To All Leo Messi Butt Kissing Commentators: SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!

By El Maestro

To start off I just want to say even though Madrid lost, this was one of the best Clasicos I have seen in a long time. It wasn’t just the way Madrid played that impressed me, but how they were able to fight all the way to the final whistle. One thing Madrid showed in this Supercopa is Barcelona is no longer a few steps, but that they are now at an even level and leads me to believe Madrid is even closer to returning that famous manita (5-0) Barcelona handed to them last November. & if people don’t believe that ask Zaragoza what they think after taking a massive 0-6 beating in the opening game of the season in their own home. But one thing that really annoys me is not the criticisms going towards Madrid, or the acclaims Barcelona is getting or even the comparisons between Mourinho & Guardiola (No question, Mou is the BEST COACH IN THE WORLD.). What really puts me over the edge are the praises going towards Leo Messi. Yes, Messi is a phenomenal player and there is no doubt he is one of the top 5 best players in the world, but the only reason he is such a great player is because of two of the most underrated players in the world: Xavi & Iniesta. Two players who had to watch from their seats as the Golden Ball Award (which should have been for one of them) was snatched away from them only to be given to the man who they helped turn into the player he is today.

While many people will make the argument, my question is if Messi is truly the best player in the world (because of the way he plays with Barcelona) how come he doesn’t play the same way with Argentina? Because to be the best you have to play like the best with your club team as well as with your country. Surprisingly despite his popularity one place where Messi is not beloved is in Argentina. With that said, experts will start saying Argentina doesn’t have a good midfield to help him or he doesn’t play in his natural position when he is with them. At the same time, those same experts keep comparing Messi to Maradona, which brings to mind my next question. Didn’t Maradona, somewhat, win a world cup on his own? Now I don’t know much about the 1986 Argentinean squad because I wasn’t born at the time, but from what I’ve seen and been told that team was to some extent the same or just a little better than today’s squad and yet Maradona was able to lead them to glory. His talent also showed with his club teams, no more than with Napoli where he won with a team that without him would have finished middle of the table. Maradona made players around him better where ever he played, Messi on the contrary is a great player because he has great players around him. If right now, Malaga’s rich owner were to pay Messi’s buy out clause and sign him, he would be the same as in Argentina (NOTHING!!!!!).

In this sense I believe it’s more worthy to compare Kun Aguero to Maradona for 2 reasons: they actually play the same position & what Aguero has done up to this point is more comparable. Playing without a creative midfield & an out of form Forlan, Aguero was the reason Atletico finished the La Liga season in 7th. He’s also been one of the key players to their success in past years, which concluded with the Europa League title in 2010 (along with a healthier Forlan). Although Aguero has not achieved the same glory as Maradona or Messi, he always does what he can to make sure his team wins and one thing he does that Messi doesn’t is he actually shows up with Argentina when he’s called on!    

With this said if we are going to talk about the best player in the world that is without a doubt Cristiano Ronaldo. I am not saying this to be biased; I am saying this because it’s true. Though Messi can do incredible things, CR7 is more complete than him. Fabulous technical skills, cannon for a leg, takes great free kicks, a dynamic header, and the only person in the world who’s faster than him is Usian Bolt. But one aspect CR7 has that Messi lacks a little is he is a pure winner. Ronaldo will do all he can to make sure his team wins even if that includes being a little selfish. If the team is not playing well, he will put the entire team on his shoulders and try leading them to victory. He always has that attitude even when he plays for Portugal, a team that is the same or just a little worst than Argentina. I won’t say he plays out of this world with his country, but he’s always involved in the game and does much more for Portugal than Messi for Argentina. One of Ronaldo’s biggest problems in years past was the struggle he had against Barcelona, which was where many of his criticisms would come from. But those demons are now gone after his performances in the last Clasicos and scoring against them in 3 different scenarios. In the Santiago Bernabeu, Camp Nou, and Mestalla, which allowed Madrid to win their 1st Copa del Rey, title in 18 years. CR7 is better than Messi.

 Messi is a wonderful player, but people seem to be giving all the credit to the wrong person when in reality it should be going to other people (Xavi & Iniesta). Everytime Messi scores a goal, commentators go all out in kissing his behind and when he gives an assist they make sure all the attention is about him no matter how good the goal was. This was no more proven than in the Spanish Supercup. Watching on Goltv, I couldn’t help notice commentators Phil Schane & Ray Hudson praising Messi in every goal Barcelona scored, even in Villa’s upper 90 golazo when he just gave him a simple pass that any amateur soccer player could do. But one comment that really got me thinking was by Ray Hudson after Messi scored the 3rd goal to give Barcelona the Supercopa: “the God of Gods, the man who walks on water, Lionel Messi.” The funny thing is this goal wasn’t a spectacular world class drop your jaw brilliance from Messi, it was a simple cross in which found him alone & unmarked, and just so happened to put it in. Yes Messi played a big part in concurring the trophy, but in the 1st game Villa scored a world-class goal on his own & Messi scored because Pepe “slipped?” which allowed him to be one on one with Casillas. In the 2nd game Messi did give a good assist, but it was a brilliant finish by Iniesta chipping the ball over Iker, the second goal wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for a magisterial back heel from Pique, and the third goal was a great cross that found him. With that said I just have one thing to say to all these butt kissing commentators (Goltv, ESPN Deports, Fox Sports en Espanol. Etc.).

SHUT THE ………. UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!       

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!