Real Wins El Derbi Madrileno

By: Corey | January 22nd, 2008

And Atletico fans suck their thumbs for yet another year. Alright, I got a solid recap of the match and liked what I saw. It was a big win, as it was our most difficult match in the league for the next month or so, and we have no won on the road at all the big time teams. Well, except Sevilla, but hey, close enough. Barca were able to get a 1-0 win, so nothing changes at the top of the table, although Atletico fall behind Villareal into 4th position.

So Raul and Ruud scored the two goals, and I will let you take a look at them before I go any further:

Atletico - Real
Uploaded by tolis1186

So the first goal, Raul’s 11th I believe against Atletico, was all down to that crappy Spanish defender who plays for Atletico named Pablo, who I had a singled out as being weak and have lamented over at Hay Liga as a terrible choice for Spain. Vindication is sweet. Robinho made a nice little move before dishing to Raul who cooly slotted away. Simple.

I can not comment on the match, I didnt see the entire thing, but from what I have read, it was a solid peformance, not dominant, but we got another result. Its not spectacular football, but it also isnt horrible bore stuff (think Mallorca 1st leg Copa dely Rey) but its better. See the positives in their performance.

Heres some of the post match reaction, I will try and get a grapevine post up tomorrow, I have a pretty hectic schedule right now. 2 classes and some more work to go, then nip/tuck tonight with my friends, and tomorrow two more classes, a meeting for work, a meeting in a freshmen dorm the list goes on and on. Adios.

Raúl and Iker Casillas are two of the best players in the Spanish League. The captain has so far netted 9 goals this season and the keeper hasn’t conceded a strike in six consecutive fixtures. Both men were proud with the victory.

Raúl
“The team has proven its worth in an important day and won. We were just victors. Half of my goal was Robinho’s because he fought for the ball and gave me the assist. That strike allowed us to be calmer. We knew Atletico were going to have a strong start, but that goal allowed us to dominate the encounter from then on. They had chances to draw the match, but just when they were about to score, Ruud netted our second strike. They had no chances in the second half and we could’ve scored more goals.”
“These games are beautiful, special and important. Every player wants to do well. I’ve played in many derbies; I haven’t scored in some and in others I’ve played worse. Tonight’s victory is important for the entire team. It makes us confident. We want to continue being strong at home, especially against strong rivals.”

“We are happy with Iker because he hasn’t conceded a goal in six matches. There is still a long way to go in the competition. We’ve won two consecutive away games. Our style makes it hard for our opponents to score and it makes us strong in attack. We’ve earned important victories at important stadiums such as this save for the matches against Sevilla and Espanyol. We’ve also won complicated fixtures at home. We must keep working.”

Iker Casillas
“Atletico Madrid are a great side. They faced the leaders tonight and we happened to be more effective. We stood our ground at a complicated stadium. I don’t like people talking about me so much; everyone must notice that we are all in great shape. I may make saves here and there, but the defence also does a great job. People talk too much about things that aren’t that important. We scored our first goal before a minute had gone by. We couldn’t ask for more, but we scored our second when we were at our worst. That made Atletico crumble. The entire second part of the season still lies ahead, so we must carry on working hard.”

“I like the fact that we are a proper team”

Bernadine
Bernd Schuster talked to the media after his team defeated Atletico Madrid 2-0 at the Vicente Calderón Stadium. The coach praised his side’s work and his players’ quality, and made special mention of the second half.

What was the key to the game?
Scoring so soon was. There was still a lot of game left after that, but it helped us to keep them uneasy in defence, which made it easier for us to steal the ball. We were less merciful than on Wednesday. We scored two goals from our first chances. The team has celebrated this victory as if it had been the most important one so far.
We’ve just celebrated the victory, that’s all.

Did luck play a hand in the game?
We didn’t win because of luck tonight. They didn’t have a single chance in the second half and we came close to scoring our third goal through Robinho. Atletico played very well for a while after Pepe left the pitch.

Was it easier than you had expected?
No. These games are never easy.

Are Atletico out of the fight for the League title?
They are far behind, but the second part of the championship has just started and many things can happen. The only difference for us is that one of our rivals is further away now, that’s all.

What did you think of Atletico?
I think they played as they always do, but they were less anxious.

What makes Real Madrid different?
What I like about these games is that we play like a proper team. We know we have to work hard despite our quality because we won’t achieve anything if we don’t. We work as hard as anyone else, but our quality is greater.

Your best matches are always against great teams.
That’s when you play better, but every rival must be defeated. Every team that has won the League, even us back when we established a goal-scoring record, played some mediocre games which they won. Winning is what counts in the end.

What made the difference tonight?We were better in midfield and attack throughout the match. It was obvious we have less trouble leading the game, keeping possesion and creating danger. We defended excellently in the second half. Every man was in his position and it was very hard for our rival to find room in which to attack.

Ruud van Nistelrooy
“The game was very interesting and we played it well. It is hard to play well here, and it is even harder to win, but we made it. We still have 18 matches left; that’s a long time, so we can’t afford to think we’ve won something yet. We must continue working the same way and improve with every game. Atletico Madrid are a good team and they played well tonight. They had three or four dangerous chances, but we are solid in defence. We played like a proper team.”

Fernando Gago
“This victory is important because it reasserts our leadership. Atletico attacked a lot, but we defended solidly. That was key to our victory. The important thing in games like this is to win regardless of how well you play. We must take things slowly and play better in each game. We must maintain our seven-point lead.”

I guess the new catch phrase for this team is “We are a proper team”. And I am a proper gentlemen. Match pictures: