the game), and Benzema scored three with Cristiano to win it. Read all about it here and from the official site which is in English.

Sergio Ramos breaks down the game while wearing a hideous outfit.

The talking head Cruyff on El Clasico. Read at your own peril, I think Cruyff is a twat.

Some stats and historical numbers from the Clasico over the years.

Barcelona Team News:

If you want to know every little nit picky detail about Barcelona I will defer you to this site. Ish and Kevin, former Offsiders, do a wonderful job with their site and the coverage of the blaugrana.

We all know how Barcelona plays and who they play with. I sometimes think I follow them just as much as I follow Real simply to see if they lose so we can pick up points on them. With that being said, I do not really want to go in to a full blown analysis of a team that has been analyzed to death since last year. We all know how Barcelona plays, and I offer no reasonable way to beat them. This game is simply to unpredictable for me to wag my finger and say “Dont let Xavi out of your sight Lass”. It just doesnt work like that. Pellegrini will have a plan Im sure, as will Guardiola, but for once, I would like to just sit back and watch it unfold. Im gonna leave the analysis to the pros this time, I will simply be observing.

I also really dont like talking about Barcelona and how great their team is. Can you blame me though? Visit the link above if your really interested in reading up on them, or you can go to the Barcelona Offside.

Real Madrid News:

Raul Albiol was not rested, despite my protests on the Santander match preview, and sure enough he has aggravated the knee that was originally injured playing for Spain. His availability for the Clasico will remain in doubt until Saturday because of that, and I blame Pellegrini for not having enough trust in Garay to use him against Zurich, who ended up offering little go forward anyways. Guti and Van Nistelrooy also have injuries they are recovering from and will be unavailable for the game, while Sergio Ramos has a slight knock that he is doing recovery exercises in the gym for. Cristiano Ronaldo went through 20 minutes of the Zurich game unscathed, so he should feature for Real as well.

With only three injury concerns, Pellegrini will most likely continue with the formation and personnel he has been using for the past month which has yielded positive results, despite some indifferent performances. In the indifferent performances looked like a stunning 1st half and a dull and disinterested 2nd half, or at worst, a frantic 20 minute surge to take a lead and then a resting on their laurels for the remainder of the time. We cant have that against Barcelona, especially in the Camp Nou, but I think that the hype and excitement involved in the game will keep the energy and concentration levels up for a majority of the game. When you play at the San Siro one week, and then you host Racing Santander a few weeks later, the motivation levels have to differ.

My expected lineup for the match will look a little like this:

————Casillas————
S. Ramos—Pepe—Garay—Arbeloa
———-Xabi—-Lass———
Kaka———————Marcelo
——-Higuain—Benzema——-

No Raul? Dont have faith in Ronaldo starting? Albiol is an iron man, he should make the match right?

Im not optimistic on Albiol, and like I have said, in the long haul not pushing him to play will be better for his fitness, and the same can be said about Ronaldo. It is unfortunate that Ronaldo wont start, but we have to look past that. There is no excuses when it comes to El Clasico. Whether Raul will play or not is a bit of a mystery. His performance against Zurich would indicate he does not deserve the starting spot, but his history in this game in particular will always be favorable. And in his defense, when the midfield rarely creates chances for Raul, much less passes the ball to him in and around the box, what can you expect him to do? Ive lamented the lack of chance creation for the strikers before, and it hurts Raul the most in terms of his performance.

When it comes to beating Barcelona, its very simple. Do not let them string 10-12 shorts passes together, and you will have a much better chance of surviving their onslaught. But then again, containing the skill of a Messi, Iniesta or Ibrahimovic on the dribble wont be easy either (Henry too). So if we can keep the ball for most of the game, we will improve our chances of winning. Its really that simple, if Barcelona does not have the ball they cant do much damage. How easily we can do that is another thing. Obviously Xabi Alonso helps in maintaining possession, but players like Higuain and Kaka are often very wasteul with the ball despite their brilliance in flashes. Kaka in particular looses a great deal of balls which will hurt us, so smarter play will have to be stressed.

I dont expect Real to have a lions share of the possession by any means, simply because Barcelona is the best in the world at maintaing possession themselves. Being effective with the ball when we have it, and attempting to hold on to it as much as possible is the best way to keep us out of danger. The midfield battle will be huge obviously, but the battle between Barcelona’s wingers and striker and our defensive line will be interesting, most notably because Arbeloa will be tasked with marking Messi, and Pepe vs. Ibra looks like an exciting match up. Lass and Xabi will probably look for Kaka to help them in shutting down Xavi, Keita and either Busquets or Toure.

My prediction for the game was a 1-1 on the podcast. We should play for the win, but a draw would not be a bad result as we would keep a one point cushion on Barcelona. Sevilla and Valencia are probably hoping for a draw as well as they can make up ground on both teams with a split of the points in Barcelona.

Here is the podcast for everyone to listen to. Its a short one this week, as its Thanksgiving so the timing wasnt great for me as I had a soccer game and family commitments this week. None the less there is 15 minutes of solid banter on there, so check it out below:

This was not my strongest preview ever and for that I apologize. The timing of this game could not have been worse given it was Thanksgiving week. I am going to have a liveblog open, starting at noon on Sunday. I wont be doing a play by play, just adding comments every now and then, so feel free to join me. I will have to ask someone to help me out with a review of the match as I have to travel on Sunday night and I have a job interview and class all day Monday. Ill see everyone at noon on Sunday for the liveblog, and as always HALA MADRID!

Here is a guest match review of the Zurich game which ended 1-0 to Real Madrid from reader Bassam, who is also an admin on our Real Madrid Offside Facebook page. Leave a comment for Bassam’s review and have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

This is my first try at writing a review, so I hope it turns out good. So let’s get into it. This is not the game Madradista’s were thinking off, but rather the game next week. El clasico is what everyone is anticipating and were hoping that this game did not result in any injuries. Pelligrini didn’t think of resting anyone though, and went out with a full team squad. The only change from the weekends game is the inclusion of Raul into the squad instead of Benzema. This brings back the partnership that was being played last season. A small kind of reunion between Higuain and Raul. Lets jump into the details.

This was a game very similar to every game we have played this season. A first half of good football that we want the team to play every game and every second, and a second half that well that is frustrating to say the least! The first half was amazing. Despite Zurich parking the bus all game, in the first half, we passed and ran into spacing. With this passing and movement came what we all expected: beautiful football! We created a lot of chances but failed to convert them. Pipita’s got one chance to take on the keeper and he managed to impress. A cool left footed finish after a nice assist from Kaka. Now that we have mentioned Kaka, here is a player that performed up to the expectations from him. He was taking on players, not falling to the ground whenever he is pushed a bit and passing. He should have got another assist when he passed the ball to VDV for a one on one with the keeper. VDV unfortunately wasted that chance by firing over the bar.

After an amazing first half of nice football, Real Madrid insisted on being consistent and failed to impress the second half. This is one of the few teams that parked the bus so much against us, so I wont complain much. Even in the second half that we didn’t play well in, we managed to get some of our players into clear cut one on ones with the opposition keeper. VDV and Ronaldo both got a chance to score after getting great passes from Kaka and Granero respectively.

Our defense was good but that is because Zurich’s attack was weak to say the least. Zurich didn’t really attack to be honest, so I can’t say that the defense was good per say. We tried to pressure Zurich whenever they had the ball and it worked. At first we did not do that really well, with Zurich being able to out pass their way with possession. That ended in five minutes and we took possession of the game till the last second. Our main problem was converting the many many chances. Higuain made the middle of the attacking position and the right wing his own. Ramos probably played his best game this season with some amazing trickery. The whole team connected oh so well in the first half. The second half, we kept position but in vain. Possession with no result is frustrating, but it’s a start. Since I’ve never written a report like this, I’m going to go with a rating system.

Real Madrid:

Casillas –B: Had no real saves to make. Didn’t do any mistakes. Controlled all the aerial balls very well and was in a hurry to move the ball fast after getting hold of it.

Sergio Ramos – A: This is the Sergio Ramos we all love to see and defenders fear. He bombed the right hand side and made it his own. He showed tricks that Ronaldo sometimes fails to pull off. He was simply great this game and I hope this is a sign of things to come.
Albiol – B: Makes you feel secure at the back, but then again, was there an attack to defend against?
Pepe – B: Same thing as Albiol. He does seem to like those long passes. I just don’t like him doing those long passes. Is it just me or should Alonso be throwing those around the pitch?
Arbeloa – C+: Didn’t attack much, and if he did attack, it wasn’t anything spectacular. He is Arbeloa, we put him there because we know Marcelo and Drenthe can’t defend if their lives depended on it. I’m just happy to see him at left back.
Lass – C+: I didn’t fancy him much this game. I think that is mostly because he likes to be in front of Alonso and he shouldn’t be. He ran all over the pitch as usual, and I guess that is good.
Xabi Alonso – A: Now here is a player that stepped up his game today. He was the reason we played so well in the first half. He was starting the play, and when he didn’t start the play, we had no play going on. Amazing shot saved by the keeper. His passing is something every team wants!
Kaka – A: Assisted Higuain’s goal and almost added another assist to VDV. He ran at players and although stuck in narrow spaces, he managed to squeeze out. Always looked for the pass and to link up with players. He got himself into good situations and Alonso was always linking up with him. Faded in the second half and that is due to fatigue or just the state of the team as a whole.
Raul – C+: I’m not the biggest of this Raul. He just doesn’t have the pace it takes to make good flowing football. Nonetheless, his first half was good as he was running all over the place and his passing was good. Didn’t get into good scoring situations and sometimes tried tricks that we all know he can not pull off. Second half was bad for him though, he just never touched the ball then. Substituted for the player everyone wanted to see, Ronaldo.
Marcelo – C+: Always running. He didn’t get as many chances as usual, but a good display nonetheless. He was a good replacement for Ronaldo on the left wing. He was slotted back into the left back position in the middle of the second half. No attack so there is no way he could have screwed up there. I do hope i never have to see him in the position though. He is a winger people, its settled.
Higuain – A+: He is our starter striker. All hail Pipita! Took his only chance. Wonderful finish from a player who is maturing with every game. He was dangerous whenever he held the ball and he attacked the right side of the field very well. He tried sending many balls into the penalty area but Raul was never there to collect. Man of the match in my opinion.
Substitutes:
Van der Vaart – B-: Could have scored and should have scored. Will be frustrated not to have put that in and showed Pelligrini and his critics that he is worthy of being in the team. He didn’t do a bad job though. Finally given the time to make something of his appearance and he took the chance well. Ran all over the pitch and his passes were very well placed.
Ronaldo – B: everyone wanted to see thong boy today and they did. He looked out of shape. He tried tricks when no one was around him. Credit to him he is back from an injury and he was able to run into spaces and get a one on one with the keeper. Unfortunately he missed that chance.
Granero – N/A: Came on for Kaka in probably the last 3 minutes of the game. Can you really say anything about a player in such a short period of time? He gave CR9 a wonderful pass that the latter failed to convert.

That is all I had to say about the game. You guys are used to Corey’s previews, so this is going to look like shit. It’s my first try, and English is my second language. Anyways, all eyes are on this Sundays game and I hope for a Real Madrid side that is comparable to the first half against Zurich. I must say this too, Zurich are a really bad team and I don’t know how they beat Milan. We are top of the group nonetheless, and this will help us avoid the pesky English teams if the standings stay the same.

Hala Madrid!

Full match highlights:

Watch More Football Highlights at MySoccerPlace.net

Sorry for the crappy review, but after 7 hrs on the road, i really didn’t feel like writing. Hope it works though. Happy thanks giving Corey!

Real Madrid vs. FC Zurich
Wednesday 25th 2:45pm eastern (20:45)
Santiago Bernabeu
Champions League Matchday 5

Real Madrid welcomes FC Zurich to the Santiago Bernabeu with a firm eye on qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League if they can get a win over Zurich tonight, and Milan beats Marseille at home. Real welcomes back Cristiano Ronaldo to the match day squad, as well as Sergio Ramos who was suspended this past weekend. Here is the match squad for Real Madrid:

SQUAD LIST
Goalkeepers: Casillas, Dudek
Defenders: Arbeloa, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Drenthe, Albiol, Garay
Midfielders: Diarra, Kaka, Cristiano, Lass, Xabi Alonso, Granero, Van der Vaart.
Forwards: Raul, Benzema, Higuain

Gago was left out of the squad, as was Guti and Ruud who are both injured.

Check back around 2pm eastern time on Wednesday for the liveblog. Remember to click on the liveblog Flashplayer and then say hello once you enter so I can add you to the main chat.

Yes, we have had our best start since 1991-1992, yet it seems to have fallen on depth ears to many Real Madrid fans. Should we not be excited and optimistic that this team is making significant progress after the disasters of the club this time last year? Not if you read Marca, AS and the rest of the Spanish dailies on a regular basis (umm daily I guess). You would think we were in Atletico’s position, such has been the level of scrutiny of everything Manuel Pellegrini and his team do. Besides outrageously unrealistic expectations placed on the team after bringing in so many high priced players this summer, Real sit top of the league, within qualification of the next round of the Champions League.

A debacle at Alcorcon may have seemed like Armageddon to Marca, and certainly loosing to Sevilla away and Milan at home was grounds for a little bit of speculation, but the constant headlines of Pellegrini being fired etc etc has certainly done no harm to the spirit of the squad and the resolve of the coach. But as the podcast group speculated two weeks ago in our recording, there are clear signs that Marca explicitly has a campaing to get Pellegrini fired and cause havoc in the Real Madrid camp whenever it can. The outrageous headlines and stories the accompany lull periods like international breaks certainly highlight the point.

On the other hand, AS did some thinking for once and decided to lay out just what Pellegrini and this squad has accomplished so far this season. While I have been critical of some of the things Pellegrini has done this year, Id like to say I have been fairly positive, if not realistic when looking at the way the team has played and the results. What I did not ever consider is just how good the team has done historically. An excerpt from AS:

Manuel Pellegrini, technician of Real Madrid, questioned by the lack of style in the game and the fiasco copear before the Alcorcón, find in the numbers its better defense and after reaching the leadership in day 11, it presents/displays the best numbers in League of last the 17 years of the white club. The pírrico triumph of Real Madrid in the stage Santiago Bernabéu before the Racing of Santander (1-0), and the tie of Barcelona in San Mamés before the Athletic Club of Bilbao (1-1), turns to the madridista set in leader after the eleventh day, to one week to visit the Camp Nou in the first chapter of the classic one.

Real Madrid reaches 28 points of 33 possible ones, is the second goleador equipment of the category with 27 so many, two less than Barcelona, and the one that except so many fits, 8 (tied with Barcelona and Seville). The ligueros numbers of the white set in the last represent their better starting of competition 17 years. From season 1991-92, when it signed ten victories and a tie in the eleven first ligueros parties, it did not secure a so high average. This campaign, in three months of competition, the madridista set has only left points in its visits to Seville, where it lost 2-1, and to the Molinón, stage in which tied without goals before the Sporting de Gij’on. Since local it has gained everything what it has played in League in the stage Santiago Bernabéu.

Six parties and plenary session of victories with 18 so many to favor and four against. Iker Squares has left its door to zero in four of those six parties, and in it has done it to the total in seven of the eleven disputed days. In the last League conquered by Real Madrid, with Bernd Schuster like technician in season 2007-08, at this point of season they added 25 points, three less than at present, and the numbers of goals to favor and against also were worse (25 marked by 27 present ones, and 9 fitted by 8). With respect to the last League of Fabio Capello, campaign 2006-07, this Real Madrid has an improvement after eleven days of five points, has marked six so many and equals more in fitted goals. They are the numbers to which always Pellegrini in press conference is taken hold to defend its work over the game.

Id like to know what everyone thinks of the team’s performances this season so far, but also how people truly feel about the kind of ‘yellow journalism’ that is so prevalent at Marca and to an extent AS. I for one had a bit of a panic when we went down to Alcorcon, but with careful consideration you have to realize that a squad of reserves and bench players had one of the nights that makes football such an unpredictable sport. With the exit from the Kings Cup though, we will be completely focused on the two other titles still in play. Its still no excuse for the exit, but we must be focused on the future and consider the Kings Cup as a priority next season now.

This Real Madrid team is very good, and despite the existence of some dead wood, it will continue to improve the more it plays together and the tougher the challenge. Faith in Pellegrini and our players, despite the criticisms we have inbetween games, is the best way for fans to look at the squad. But I would like to know what you think about both the team’s performance so far, and the negative reporting that many of the Spanish dailies seem to have towards Real Madrid. Which is in sharp contrast to the ass-kissing that Marca had done in the summer when Perez began his spending spree.

Also, on Wednesday at 2:00 pm eastern time, stop by for a liveblog of the Zurich game. It will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Espanol for everyone in the US and Canada.

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.

- Ruud wants to return to the starting role with Real Madrid soon, and he also wants to play for Holland in the World Cup this summer. He has not formally discussed his plans with Holland coach Dick Van Marwijk yet, but he is planning on it. Ruu told this and more to Marca recently, when he was quizzed on his plans for next year. He also said that if he was to leave the club in January, probably for a small fee, it would have to be to a team that would allow him to play regularly so that he could go to the World Cup.

On one hand I understand he wants to play for Real and Holland at the WC, but on the other hand he retired from the national team and did not help them progress through the qualifying stages, so is that fair to some of the players that did? And does that mean he should seek a move away from Real, a club where he is idolized by the fans for his goal scoring prowess? We know the club will not resign him so he will leave in the summer regardless, but I would like to have 6 more months to see Ruud in action a few more times.

- Cristiano Ronaldo’s Dutch doctor was flown down to Madrid today to check on the winger’s ankle, and he gave him the all clear to continue training. Ronaldo should thus be fit for selection against Santander this week, with Portugal deciding not to enforce a FIFA rule that would permit his participation so close to an international friendly date that he missed with injury. Whether he starts or not remains to be seen, but the good news is Ronaldo will be available for El Clasico. Keep your fingers crossed.

- In the Madrid derbi, Manuel Pellegrini was hit in the head with a stone on the sidelines of the match. The Competition Committee has decided to fine Atletico a paltry 150 euros for the incident of crowd trouble. The Competition Committee is the same group of nimrods who threw tiny fines at all of the teams with racist chants in their grounds. This is a travesty and just goes to show how ass backwards the LFP really is. We cant even get the time of the match a week in advance still for crying out loud!

- We have been linked with Manuel Vargas of Fiorentina yet again. Im not sure if anyone watches Fiorentina regularly, but Vargas plays as a winger, not a left back. When he did plays as a left back he was nothing short of awful. Why replace two crappy attacking left backs who are better in midfield with the same type of play? GRRRR!!!!!

- Chelsea has had its transfer bid lifted after the Kakuta incident (the youngster has alot of skill but he will never make it at a high level, he is to immature) and now they are looking in to signing a few players in the winter market. Typically many of the team still participating in the Champions League stay out of the winter market as most of the top talent is cup tied. Yet the Daily Star seems to think Chelsea will spend a small fortune on cup tied Sergio Ramos as a partner for John Terry. This is the epitome of bullshit transfer rumors….

- Supposedly Manuel Pellegrini’s job is on the line and El Clasico is his yard stick. Sticking with the Chelsea theme, if Pellegrini was to loose that game(its very difficult for a coach to lose a match, its usually the players that do that), then Phil Scolari would be the obvious replacement according to several news agencies. We discussed this very problem on the podcast this past week, in that it makes no sense to come up with these rumors, yet the media still does constantly. Ugh.

- Another transfer market, another Real Madrid clear out. Except this time it makes some sense.

- This rumor I am actually happy with. Marcel Schafer is a left back for German champions Wolfsburg and has also been involved in the German national team lately. It seems likely he will travel to the World Cup with the team either as Philip Lahm’s backup or as a starter with Lahm switching to the right. Real has been linked with the player in the winter market, in a move that is deemed “probable”. I like Schafer, I think he is an excellent left back and this move makes sense to me. But he is cup tied, and he is unlikely to want to put his place in the World Cup in danger by moving clubs. So no probable winter switch, but Real would do well to tie him up before the World Cup this summer, as he as well as Filipe Kasmirski are my two favorite left backs right now. Roberto Canella and Michel Bastos would be third and fourth right now, although Bastos is being played in midfield at Lyon, so he might fall under the Vargas category…

- And finally, a brief interview with Rafeal Van der Vaart, who several fans have taken to once again after showing more then enough fight on the field despite never really producing much of anything in his substitute appearances. He has rejected a move to Hamburg in the winter in order to stay with Real for the remainder of the year.

“I am going to stay, I will not have a transfer,” he told Bild.

“It was not like it should have been in the past but now I am getting to games and believe I will be having a great time at Real Madrid.

“This is nothing against Hamburg, the Hamburg fans or the club. They are still very much part of my heart.

“This is a decision in favour of Madrid and not against Hamburg.”

I appreciate that Rafeal, but in your case, it might be best to move on because Pellegrini is only using you because Guti is in the dog house right now. We have some talented youngsters in the Castilla team in C team that we may want to take a look at and your in there way. So if you want to go to the World Cup just like Ruud does, you may want to consider a move away in the winter.

Its been awhile since I did one of these, but its always nice to do a quick round up of the sludge that the various press outlets churn out every day about transfers.

Dont forget to add the Real Madrid Offside page on Facebook!

Real Madrid Wants Meee???? I Havent A Clue!

This is a quote from a site I have read for awhile that has been steadily increasing in popularity for nearly five years now. Bet you can’t guess what the site is…

I know I said this before but the reason I hadn’t until now is because the idea is just so pretentious. I’m incredibly grateful for everyone who reads the page, but what kind of asshole sets up a fanpage for himself? When I meet someone new and if they ask, I usually just say I’m an archeologist because if I mention the site it just looks like I’m fishing for compliments. I watch enough History Channel to fake that for a few minutes. I’ll just say something about Carthage and Hannibal and by then they’re already bored enough to regret asking. Unless the person who asked really is an archeologist, in which case I’m fucked and have to kill them.

’nuff said. Im a paleontologist though, its more specific and people are fascinated by dinosaurs!

So a Facebook fan page is now live. Something we discussed doing this summer that never got done is finally up and running. You can now become a fan of the Real Madrid Offside on Facebook, and talk to other fans on the page. We already have one for the main Offside page of course. Ill be adding some unique content on the Facebook page, like gamertags so we all can play each other in FIFA or any other games, along with pena information for those living in certain cities in the US. I want this to be a collaborative effort, i.e. I do not want to have to do all of it. This means I am looking for one or two of you very loyal readers (we have a great community here, trust me) to help me in working on the content on the Facebook page with me, and putting together a better established network of Madridista’s from this page.

If you want to get involved in the Facebook fan page, send me an email at cnfiske@gmail.com or leave a comment below. If you just want to be a fan, check out the rather bare fan page here. Considering we get 100s of comments a week on the meager amount of posting I do, I think we can probably get a similar amount of people on the fan page. Like the quote mentioned, its very pretentious to make a fan page about a blog I write (with help at times admittedly), so Id much rather turn it over to someone else. Please dont make me beg for help. Im gonna close my eyes and count to ten and when I open them I hope I see a few emails or comments saying “Ooooh Ooooooh! Pick me! Pick me!”. That sure would be great.

Here is the weekly podcast that I missed out on two weeks in a row because of schedule conflicts. Itunes link is here. Im back in it this week and I try my hand at hosting, which went well, but I do not have the smooth voice of a radio personality so I may never become a king of podcasts like Kevin is. Let me know what you think of the topics we discussed in the comments. And enjoy the international games this weekend/week!

Here is a list of the podcast contributors individual sites:

Kevin at the Own Goal Network

Mark at Madridista Mac

Adam, voted one of the internets best bloggers, at Real Madrid Talk

If you want to be on the show as a guest (four people makes it a pretty busy and lengthy recording as it is), email me at cnfiske@gmail.com or leave a comment with your email so we can work a schedule. HALA MADRID!

PS HAPPY 100TH CAP IKER!

Will we ever get a chance to see Adam Szalai in action for the first team? I have always wanted to see the big kid play with the first team and maybe make an impact, but it seems that he is not fancied by the Real technical staff and coach Manuel Pellegrini. It has not been revealed that Segunda side Castellon, who currently have Miguel Palanca on loan from the Castilla team for season, are interested in signing Szalai to replace their injured striker Tabares. Castellon, who were tipped for promotion this season, are languishing at the bottom of the Segunda table with only 7 points. Would that even be a good move for a player who has been tipped to be a leading striker in a top league in the near future?

My question of the week/weekend is whether or not you want to see Szalai given a run out in the first team before we sell him to another team. As one of the most promising players in the Castilla team, I think we should see what he is made out of with some first team appearances, but the early exit from the Copa means that just got a little more unlikely. Let me know what you think, and have a vote in the weekly poll.

What Do You Want Real To Do With Adam Szalai?(answers)