Words Do Not Describe

By: Corey | April 21st, 2009

I Love Scoring Late Goals

What a match, or should I say what a last 10 minutes of the match. In true madridismo fashion, something we do not see all that often from this squad, the team pulled off a stunning comeback late on to keep the gap between themselves and Barca respectable still. Not since the Super Cup win over Valencia have we seen such a fight for a win, even though the spirited performance at the Nou Camp was commendable even if it was negative. I could harp all day about madridismo and such, and how its a fundamental tenant of being a Real player, but as a fan its something that sucks you in and makes you so devoted. Such comebacks and attitudes towards fighting for the win are redeeming qualities that get fans so excited to see their team play. We have not seen it enough this season, but when we did, like today, it was the kind of euphoria you would expect from a Real Madrid match. To bad the team played very poorly and to be honest did not deserve the win, but let it take nothing away from the spirit shown to pull out the win.

I sat through 60 minutes of a stale Real game watching in amazement as two former Real youth team players basically ran the show for Getafe in the Bernabeu. And I have to say, I dozed off a bit during halftime and into the second half, more because of physical exhaustion and the boringness of class, but also because the game was really lack luster. It was how Getafe wanted to play, as it would get them a result, but they were brilliant in flashes, usually through the feet of Esteban Granero, and the noggin of Roberto Soldado. Soldado himself showed his finishing inability a few times sure, but his goal total this season does show he is a La Liga player, likewise Negredo, which shows the kind of talent that Real throws away on a continuous basis.

Granero was so brilliant when he touched the ball, that you almost wanted to run out on to the field and take Van der Vaart’s jersey off his back and give it to Esteban. ‘El Pirata’ was the winger, playmaker and goal provider for Getafe tonight, and he did it with a certain steel and determination in his play that Van der Vaart or Sneijder, the would be playmakers or ‘cracks’ lack completely. Bringing him back to Madrid seems like a priority now, even though, not to toot my own horn, I have been saying it all along. But while Granero was brilliant, and Soldado gave Cannavaro fits until his eventual substitution, its really not worth it to cry over spilled milk. They both were sold by the idiotic regime we had in charge, and hopefully a new president will atone for such mistakes by repurchasing at least Granero and Negredo. Mata is not a possibility in my eyes.

Getafe were pretty dull to watch though to, as Munoz sent out a work-men like to do hastle and harry Real more then anything. It was strange to see Albin on the bench in place of Soldado, but it showed that industry was preferred, at least from the start, to flair. Manu and Soldado worked hard along with Casquero and Polanski to disrupt any sort of rhythm that the makeshift central midfield of Gago and Guti, and it was a pretty poor showing by both. Gago once again showed he cannot operate as a lone defensive midfielder, while Guti showed that his form is non-existent after an injury layoff and not playing much since then.

I will say, Guti did do more defensive work and put a foot in when he could, but he clearly was not in the mood in the first half, probably because Gago’s scatter brain tracking play left him exposed, and he is hardly the player to be left exposed. Gago brings nothing exceptional to the table in terms of aggregate defensive or offensive play, so if he cant play as a defensive midfielder on his own, and he cant carry the play alongside Lass, his days are numbered with Real, especially with Mamadou Diarra returning next year. If he is not sold by Florentino Perez (that would be an awful piece of business).

Guti’s free kick was nice, and showed he still has the odd inspiration to offer. It was similar to the free kick he scored against Espanyol this season, except a little closer. Actions like that just go to show that he has madridismo running through his veins, its just that it does not come out for every game. Only on a full moon maybe?

Give credit to Polanski for controlling the midfield battle and not letting Guti have to much time to pick a pass. His passing stats suffered from Polanski’s constant harrassment and a lack of available targets, as Guti really tried to force to many passes. Then again, he has a sublime ball to Huntelaar that Stojkovic did well to parry away from Hunter’s feet cleanly. Van der Vaart as I mentioned was a disaster, and he shall be sold this summer with little complaint from Real fans. His skills have shined brightly in Holland and Germany, but I really have not seen all that much in Spain to say he is the crack we need. His meek physical attitude towards the game doesnt help, and so his fate is somewhat sealed. To bad too.

Huntelaar and Raul had little service, with Cata Diaz winning most of the headers and Raul dropping deep but never catching up to the play really. Raul’s continued participation, at least in my opinion, is a function of a lack of suitable replacements for Higuain playing on the right, or a better playmaker. But Raul’s work rate and leadership, two intangibles often underestimated, were pretty evident tonight as he was instructing his team mates not to drop their heads. Hunter has a little goal drought going, and its inevitable that it would happen in the worst part of his season with some big games coming up. He may find the bench next game if Robben is set to go.

Higuain looks like one of the players who truly understands the meaning of madridismo and exhibits it in all of his games. His commitment, work rate and skill level along with a better finishing rate will definitely make him a fan favorite for years to come. I applaud him for his goals tonight, and also for embodying the madridismo spirit. HALA HIGUAIN!

Robben got injured, and I do not know what the extent of the injury is, but his frail nature has yet again reared its ugly head. When he was on the field he was frustrating at best, often whining about being touched as he ran out to get a ball, but the ref never once listened to his protests. Drenthe actually brought some needed pace to the game in the same way Albin did, and I was pleased with him this evening. After watching the replay of the match, I found it interesting that he was given the freedom to roam either flank, much like he did under Schuster earlier this year when he had his brightest spell. His career may be away from Real still, but only on loan.

Canna had a rough night, and his declining speed has shown him to be found out by even Manu and Soldado. If he is to move back to Juventus, then he would be returning to a much slower league which would benefit him, but his leadership and tutoring will be missed. But then again, he would not accept a spot on the bench next season if his contract was renewed, so a split seems logical, and will be amicable I am sure. He was not at fault for the first goal, but he just could not cope with Soldado, which is interesting seeing as how this must have been apparent in training last year but Schuster never used Soldado.

Pepe was at fault for the first goal, mistiming his jump in comical fashion, and then twice let Albin sneak behind him, but was only punished with one goal. I suppose the goal was partially Javi Garcia’s fault as well, but I do not have any complaints about his performance. I think he did really well given he had not played at center back since the beginning of the season. It seems odd for him to play back there given the type of player he was in the youth divisions, but his size lends itself well to a center back, and his less then stellar ball control and clumsiness in the tackle are not as obvious at center back then defensive midfield.

Marcelo attacked well, but he left holes again, which was part of the reason that Cannavaro had trouble with Soldado. Granero’s skill took Marcelo for a fool all to often, but I think Heinze would have done worse given his bone head decision making. Marcelo really just needs to look around the field more and better anticipate the flow of the game rater then rely on his pace and skill to get him out of a jam. Sergio Ramos did pretty well against Gavilan, who is an under rated player in my book. Ramos did not have much to contribute attacking wise although a nice header was cleared off the line by Cortes in the second half. I think that either Ramos or Metzelder will be our center back for the upcoming games, so I dont think we should get use to seeing him at right back just yet. But a chance for Torres is always a good thing.

And of course Casillas saved the game for us with the penalty save. It seems almost common place for Casillas to pull of such great feats, but it was a good save and he had a few other interventions during the game that make him one of our most valuable players. But today, besides Higuain, he was our MVP as usual.

I did not forget about Pepe though. I condemn his actions, and I see it fitting to suspend him for the remainder of the season. And he needs to be fined by the club. Not only is such actions not tolerable as a Real Madrid player, but as a professional footballer in general. He is a hot head sure, but you dont kick players, punch players, or commit such stupid fouls anywhere on the pitch. It was a balatan dive by Casquero sure, but giving him a whack in the ass with your boot was not going to shift the decision in your favor. Going back and stomping on him, and then punching another Getafe player which enrages your co-captain enough to have him push you off the field is just disgraceful. He should sit out a while and think about what he did, but dont condemn him as a crook or a goon, it was a rush of blood to the head, not a Marco Materazzi-style pattern of behavior.

A great win, but we will look for much better from Real against Sevilla this weekend. Enjoy the last minute heroics for now, but we still have a lot of tough games in head of us. HALA MADRID!

All of the goals can be seen here if the embedded video gets pulled.

Higuain interview here.

Juande interview here.

Munoz interview here.

EDIT: Robben has strained his left triceps surae, which means he strained his calf. Your calf muscle is split in two, and he strained one of the two muscle lengths, meaning ice and rest for a week or so. My room mate is a Physical Therapy grad student so he told me that. No Robben this weekend though.

Category: Team News

Tags: Team News

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Words Do Not Describe

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