Review and Preview

By: Corey | April 20th, 2009

I completely forgot, but there is a La Liga game tomorrow! Getafe takes on Real in a midweek game that is sure to be entertaining. With that in mind, I am going to do a small review of the win against Huelva and a small preview of the Getafe match, in order to cram every thing in to one post. Because it is a midweek game, I wont be able to do a live blog as I will be in class all day, but I will catch the match at a later date from RojaDirecta.
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Real Madrid pulled off a drab 1-0 win over Recreativo Huelva on Saturday evening to continue their impressive run of 15 wins in 16 league matches since loosing EL Classico in December. It was not an entertainin affair by any means, but it was efficient and tidy, a hallmark of the Real Madrid under Juande Ramos. Match highlights can be seen below:

Real Madrid 1-0 Recreativo Huelva

My first impression of this game was ‘We really need someone to start creating chances for our strikers’. Huntelaar barely got any service from the awfully selfish and impotent Robben, while a three man attacking trident really does not work if none of the three can get the ball in an inviting area. A double pivot, three strikers and an erratic winger just really are not going to cut it against the better teams, and it barely got the job done against a relegation candidate. Juande surely will be looking to recover the likes of Ruben de la Red, Mamadou Diarra and Ruud and hope for better from Van der Vaart and Sneijder next year, if either survives the summer. Needless to say, a ‘crack’ is needed. Esteban….. come on home.

What I should point out is that defensively we were very solid, and Marcelo had an incredible game at left back for once. He bombed forward in much the same way that he did as a left midfielder, but he was a little more selective in when he did move up the pitch. He also had the added benefit of a double pivot to somewhat cover him if he was grossly out of position, which did not happen all to often. But I think just the idea of the double pivot as emergency aid helped Marcelo move forward with purpose, and not get caught in two minds. His good showing at left midfield also has helped his confidence levels, so I am all for him getting another run out at left back in favor of Gabi Heinze.

What I am not in favor of is Torres getting shelved just because Sergio Ramos returned. Torres is probably the most reliable defender we have, but his versatility means Juande sees him as little more then a utility man, which is sort of the same fate of Guti right now. Even at left back, Marcelo had a great game, but Torres would have still been a better option, with Marcelo further up field in front of him. Loosing Torres this offseason because he is unable to get an extended run at one position is simply intolerable, so I hope that does not happen.

And finally, it seems that while Juande gets a 2 of 5 for style points, his impressive winning streak must surely guarantee him a contract extension. He is straightening the ship that Schuster managed to almost sink, and if he is listened to in the summer, his recruitment drive will be one of purpose instead of big name signings that add little to the team. I would like to see him coach a team of his own choosing for a full season, because besides a little amateurishness when it comes to the Champions League, he has shown he has what it takes to win La Liga. If it wasn’t for those cules having such an impressive season his points total would have won it surely.
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Now on to Getafe. If you remember, once upon a time, when Bernd Schuster was in charge, Getafe absolutely worked us over at the Alfonso Perez in the fall, which perfectly displayed how god awful the defensive organization was, and how out of position the full backs often were because they were so over relied upon to provide width. Hopefully this time Marcelo and Sergio Ramos will be able to handle Albin and Gavilan running the flanks, because last time that was a huge problem. I do suspect that Getafe will be a little more reserved away from home (well, across town but oh well) with their attacking, but I also would be wise to assume that Juande will be looking to keep the flanks as quiet as possible.

Getafe have a compact team this year, and there wide players are essentially isolated if you can put the squeeze on the three man midfield. Casquero, Polanski and probably Granero, but possibly Contra will be in the midfield. Albin will play in the “hole” behind Manu, but expect Albin to drift to the right often because Granero is not a proper winger, but also because he is most dangerous centrally, and I think Albin is most dangerous out wide. Polanksi will be shielding the defense and Casquero will be the link man.

In the back, stalwart Cata Diaz will be partnered by Mario, and they will have a tough time with Huntelaar and Higuain giving them two very different looks. Diaz is good in the air, but Hunter should be able to get the better of him, and I do fancy Higuain to get one over on Mario. Cortes will be at right back and Lucas Licht will be at left back. Licht is an attacking threat so I hope Juande balances the midfield with Robben and another wide player, possibly using Van der Vaart on the left.

I am not going to be able to watch the match, as Tuesday is my busiest day of the week, with three classes and work in-between all of them. But leave your match comments here for everyone else to discussed.

My score prediction is 3-1.

Hunter, Raul and Sergio Ramos for Real, and Manu for Getafe, but it will be a total fluke.

HALA MADRID!