Real Madrid 3-1 Almeria

This was an interesting game, mostly because Almeria surprised me in that they really took the game to us. They were the better team for intervals during both halves, especially the first half. The first 37 minutes was pretty much all Almeria from an attacking stand point, as we didnt even register a shot on target in this period, and Almeria had a chance through Uche as well as Manuel Ortiz bursting forward. To be honest, if Negredo was allowed to play against Real, he may have converted one of the chances that fell to Almeria, so the “Morientes” clause protected us the most. Uche was dangerous for Huelva last year, and he was doing a pretty good job keeping Metz and Canna on their toes, while Guti and Sneijder were being shut down whenever they touched the ball.

Casillas was called into action twice and he was shaky at best both times, once flubbing a clearance and then completely missing a slide tackle out of his box. Saviola the scored a scrappy goal that was disallowed for offsides, but I didnt see it, looked legit. Sergio Ramos was off but the Rabbit looked to have been onsides when the ball came into the box. After that Guti Haz (??) and his temper got a yellow for a dumb challenge. Schusters reaction to the challenge said it all.

Shutting Guti off seems to be the best way to shut down the whole team, and Robinho was not providing the creative spark he needed to in Guti’s creative absence. It took a powerful shot from Raul that Cobeno couldnt handle and Saviola duly put away to open the game up. These are the kind of goals he will have to score if he wants to dislodge RVN, but judging by his game display he still has some work to do. The goal gave life to Madrid and Almeria had to spread their lines further in order to get an equaliser. Real went into the break with the lead, undeservingly.

The second half was better, with more of an even flow to the game. Higuain was brought on for Robinho, which was a good move, while Drenthe was brought on for Heinze, which gave the left side some more pop. They proved to be astute sustitutions by Schuster, as they spread the play out more for Real. Almeria had a goal disallowed for some reason, it looked legit to me but then again Saviola had one disallowed in the 27th minute that could have gone our way. Sneijder sent in a dangerous cross that Raul and Sergio Ramos both went up for but both missed. That would have been easy if Sergio Ramos didnt jump and let the ball hit him and go into the goal a la Carlos Bocanegra against Brazil last weekend.

Saviola was at the races soon after, breaking clear with just Crusat on his back. Crusat cruelly brought him down with a slide and he was off, no nonsense from the ref. Sneijder popped up to score from a free kick in the 69th minutes, another beauty. Kid is great, tireless worker, flashes of skill and great set pieces and outside shooting. Loosing Crusat didnt really deflate Almeria that much, they got a goal through Uche, who absolutely turned old man Canna inside out. There was then an appeal for a penal, but it was not given because it was bullshit. Metzelder is a good defender, he didnt leave his leg in a second to long, and as he turned to chase the ball the other guy tripped over Metz’s heel. Not a foul, dont be fooled.

Anyways, Higuain then scored which is good because he has to turn it on this year. I am earmarking him to be one of the most improved of the bunch of young guys, although Balboa not getting to play yet is pissing me off. It was not an easy game by any means, and Almeria played well, but we won, more positive signs. A combination of Capello’s grind out the game tactics and Schuster’s champagne football. It got the result tonight. Here is the video:

Schustie was happy with the match, and full of praise for Almeria. Read his comments here http://www.realmadrid.com/articulo/rma42681.htm. Also, Heinze was injured in the match which is why he was brought off in favor of Drenthe. Not good for Heinze, but great news for Marcelo and Torres.

Also, there isnt a day of rest for the squad as there back to training today in preparation for Werder Bremen on Tuesday. If your at the official website check out Baptista’s presser, and Schuster, give Balboa, Soldado, Torres and Baptista a shot please?

If there is any interest, I am willing to start a CL Fantasy League for all the Real Madrid fans that visit this site as well as the other Spanish blogs. Go to and register and create a team. Just click on either link on the bottom or top of the page and you will get a new window where you will have to create an account then you can setup a team. Our league is called The Offside-Spain and I am Seton FC if anyone is wondering. And yes, only two players per team, so no Real Madrid fantasy team unfortunately. Join in, its a great CL Fantasy pool besides the Offside EPL pool we have goin over at SquadGod.

Category: Game Recap, Team News

Tags: Almeria, Game Recap, Team News

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