Real Madrid 1-1 Alicante

By: Corey | December 20th, 2007

I feel incredibly guilty for 1. Not watching the game yesterday, 2. Not being able to find highlights and 3. Still feel bad for not posting the past week. So the flurry of new posts is a combination of guilt and boredom at work. As I didnt see the game, I will leave you with a official recap from realmadrid.com:

MATCH REPORT
1 - Alicante C.F: Ricardo, David Malo, Catala, Tito, Álvaro (Luis Gil, 74’), Cañadas, Alan, Joan Tomas (Capi, 70’), German, Azkoitia & Borja (Héctor Bosque, 79’).
1 - Real Madrid: Dudek, Salgado, Metzelder, Heinze, Torres, Robben, Gago, Guti, Drenthe (Balboa, 67’), Higuaín (Soldado, 77’) & Saviola.
GOALS:
1-0, 60′: Borja, from a penalty.
1-1, 90′. Balboa.
REFEREE: Rafael Ramírez Domínguez. Booked Guti (53’), Gago (78’), Álvaro (38’) and Capi (80’).
HIGHLIGHTS: First leg of the Last 32 round in the King’s Cup. Venue: José Rico Pérez Stadium. Attendance: 20,000

I was mislead, it was only a 20,000 seater stadium. Oh well, so we drew away from home, and it sounds to me like we were lucky to draw. Read here:

First Half

Real Madrid had a very different line-up tonight. Dudek defended the goal, Salgado and Torres were full backs, Heinze and Metzelder played as centre backs, Guti and Gago formed the midfield, Robben and Drenthe were wingers, and Saviola and Higuaín played as strikers.

Real Madrid were slightly surprised with the locals’ strong start. Alicante had the initiative, putting Dudek to the test several times -the keeper proved the Polish national team have a strong asset in him between the posts-. The match grew intense as minutes passed and Real Madrid started to stand their ground firmly, especially through Guti. The latter’s passes were brilliant despite the forwards not scoring from them and he showed he is one of the players in better shape on the squad.

Both sides had one chance after another, making both keepers the stars of the clash, especially Dudek who did a spectacular save, jumping from one post to the other to stop Alicante from netting the opener.

Second Half
The Madridistas took the reins of the game in the last 45 minutes, with Guti playing the role of captain. Saviola had the best chance from a pass by the midfielder, but the ball grazed past the left post.

Alicante finally found their reward from their countless counterattacks when Drenthe tackled Borja inside the box; a penalty was awarded and converted by Borja himself.

Comeback
Alicante decided to break Real Madrid’s plays in midfield in order to keep their advantage; Guti and Gago were marked too well by the locals and couldn’t really create any danger. Saviola had another chance, but keeper Ricardo saved the ball. Even Heinze tried with a powerful shot, but it flew over the crossbar.

The Whites kept trying, showing they want to win this title too. Torres nearly netted a header from a free-kick by Guti, but it was Balboa who scored the equaliser in the last minute from a corner-kick served by Gago.

The winner of the round will be decided on 2 January at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

Fair enough, Drenthe gave away a clear penalty, and Alicante had a few good chances that *hold your breath, drum roll please* Dudek, yes Jerzy Dudek, did well to stop. Javier Balboa, my main man, scored again like I had predicted, although my predicted score was not correct. Well I did say two goals, just gave us one instead of Alicante. Saviola did not score again, and it makes me furious because Soldado came in fairly late and I doubt had a chance to score all game. I cant comment though because I havent seen any highlights, when I find some I will put them right meh:

Alright, here is what match hero Balboa had to say after the match:

“My teammates told me I scored a good goal and I am very happy with it because it is worth twice its value, which will help us in the home game.”

“It was a hard match for me because I hadn’t played since the fixture against Olympiacos. I found it hard to get into the game. I’ve tried to make good use of the chance the coach has given me.”

“I am delighted with my goal because it will help the team earn a good result in the second leg.”

“I haven’t talked to Drenthe about the penalty he provoked, but I think it was an obvious foul. I also think we should have been awarded a few penalties.”

“This competition is complicated because the lack of playing time most of us who palyed tonight have had was obvious. Our opponents are always motivated and try to do their best on the pitch. Playing the second leg at home will be good for us.”

“I would give anything to play on Sunday against Barcelona. It would be grand. Games as important as that help you to mature as a player and to improve on your tactical game.”

I am really glad Balboa scored the equalizer, it seems whenever he is on the field he either scores or plays really well. I saw one bad performance from him this year, and he was only brought on in the 88th minute or so. He should definately make the bench against Barca. YOU HEAR ME SCHUSTER! I really think this is the kind of player we need to always have in the squad. He is incredibly dedicated to the club, and he works hard every day. He has skill, pace and decent enough finishing. Play him more often and he will gain the experience needed to succeed week in week out with Real. There, my ass kissing is finished. XOXOX Balboa

Schuster’s post match comments were, well, typical:

Did Alicante surprise you?
No. I think it is normal for a team like them to be extra motivated when they play against a side like Real Madrid.
What did you rhink of your men’s performance?
I think they did a very good job, but it is impossible to play against twelve men; the referee’s performance conditioned the match. I am certain we wouldn’t have conceded a goal without the penalty.

Do you think you haven’t been able to defeat a team from the Second Division B because of the referee?
I also think their keeper had a great match.

Did Alicante surprise you?
No. I think it’s normal for a team like them to be extra motivated when they play against a side like Real Madrid.

What did you think of your men’s performance?
I think they did a very good job, but it is impossible to play against twelve men; the referee’s performance conditioned the match. I am certain we wouldn’t have conceded a goal without the penalty.

Do you think you haven’t been able to defeat a team from the Second Division B because of the referee?
I also think their keeper had a great match.

Are we to suppose that the men who played 90 minutes tonight won’t play against Barcelona?
One thing is certain: some men that played today may perform on Sunday, while some of the men who stayed in Madrid may not be starters against Barcelona.

These games are a good chance to see men who don’t get much playing time…
I think these encounters are important. All the men who played tonight did so for a reason: some because they have recently recovered from an injury and others because they don’t play much. Everything worked out fine and there were no injuries sustained. The result is favourable to us because the second leg will take place at our home.

Do you think there are many differences between the usual starters and the benched players?
We couldn’t expect to see an amazing match tonight. It would have been very different if we had included some of the men who stayed in Madrid in the line-up, but it wouldn’t have been fair on them because they played three tough matches before tonight’s and the derby will be held on Sunday.

What did you think of Dudek?
He saved everything he had to save.

Schuster is so cut and dry, but I like it, no silly media friendly bullshit that most coaches are use to spewing out when they are in front of a mic and camera. Schuster reminds me a bit of Bill Belichik (butchered his last name, thats what you get for SpyGate), more candid, but he devulges very little and sorta has the same attitude every press conference. He speaks more though, Bill always says, we did well today, we will look at the film of the game and make corrections, then look at film for the next game and make adjustments. Blah.

Im not surprised by this result. In the modern game, the gap between the big clubs and the minnows is shortened when the big clubs play their second string, who usually are rehabers or players who rarely get game time. And since upsets are more common place these days, no team goes into a match against Real Madrid thinking they will get hammered anymore. The little guys are incredibly motivated because its their biggest match of the season, while Real just wants to get through it without injuries before a huge match like El Clasico. So with the return leg in Madrid, this is a good result.

And now, what you were all waiting for, the chess match between Julio Baptista and Lazaros Papadopulous (Real Madrid baller)! Read the interviews two parts here http://www.realmadrid.com/articulo/rma45369.htm and here http://www.realmadrid.com/articulo/rma45381.htm

My favorite quote: Chess players are very intelligent…

Baptista: I hope so! I think chess helps you in many ways, such as being more patient. I like to think things through before I make a decision.

Papadopoulos: They are because they use their mind instead of their body.

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