Zaragoza v Real Madrid Recap

By El Maestro

After losing the Spanish Supercup to Barcelona and a delay to the start of La Liga due to a players strike, Madrid needed to start the new league season on a high note to show the entire world this year will be the beginning of a new era. Sure enough they responded to all that hype by thrashing Real Zaragoza 0-6 in the Romareda Stadium. A hat trick by CR7, plus goals from Marcelo, Xabi, and Kaka sealed the victory and if not for Zaragoza goalkeeper Roberto, the score line would have been 0-12. Overall this was a brilliant team performance with CR7, Ozil, and Benzema leading the way. Though they made Zaragoza look like an amateur team, there are still some things Madrid needs to improve on. Not taking any credit away from Roberto (who should have a statue named in his honor for saving Zaragoza of an historic GOLEADA), but there were quite a few clear goal opportunities missed that in important game could prove costly. Also Madrid has to avoid those moments in the game when they begin feel comfortable and begin to relax because some teams aren’t as forgiving as Zaragoza (Barcelona). But nothing slips Mourinho’s eye and there is no doubt he will tell his team to score when presented and play until the ref blows the final whistle. Besides these minor problems, it was a fabulous game and 100% effort by the entire team.

 Starting 11

Casillas: very little to do.

Ramos: to quote Marca; “Lateral? (Right back?) Never, Never, Never.

Pepe & Carvalho: together, no one gets through.

Marcelo: was a force to be reckoned with both on defense as well as in attack. Dominated, alongside CR7, the left side and made sure no one got through in the back.

Coentrao: I don’t understand his critics; he swallowed up Zaragoza’s midfield and distributed the ball well.

Xabi: the engine of the midfield, it’s clear everything works better when he plays.

Di Maria: good, but could improve on certain aspects.

CR7: his talent speaks for himself.

Ozil: future Golden Ball Winner.

Benzema: didn’t score but was very much involved.

Substitutes

Callejon: made a big splash on the right side.

Higuain: has to be more of a team player.

Kaka: had a great performance and scored a top class goal, now it’s time to show that against the big teams.

Now just because Madrid won doesn’t mean we should start lighting fireworks. It was a great win and a great team performance, but we shouldn’t forget that we destroyed a Zaragoza side that will probably spent most of the season fighting to stay in the top flight. But still, Madrid did impress and they have sent that message that will make teams fear them. Unfortunately, La Liga is now put on hold again for another week, but this time for international duties. It’s a shame because it was the 1^st game and we all want to see this Madrid team continue to grow, but Mou will make sure his players are fully ready when La Liga kicks back up again. Madrid’s next game will be their home debut in the Santiago Bernabeu against Getafe, which realistically should be an easy win if they approach it the same way as against Zaragoza. But the most significant thing is Madrid won the opening game of the new league season, which is always important, even better by a blow out, and the best part of all we end the first week in 1^st place.

!HALA MADRID!

The Beginning of the New Madridista Golden Age

By El Maestro

When Barcelona won of the Champions League last May, two things happened.  One – they were without a doubt the best team in the world and  Two – it was the beginning of the end of Barcelona’s reign of terror in Europe.   I say this not because they are losing a spark, but because there is a team that is being built and is ready to finish their run of dominance – Real Madrid.

Not withstanding the result of the recently completed Supercopa (won largely on Messi’s individual brilliance not on the team play of Farsa), Real Madrid is a team on the rise.  They are already basically level with Barcelona, and as the season progresses and this team further begins to take shape, we here at the Social Club are very confident that Real Madrid will overtake Farsa as the best team in the world, and that this team could mark the beginning of a new epoca dorada en el Madridismo.

Last season Madrid finished in second place in La Liga with 92 points & 102 goals, scoring more total goals and finishing 4 points off the Liga winner Barcelona; while reaching the semifinal of the Champions League for the first time since 2003, and they won la Copa del Rey their first since 1993.   All this was achieved with Jose Mourinho at the helm, a coach who was able to turn Madrid back into that fearful team that dominated throughout Europe in its first Golden Age of DiStefano and Puskas, and even the great run of 3 Champions from 1997 to 2002, despite the multiple problems they had come across in recent years.

Mourinho is entering his second season and we all know the success his teams have when that happens (8 titles in total). It also that he has one of the youngest teams in Europe (average age 24,6 years), but that this group was able to go through a lot of positives and negatives last season. To winning the first big game of the year against Milan & breaking the curse of the round of 16, to losing 5-0 to Barcelona & being robbed a place in the final of the Champions League.  Also knowing that the Copa victory came against Barcelona, this team is fully ready to take back it’s rightful place in Spain as well as in Europe.

As in every offseason, there are always new signings and Mourinho has made sure to bring in the necessary players. Before seasons end, Madrid had already signed Nuri Sahin to help Xabi Alonso in midfield & Hamit Altintop, a versatile player who can be used as a defensive midfielder, right winger, & at right back.  After that Madrid used a buy back option to bring back Jose Callejon who will fight for his position with Di Maria, and Varane, a young center defender who is already being compared to historic players like Laurent Blanc and “el oso” Fernando Hierro.  Last came Fabio Coentrao, another versatile player whose main position is left back but can also play center midfield, left & right wing, and sometimes at right back. Although there is still a talk of more signings, this team is set for the upcoming season.   Though one aspect Madrid has, which could be the key to their success, is they have a chip on their shoulders the size of Guardiola’s Rogaine bill. Even though they got a decent result from the last six clasicos played, 1-3-2 (both losses by one goal)  they still have not forgotten all the comments and problems that came with those games.

-The constant provocations by Barcelona’s players both in the media and on the field as some form of warped psychological campaign against Real Madrid’s players…

-President, Sandro Rosell, saying Barcelona would win the Copa 5-0.

-Victor Valdez asking if the last time Madrid beat Barcelona were the TV’s in color or in black & white?

-Barcelona’s behavior in the first leg of the Champions League.

-Pepe being unfairly red carded & Arbeloa being provoked.

-The disallowed goal in the Camp Nou

-The influence Barcelona had on the referee in the first leg of Champions.

Although Barcelona was crowned champions of Europe, there is no doubt the fear they have towards Madrid. If in an important game, a team cannot really on its own style of play and has to make a show in order to win means that they know they have no shot and must find other ways (illegal) to lead their team to victory. Instead of looking for new ways (legal to beat Madrid, Pep Guardiola will be thinking of new methods to cheat his way to glory so he can leave his coaching position on top because even he knows he can’t be relying on that forever.

Of course history will begin to be written after the Spanish Super Cup is played.  Madrid, despite losing the Cup, have sent a strong message throughout Spain and Europe that they mean business, and have closed the gap on this historic Barcelona squad.  The season promises to be another war for all the titles in play.

!A por el Triplete!  !Liga! !Copa!  !Champions!  !HALA MADRID!

Did Barcelona Deserve to Win the Champions League? A Brief Look Back…

By El Maestro and von Doom

On May 28^th FC Barcelona won the Champions League for the fourth time in their history beating Manchester United 3-1 in Wembley Stadium. Even though I am Madridista, I must admit that final was won fair & square by los Cules. Manchester controlled the game for the first 10 minutes, then it was Barcelona who took over with their habitual tiki-taka style of play and made Manchester look like a bunch of chickens running around with their heads cut off.   In a sense, it was almost an exact repeat of the 2008-2009 final, also played by these two teams. The first 10 minutes it was all Manchester, the next 80 it was Barcelona who ended up winning by 2 goals. But my question is did Barcelona really deserve to win the Champions League? Because a Champions League is not just won in the final game; there is a road all teams must take in order to be crowned kings of Europe. My response would be no because of 3 people: Massimo Busacca, Wolfgang Stark, & Frank De Bleeckere.

Massimo Busacca: Called many unnecessary fouls against Arsenal. Did not red or yellow card Adriano, Valdez, or Abidal for grabbing Nasri & Van Persie by the throat. But did not hesitate in sending off Van Persie after kicking the ball at goal 1 second after he blew for an offside when the score was 1-1 with the Gunners going through to the quarter finals.

Bussaca wearing his referee's jersey...

Wolfgang Stark: Lost control of the game the second it started. Did not do anything to stop Busquets, Pedro, & Alves from diving on the on the ground. Allowed Barcelona players to get in his face en masse for every foul he called and gave in to their demands when he red carded Pepe in a 50-50 play which on replay showed what a great actor Dani Alves really is.   But all this was seen coming when he was called in place of the Portuguese referee who was originally named for that game but was changed thanks to Pep Guardiola’s comments saying Mourinho would be happy with a Portuguese referee in charge. Also taking into consideration that players from the Bundaliga named Stark the worst referee in Germany and in the 2010 World Cup said he would love for Messi to give him his Jersey.

Wha? Roja directa? Que conyo? You're joking !!

Silence !

You know... ese puto aleman es un comemierda... de verdad lo es.....

Frank De Bleeckere: Tried to minimize Madrid’s aggressiveness at defense by giving Carvalho a yellow card for his first foul in the first few minutes of the game. But if Madrid had any hopes of a comeback, that certainly became “Mission Impossible 4” when Di Maria went through Puyol with a sublime move and with the defense in front of him, and with Higuain alone on the right, De Bleeckere invented a foul against Di Maria on Puyol when it was clear he just slipped. Further, and to make matters worse, if Madrid had any slim hope that they still had a chance, the Belgium referee made sure to invent a foul against Cristiano Ronaldo on Mascherano  which took away Higuain’s goal when it was clear the foul was on Pique for taking down Ronaldo who fell next to Mascherano. With that said it was amazing he did not do anything to disallow the goal that tied the game at 1-1 by not calling a foul on Xabi Alonso for stealing the ball or calling a handball on Di Maria.

!Amarilla a la plantilla entera por no dejarse atropellar del UEFarsa!

Although these referees played a big part in these games, the real reason for these problems come from UEFA or how lots of Madridistas like to refer it as “UEFArsa”. We all know what Platini thinks about Spanish teams when he closed Atletico de Madrid’s stadium for one game for the bad behavior of the fans during the match against French side Olympique Marseille. He also did not think twice in fining Xabi, Ramos, Casillas and Dudek, and suspending Mourinho one game for telling Xabi and Ramos to force yellow cards on them to arrive with a clean slate in the next round and using Casillas & Dudek as messengers.  He also did the same thing with Villarreal when Cazorla & Nilmar forced yellow cards on them to be clean of accumulations in the semifinals.  But Platini sure must have a soft spot for Barcelona because he did not even fine them when Iniesta intentionally got himself a yellow card in the 1^st leg of the quarterfinal with Barcelona up 3-0 to be clean of accumulation.  With UEFA’s campaigns against racism, they sure looked liked a bunch of hypocrites when they did not sanction Busquets for his racist baiting of Marcelo by calling him “mono” (monkey). They also did not take any actions for Barcelona’s theatrics in the 1^st leg of the Champions League semis.   How did this come to be?   Perhaps a key to all this institutional power is that Barcelona has six socis in positions in some of the most powerful committees in UEFA (Gaspart and Laporta being just two of them).  A conflict of interest?  And we have not even started with UNICEF’s involvement.

?Porque? ?Porque?

?Porque? !Por que me sale de los cojones.. hijo de puta! !Sancion! !Cinco Partidos! .. vaya por ser bocon. !Soy yo el puto amo de esto!

It is a shame UEFA has become so partial and involved, because they cheapen the image of Barcelona.  Although they have won 3 Champions Leagues in the last 7 years, two of them they have been won with more controversy than style of play.   It is a discredit to an otherwise great group of players (among some of the best to ever play the game) that if someone says the referees did not play a big part in those games then they are either blind or just too stubborn to see the truth.   In the 2008/2009 season Barcelona played the best futbol of anyone but they only got to the final because in the semifinal 2^nd leg game against Chelsea, the referee missed five clear penalties when Chelsea dominated the run of play and all things being equal (i.e. the game being called fairly) Chelsea probably goes through.   I do not know what would have happened if the ref did not send off Van Persie in last season’s round of 16 game, but it is clear Madrid could have made it to the final and not make el pulpo Iker make the wrong decision by picking Madrid to go to the final. The problem was before he made his decision they didn’t put tubes in the tank that said how would the winner win: With Fairness or Cheating? I’m sure he would have picked cheating and then selected Barcelona. We have to be realistic and admit that this Barcelona team is the best team in history, for now, but there is no doubt without the help from UEFA we would be talking about Barcelona’s failure to deliver in big games and Guardiola’s continuation as coach.

Los chinos si saben...

Supercopa de España 2011 (Ida) – Game Recap: Let’s look on the bright side…luck only gets you so far…

by von Doom and el Maestro

First, let us get this out of the way.  We are mad.  Really mad.  What should have been a 5-2 drubbing of Farsa, an emphatic statement of the new Madridista project, this MOU team, instead ended with a dull 2-2 thud, and the collective groan of Madridismo as they said “Great.. here we go again..”

Or is it?   Despite the 2-2 scoreline, it is clear to anyone with a set of functioning eyeballs that Real Madrid wiped the floor with the Farsistas this evening.  However, Madrid was not able to take advantage of the numerous opportunities they were able to create for themselves on the pitch.   So, yes, while we are mad,  we are more mad at the lack of finishing, rather than being mad because they played badly.  Looking forward to Wedenesday’s return leg in the heart of Can Farsa (that’s Camp Nou  to the fake-ass poser culerdo bandwagon fans), other than the psychological intangibles of playing in the Camp Nou, and the weight of recent history (well, we won’t even go into the whole question of dodgy refereeing..yet)  we do not really see what Farsa can throw at el Madrid on Wednesday that would change the flow of play or suggest that what we saw today will not be repeated on Wednesday.  (Well, other than the fluke goals, of course..)

The culerdo hordes will counter that Xavi and Pique did not play in the first half, and that Puyol and Busquets did not play at all.  Fine.  But so what?  Would the inclusion of Xavi changed anything today?  No.   Did his entrance to the game in substitution for Thiago really change anything?  No.   Would Puyol and Busquets have made a difference?  Puyol, not really.  Busquets..hmmm…  In any case, what the culerdos should be worried about is the shocking lack of depth on their side, whereas Madrid’s bench is deep enough that Mou has enough bodies to field two “A” level sides.

Inevitable culerdo gloating aside, the 2-2 result is misleading.  Let’s get one thing ABUNDANTLY clear.   The scoreline had nothing to do with the so-called superiority of Farsa over Real Madrid, because quite simply it was not there.  It was simply a combination of individual brilliance (Villa’s SICK goal) and  luck (Pepe’s unfortunate slip and fall against Messi that left Iker exposed for the  second goal).

To those of us who don’t take hits on the blaugrana bong and actually saw the game, what we did witness was a crushing display of attacking, aggressive football. In other words, what Madrid football should be.   It is quite obvious that Mou studied the game film from the series of Clasicos last spring, learned and adjusted.  It also quite obvious that any gap that existed after the embarrassing 5-0 blaugrana beatdown of last November, is effectively gone.  What we did see is a further glimpse into the longer term “Proyecto Mourinho”, one based on depth, tactical versatility all tempered by a high workrate and a certain aggressive, attacking nous.  While Farsa seems limited and one-dimensional with their possession based 4-3-3, el Madrid can now effectively give an opposing manager fits with the insane amount of tactical options and lineups now available to Mou.

For example, Mou was able to use Pepe as a hybrid central/defensive mid and brought in Coentrao to great effect as a tandem in the midfield with Xabi anchoring at the back that effectively shut down the flow of the ball in the midfield and effectively stifled the short passing game that Farsa depends on to bore their opponents into making a mistake.  Khedira (and later Callejon) did a masterful job of keeping Iniesta in check and other than the unfortunate Pepe slip up, Mou’s lineup effectively kept the Farsa offense in check, going as far as basically landing level in that key Farsa stat, ball possession (52-48% in favor of Farsa).

Mou continued to use Ramos and Marcelo as laterales to bring the attacks up from the back to link up with CR7 and Ozil at 3/4s to take a whopping 20+ shots on goal to Farsa’s 2.   Keep in mind that Mou can also use Coentrao and Altintop as laterales as well.  Considering the multi-faceted skills of the new signings, the tactical possibilities available to Mou are now really mind-boggling.

Despite the adverse score line, I think this is an encouraging result for el Madrid.  They have shown that not only can they go toe-to-toe with Farsa, but effectively shut them down, with (save for Busquets and Puyol) pretty much Farsa’s entire “A” side on the field in the second half.   Additionally, culerdos will not have the excuse of Mourinhista anti-futbol whining this time around.  Mou’s planteamiento was aggressive, attacking, and very much in Farsa’s face.  If this game were to be played 100 times, el Madrid would have won this game on 98 of those occasions.  But futbol is cruel like that sometimes, and the gods of randomness and luck sometimes have their say.

Looking forward to Wednesday, if you love drama, we can think of no better way to exorcise the demons of recent history by going into the mouth of the devil, beating ese Farsa diabolico and snatching the Supercopa from the smug hands of those obnoxious culerdos in their own house. We are pretty sure they will be sore losers (as always) and turn on the sprinklers again…

A brief word on some of the protagonists:

CR7 – Other than his brilliant header in the Copa final last April, Ronaldo continues to come up short in games against el Farsa.  It is not for lack of trying, CR7 is a gamer and the consummate professional, but we feel that perhaps he puts a little bit too much pressure on himself and plays a bit tight.   Loosen up, son, the goals will come.

Ozil and Xabi – the heart and soul of el Madrid.   No other words necessary.   Encouraging to see Ozil’s increase in fitness as compared to last season, as he was looking fresh deep into the game, despite the aggressive run-heavy style Mou imposed on the match.   Xabi’s solidity in the back as the field marshal of the team is what allows Mou the luxury of projecting Pepe forward from his central position to “press” the Farsa midfield to great effect and in the second half allowed Coentrao the freedom to venture in and assist Pepe in his “enforcer” duties.

Benzema –  less touches – more shooting.  Squandered two clear chances due to excessive touches.  However, it is clear to us that Zizou had some kind of sit down with him this summer.  Karim is a different player from last year, when many in Madridismo were ready to write him off as a bust.  BENZE-CRACK is born again (so to speak) and is on a royal tear..let’s hope he’s rewarded with a goal on Wednesday.

Coentrao – a legit multi-position stud, once he came into the game, he (in combination with Pepe) shut down the Farsa midfield.   The Coentrao + Pepe combination is very promising.  We, in the Social Club are getting hard just thinking about unleashing these two in Liga and Champions.

Memo to Florentino:  Your ridiculous decision to not sign Manolito (that’s Adebayor to you bandwagoneers) came back and bit you in the ass.  This game was perfect for a player with Manolito’s attributes.  His inclusion in the game would have added a dimension to the Madrid attack that Farsa had no answer for this evening. How many crosses did CR7 shoot into the box, many of which were clumsily handled?   Jersey sales are one thing.  Winning titulos quite another.  Money is not everything.

And finally – no Clasico is complete without a word on the officiating.

 

Victor Valdes is a massive douchebag.  Not news really, but  an admittedly brilliant effort on his part was undone by his unsportsmanslike conduct versus CR7.  So totally unnecessary.

We are curious Farsistas – what b.s. are you going to invent to excuse that move?

Valdes’ bush-league trip on CR7 in the second half should have resulted in a penalty and an automatic red card.  To the credit of Farsa, Pedro should have also been awarded a penalty for Marcelo’s tackle from behind the area later on in the game.   Perhaps Teixeira did not call Marcelo’s penalty to atone for his egregious earlier non-call on Valdes.  In any case, in a perfect world, it would have been a 3-3 scoreline, but the drama going into the Camp Nou on Wednesday would have been quite different.

Considering this, one can understand the frustration of Mou and Karanka in the post-game presser, as the tossing of Valdes (and subsequent suspension in the return leg) would have been a huge tactical advantage for el Madrid, as the quality drop off from Valdes to Pinto is quite noticeable.  But whatever, UEFArsa is what it is, and I think Mou has made his peace with it, and will adjust accordingly.

A por ellos este miercoles… a por la Supercopa.. ¡Hala Madrid!