Good vs Evil, Capital vs Rebellion, Audacity vs Philosophy, Real vs Barca, The Clash of Titans

Barcelona Football Club have become obsessed over their club motto, "Mes que un Club" which translates to "More than a Club" in the English language which ultimately traces to an ethnocentrism that lingers around the Northeastern Spanish city. But El Clasico is really something more than it seems. It's greater than a your every day derby or rivalry adventure. Nearly every match in Spain is kindled by a behind the scenes blaze, fueled by political and nationalist separations that all but breech certain regions of a beautiful country. However, no match can to top El Clasico and all the luggage it carries. There is a long, twisting, history of hatred and boiling blood between the capital of the country and the capital of Catalonia. Battles of the two date back to the Spanish Civil War and beyond. Those who play for the Clubs endorse the teachings of what it means to bare the shirt they will make their trade in. The message has been burned into the hearts of the players who rise from the depths of the Clubs' academies but those transferred in quickly adapt the meaning and the club's sense of pride which comes with a hefty side of disgust for the El Clasico counterpart. Real Madrid represent the Capital, the gem, the pride of Spanish football, dubbed the most successful club of the 20th century by FIFA. Barcelona depict a much different image. They are the reformation, the rebellion. Often times consider themselves and Catalonia as a whole, as a separate nation with a different culture, language, and history, living in the great shadow cast by the Royal Club of Madrid. The feud is never ending and the personas of protagonist and antagonists have never been officially assigned. Though the roles do tend to change with time.

This weekend's match could be the very pinnacle of the El Clasico history. The rivalry continues to grow and after Barcelona went on to win all three of the available contests last year, which eventually lead to a sextuplet in completion births that the first three privileged. The Blaugrana are the only team to ever achieve this feat. Barcelona also stormed into the Bernabeu last season and humiliated los blancos 6-2 in front of their own extremely hard to impress fans. In reaction Real Madrid were in search of a renaissance. The re-emergence of former club president Florentino Perez, who signed big names such as the first Ronaldo, Zidane, Figo, and David Beckham, had returned for round two. The inclusion of these stars started what is known as the Galactico Era. Now, Florentino, back for a second term, has a new set of super stars to grace Chamartin. Their names are Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema, and Xabi Alonso. Spending close to 250 million in the summer has rejuvinated the squad, now labled the Neo-Galacticos. The two rivals are level on 77 points, one less point than Real Madrid managed in the entirety of last season. Also, in La Liga history, the top two teams have never been even on such a lofty plateau. Ray Parlour, GolTV commentator seems to think that it isn't good for La Liga because other teams cannot compete, but even if that is true, it proves to make some of the most exhilarating title races and El Clasico's between Real and Barca. A friend of mine who supports Barcelona brought to my attention that in my 20 year life, Los Blancos and the Blaugrana each have 3 European Cups, but Barcelona has 9 La Liga's compared to our 8. So in order for Real to tie them in that respect would be to win the La Liga this year. As a whole, the overall record between the sides in 159 matches played is Real Madrid wins 68, Barcelona wins 61, and draws 30. Real Madrid has won 31 La Liga titles whereas Barcelona remain 12 astray with a mere 19. Real Madrid have won 9 European Cups and Barcelona six behind with 3. Real Madrid lack in the category of the Copa del Rey. The Blaugrana have won 25 and the Royal Capital only 17.

Barcelona have become the globe's new obsession. The world wide bandwagon has begun after their sextuplet and housing the World player of the year, Messi, isn't a bad attribute to have. They are seen as the good guy going into El Clasico this time around. Commonly seen as protagonist this season. Home-bread talent, their obsessive passing style of play, Messi in general, and to top it all off the Unicef logo on their shirt to support the organization. Real are easily seen as the antagonist. Spent a quarter of a billion on players this summer, a more counter attack based team with lots of strong personalities, Ronaldo who is commonly referred to as a cry baby and prima dona, and the gambling company of Bwin.com on their shirt. Barcelona have boasted about their home grown team but it's not as much of a tradition as newcomers may begin to think. It wasn't until the installation of Guardiola that this project really began to take full flight. As for "new products" Messi was a product and Bojan had received time. Pique was brought back to Barcelona by Guardiola from Manchester United. Pedro didn't receive any time to speak of the year before Pep's arrival. That leaves just Valdes, Messi, Puyol, Xavi, and Bojan if you can count him as a significant enough factor, five names. Madrid just had Iker Casillas, Raul, Guti and Miguel Torres who has been transferred to Getafe. So we're talking home grown 3 or 4 against 5? Is this really even a stat? Madrid are thrown into the fire for buying players but Barcelona have bought Thierry Henry, Ibrahimovic, Dani Alves, Keita, Hleb (who has since moved on) and Maxwell. That's not exactly home grown either. I mean there was a time when Barcelona was a very much a Dutch team. Is this home grown thing a philosophy or a new trend? Nonetheless, Guardiola made it to the peak of success using it.

Injury fears amongst both camps in the week approaching the massive occasion this weekend. Ibrahimovic missed out on Barcelona's Champions League quarter final second leg against Arsenal where Lionel Messi got messy against the Gunners, unwinding the North London club with four goals of his own including a first half hat trick that quickly eclipsed Bentdner's opening goal at the Camp Nou. Some might think the Barclona's midweek Champions League duty would be a Real Madrid advantage because of player fatigue but that isn't entirely true for the blaugrana back line. Barca's primary pair at center back is Pique and Puyol, two former Masia products, one old, one young. However, both missed the Arsenal match due to suspension, Pique for yellow card build up and Puyol for the red card he recieved in the tackle that was said to break former Barcelona youth team member, Cesc Fabregas's right leg in the first match at the Emirates Stadium last week. So the two Catalans will be rested. Eric Abidal has missed the last several weeks with an injury but summer signing Maxwell from Inter Milan has done a successful job taking his place at left back. The two split time against Arsenal.

Madrid have concerns or concern of their own. The critics have fallowed Kaka around like lost puppies this season. In my opinion, we haven't seen his very best but it is certainly not as bad as critics have made it out to be. For the amount of matches Ricky has played injured and games he played in all together, his numbers aren't aweful. That begin said, I know he can do better. But if Kaka wants to impress this weekend, he's got a mountain of not only critics but fitness to climb. He's missed the past couple Madrid La Liga matches and is in a fitness race for El Clasico. Much like fellow massive signing Ronaldo was for the first El Clasico. As of Wednesday he was doing his own exercises but is intent on joining the squad as soon as he can. Although, if his appearance is not made this weekend, we have no reason to worry because Van der Vaart has been exquisite. Xabi Alonso, the glue of the Real Madrid midfield, received a knock in training on Wednesday and missed Thursday's session. He would be a great loss for the team. Alonso has not played since El Derbi Madrileno where he picked up a yellow card (on purpose) to miss the Santander match instead of missing El Clasico is he were to be cautioned in Santander.

So you have to think at this point who plays? What's your line up for such a massive match? Who is on form? Who isn't? How do you deal with a player like Messi? Will it be Arbeloa? You're at home, how to you approach the match? The questions are never ending. Let me throw down a line up and I'll explain my decisions after wards.

It took me a long time to come up with this line up because obviously against a team like Barcelona, the margain for error is practically invisible. Let me start with my back line. With Barcelona's attack rarely stopped by anyone, this was the most difficult of the three sectors to plan. It doesn't look uncommon from many other Real Madrid line ups. The reason I have Arbeloa at left back because Messi spends a lot of time on the right side (his right side) . The only other options to put on that left hand side would be Marcelo, and I know we don't want him defending Messi, despite his improvement in defensive performences for the most part lately, or Drenthe who is still a questionably fit or not even though he's been steadily making his way back to the training ground. Ramos was held responsible for marking the Argentine on a prior El Clasico but it resulted in mostly fouls. Arbeloa is the best option. He's been playing there for a great portion of the season and has even played their for the national team. Plus our tactic should be to play our own game. It shouldn't be what we have to change to cope with them. We should let them cope with us. We're no slouches ourselves. In the midfield I have Xabi Alonso, given the fact that he is fit, and Guti because we need to test Barcelona's back line. They're not as solid as they appear. Barcelona keep so much possession that they hardly have to defend yet they still leak the occasional goal. Other teams don't have someone of Xavi's ability to see and pass. We do, Guti. I think he may be the clue to unlock Barcelona. I don't think Kaka will be able to rekindle fitness in time. By Thursday, he is still in the gym and the match is Saturday. If he does make the squad list, its Van der Vaart to start for me. The Dutch captain has been outstanding and nothing short of a work horse. He is on form and has had a knack lately for getting crucial goals. To think we almost let another Dutch gem slip away (Adios Robben and Sneijder. Glad to see you are both doing well). I put Marcelo out on the left because he is sprightly and lively. He's creative. I think w could use that on that flank. I recall last year's Champions League semi final Chelsea vs Barcelona at the Bridge. Dani Alves had so much trouble handing Moulouda, he cried his way into yellow card suspension for the Final (idiot). Marcelo is a similar kind of player. Also when I watch Barcelona, Alves goes forward so often that eventually he gets caught out. As professional center backs should do, Barca's pair slid over to cover when he ventures. Abidal or Maxwell fallow. But defending with three against Higuain, Marcelo, Ronaldo, and Van der Vaart could prove fatal for the Blaugrana.

There is hardly anything I can tell you about Barcelona that the world already doesn't know. They won't stray away from their style. The sad part about the last El Clasico is that we dominated, deserved a draw at the very least but were faulted by an offside Ibrahimovic goal. I'm not even going to start the Villarato debate. That's a squawk for another day. I will be most regretably missing the match (tears in my eyes). I have a spring season tournament of my own to play in at Bucknell University. It may save me the anxiety I suppose but I've come to terms with missing it. For all of you that took time to read this lengthy post I thank you. I've been so caught up with school and personal affairs lately that I hardly have had time to write. Also our internet has crashed at my house. I will continue to write the best I can. Thanks everyone.

HALA MADRID!!

Bobby

City Bragging Rights

Real Madrid broke down their city rivals, Atletico Madrid, who took an early lead and fortress Bernabeu on Sunday. Los blancos battled back from a one goal deficit in another El Derbi Madrileno which ended in a victory for Real Madrid, 3-2. It wasn't as glamorous as it may seem as Real add another choppy win to their resume. Three points is three points but the room for improvement is notable at very least. It seemed to be another case of us scoring enough goals in one half to create a big enough insurance bubble to last us the match. Our chances out-weighed Atleti's remarkably but the fact they they were still able to score 2 goals isn't too reassuring. Let's take a look at this edition of the Derby. But before I get started to anyone else notice how slick the pitch was? It was like they were skating out there.

We let up the first goal 10 minutes in to a 20 minute period where we just hadn't shown up yet. A lot of people will love to point the finger at Marcelo. He was the one responsible for Reyes but was pulled out of position when Albiol recklessly few into a tackle that he didn't win against Thiago. The Portuguese international evaded the challenge leaving us stretched. Ramos had to leave his mark, Aguero to cover for his other center back and Marcelo had to slide in to try and get to Aguero in time. The Brazilian did manage to to stand up the Argentine but Aguero's clever flick to former Madrid player Reyes was too crafty. Reyes settled and curled it in to the back post. Nothing Casillas could do.

I wanna discuss Xabi Alonso this match. He was a major part of the rise and fall at times. First half, abysmal. Second half, just brilliant until he gave a way the second half penalty that made things 3-2 and made the last 25 minutes a bit uncomfortable. I've hardly ever seen a performance so bad out our number 22 as I seen in this first half. Given away sooo many times in midfield and miss hit balls over top. Usually when you're having a bad day you just wanna go back to basics and keep things simple but he couldn't even done that. Pellegrini must have dug deep into him during the interval because he started our comeback in the second half. I have to credit Pellegrini for his tactics on corners because Xabi Alonso has scored two goals from that exact situation on corners. It was Albiol who got up to win the initial header. Though heading wide of the far post, Alonso cleaned it up by thumping the ball into the roof of the net and from there we built, and so did Xabi Alonso. The Basque-born midfielder was turned toward our own net at midfield and hit an absolutely unhuman ball over the top of Atletico's back line to a streaking Arbeloa. Quality and vision like none other found the right back in stride. He juked one defender and then De Gea before slotting the ball far post. An unlikely goal from an unlikely source. 2-1. I'll get to a third goal in a minute but the second goal against should have never happened. Yes, we're up 3-1 at the point but unnecissary with the handball of Atletico's corner. If you're not going to win it, don't handle it. Giving them a penalty, that Forlan eventually scored, is a more sure chance of a goal than letting them trying direct it in off their heads yeah? He didn't even get booked from it. However he did pick up a booking for thumping Salvio (maybe?) on the sideline. Must have been on purpose because he will be suspended for the next match rather than El Clasico the fallowing weekend. Sergio Ramos did the same but did his a little more subtly but wasting time rather than inflicting pain. However, I don't mind causing Pathetico pain.

Thiago picked up an assist on our third goal. By tackling Granero, he played Pipita in who casually slotted the ball with his unfavored left foot past De Gea who had his young hands full all match. I want to give credit to Marcelo who I thought played one of his most collectively solid game, meaning offensively and defensively, of the season. He did try to sombraro Simao in our own corner, which was stupid, but other than that, let's not slay him this match okay? Ronaldo will be disgusted with himself as always when he doesn't score but probably in tears that he missed that header at the end of the first half and three opportunities to score from a free kick. Not his best performance. He had to change boots at half time I noticed. I don't know if it was him changing up his fashion for the night or to prevent himself from slipping, but either way it didn't improve his performance. The subs didn't do anything after arriving on the field. Raul, Guti, Diarra, did nothing for me. One thing that did scare me though, was I felt like I saw dashes of the old Gago, charging around meaninglessly diving into challenges and pulling himself out of position. Pellegrini, slap him on the wrist before it starts up again.

Athletico haven't beat us in 11 years now. Goltv said something like out of Raul's 27 matches against them, he's only lost twice. Whatever the case may be, our city bragging rights are more than off the charts right with all the latest clashes against the Mattress Makers. We equaled Barcelona on points and made up the goal differential they put up against Mallorca this weekend with the loan Zlatan goal. I thought that Mallorca were unlucky not to score. They rang the frame twice in the first half and a couple nmore efforts went unpayed. I couldn't tell if it was Barcelona or Villarreal with the aweful yellow shots. top of the league for now and 9 finals to go.

HALA MADRID

Bobby

Three Points The Hard Way

Always pissed off before pleased. If it wasn't the awful Real Madrid play in the first half, the annoying TV commentators set me off. That guy must hate Real Madrid. How many times did I have to hear "bunch of individuals." Whatever, it's still three points in the bank and a world of topics to be talked over as Real Madrid battle back at the fortress to win 3-1 over Sporting Gijon. Plenty of action though! Down a goal, and then up a goal in the blink of an eye. Controversy and chaos. Ronaldo plays with a block of ice in his hand to reduce swelling on a little bump on his precious face? Crazy. This puts us three points above Barcelona but they haven't played yet. Zaragoza will be awaiting the blaugrana's arrival. Goals from Van der Vaart, Xabi Alonso who got his first goal from open play (immediately fallowing the corner), and another for Pipita!

I guess it takes a strike of lightning to light a fire under our asses to get us going. A questionably offside David Barrel creeped in untouched and smashed the ball into the roof of our own net, stunning the Bernabeu faithful and the shirts in white at 53 minutes. My heart sunk. Barrel, a former Madrid product, was brave enough to celebrate by signing his name on the pitch. It was quickly erased. Before I could even get upset or angry, we equalized and our tempo shot into the sky like a Chinese firework! I thought to myself when our own goal was penetrated that maybe just maybe this will provoke a response. It did. Ronaldo's dipping free kick, 2 minutes later, caused a lot of trouble for Colinas who fumbled the rocket onto a platter for Rafael Van der Vaart who trapped it with what looked like a volleyball bump before thrashing a left footed volley into the net. I'm a biased supporter but that was definitely a handball. Am I going to complain? No. But let's just say we'll call it even for Xavi's dive against Espanyol. Goal for a goal right? Another two minutes later, after winning a corner Ronaldo jumped higher than the cross bar to win the initial header which found Xabi Alonso at the far post to nod past the line from close range. And just like that, we're on top.

I make it sound glamorous but it was far from. The first half was abysmal. I take no credit away from Gijon who were very well organized defensively in half number 1. We created next to nothing and Ronaldo was a tad bit selfish (and I don't often call him that). What did we do to solve the problem? Lass out, Guti in. I said it at half time to my friends watching the match with me. I told them that had to be the change. I think Lass barfed up the ball every time he got it. Just dreadful. For those of you that chose to grade our players, please fail Lassana Diarra for me. I said it in the preview, no Lass. Didn't listen to me did you Manuel? He clogged everything up, ran into dead ends, fouled, and did things he shouldn't be trying. How many times must he be told? Another lacking performance from Granero as well. The one shot he took has even landed yet. He needs to improve. Xabi Alonso wasn't his great self today, aside from netting the winner. Just a step off. Gave it away too often. Our best holding center midfielder of the evening was (I can't believe I'm gonna even say this because it's against what I so avidly preach) Gago. He came on, kept it simple. He didn't play tag, running from player to player fouling. Everytime he got it, he just distributed. Well done. When he does that he looks a very good player. Guti I thought was instrumental after coming in. Helped connect everything. He was composed and his all seeing eyes opened up attacks for us. Liked him.

Man of the Match you ask? Van der Vaart for me. Kaka will have to work to break back into my Real Madrid team. Tremendous outing from the Dutchman. He's really finding good form. His goal probably should not have stood but none the less, he got one when we most needed it. But how bout that back heal? Cracked a wide smile on my face. He was lively and upbeat throughout the match. He almost scored an acrobatic header earlier in the first half but I felt like he was the driving force behind Madrid today. Put Ronaldo in the passenger seat. Ronaldo had an off game for me. I mean he was involved. His free kick caused the rebound that VDV scored from and he also won the header from the corner that Xabi Alonso scored from, but he took some shots he probably shouldn't have. He was little to obvious on trying to draw that penalty. Coughed it up a few times trying to do some fancy stuff. He won't be pleased. And neither will his make up artist who has a bump to try and hide for the cameras (:]) Don't get me wrong, I'm not picking on him. But with a player of his caliber, you have to expect more. And for future refference, leave the ice on the sidelines...

Let's turn our focus to the back line. No Albiol? Mystery to me. If anyone can clear that up for me, I'd love to know. Really kind of mucked things up I think. Garay was not good at all today. The whole back line was leaky and here's what I think. Without Albiol, Ramos has to play center back. He likes to play the left sided center back but so does Garay. Garay must have felt out of place on the right or something because he looked very uncomfortable. I thought Marcelo made a few good tackles actually but spent most of his time attacking as usual. Arbeloa, eh so-so. But none were good. Especially Ramos, the gladiator didn't have a dominating game. He almost gave up a goal single handedly by casually scuffing a routine pass back to Casillas. Our prize keeper saved the day though. Well done San Iker. We dominated the match completely our a defenders still managed to give Gijon some pretty damn good chances.

Always glad to see Pipita net one. Took it beautifully too. Scurried away from some defenders and caressed the ball past the goal keeper with his left foot into the corner. Another one for Higuain. Another one toward Pichichi. Catch Messi buddy, catch him.

A win is a win. Another ugly job but 3 points nonetheless. Puts us on top for the time being on points and adds two more goals to goal differential stats. And as my girlfriend put it when I text her about the result, "good now you won't be bitchy." Haha that's a good way to put it. The season long home winning streak continues!

Hala Madrid!

Bobby

Another Epic Battle at the Helm of Fortress Bernabeu

Usually on the eve before the second leg of a Champions League Round of 16 match I'm turning over the scenarios and what it will take us to get through to the next round rather nervously but strangely enough I'm calm, collected, confident. Quite a different mood from my fright in the night previous to the Stade Gerland match. After what I saw on Saturday and later comprehend, I feeling as if we're taking the momentum from the comeback and the energy from the fans and are confident (not cocky) that we can progress. It's a feeling unlike the last 5 years going into this second leg. I have reason to be upbeat. Maybe it's because the objective is very clear. Win by two goals. There's no if, ands, or buts about it. However we only need one goal in 90 minutes to force extra time but I'd rather just get the job done in 90 minutes. Sorry if the preview is coming to everyone a little late. I've been very busy running around at home because of spring break. Let's get started. Shall we?

Let's look at some positives going in. Obviously momentum from the big win this weekend a little extra from the fashion in which that game was one. Also the team seems united. When you bring a bunch of new players together no one can expect gelling right away (unless you're stupid). Not only do the players have to learn each others playing styles and habbits in order to perform well but the need to learn their personalities, become close friends. I think we are beginning to see that more and more. When the team all gathered together in one huddle after the Sevilla game that's when I knew things are tight knit. Also, the fans will be as amped as ever after what they witnessed on Saturday. How do I know this? Well, I'm a fan, duh. Not only is the team as one but there are currently very few injuries in the squad. Benzema and Drenthe are the only ones out with their respectable knocks and other than that the squad is out on the training pitch rather than in the gym. Drenthe won't be missed because he hardly plays and I can't say Benzema will that missed either because our offense seems to be working on all cylinders without him.

So with the thought that we need two goals to progress in mind, we have to think offensively but a the same time we can't afford to get scored against because for everytime we let one up, we have to add on one to the amount of goals we have to score. Obviously Xabi Alonso is unable to play due to yellow card suspension so what do? Obvious plug in for me is either of the Diarras. If lass just distributes and does the actual job of a holding (not attacking dude) I think he is a better option only because Mahamadou is more of a bruiser. Ah hah! In that case we might need the number 6 instead because it is sure to be a physical battle. I think we have learned a valuable lesson from Sevilla in what our offense can do with all the right tools. Offense is the best defence at times. It is crucial that we score early. It would settle nerves and put us in a rhythm to get another one. We haven't failed to score at home all year. We have 90 minutes to at least get one. There are a few games away in which we failed to score, Lyon being one of them. Here is my line up for the match tomorrow.




Very similar to the post substitution Real Madrid we saw this weekend. Arbeloa takes the place of Marcelo who is also suspended and I have M. Diarra as the holding midfielder. To me he is more of a Xabi Alonso like player than Lass is and we need the physical presence. I figured why not go so offensively when we need goals. We needed goals this weekend, and roughly these are the guys that got us there. Pellegrini had an A+ performance this weekend. As for subs, I can see Granero and Raul both featuring at some point and Lass or big Diarra coming off the bench depending who gets the start. After the first leg, many fans said we lacked midfield creativity because Guti and Van der Vaart were injured. Well they're back now and if they bring to the table what they did on Saturday, we'll be in business.

As for Lyon, since we last saw them three weeks ago, they've not conceded a goal in Ligue 1. They have two wins and a 0-0 draw against Boulonge this past weekend. Lyon have no players suspended for the match but Brazilian international Michel Bastos, who played for Brazil at left back in their recent friendly against the Republic of Ireland, will be missing with a thigh injury.

The objective is clear. The team is ready. Us supporters just sit and await our faith anxiously. It will be a nervy 90 minutes for me personally. I transform into a monster when Madrid plays. You probably don't ever want to watch a match with me (:p).

HALA MADRID

Bobby

Penalty Kick Ethics

After this weekend's recent Ronaldo vs Xabi Alonso dispute over who should take the second penalty kick that would eventually be Real's sixth goal of the game, I was bothered about the entire situation. Through long boring lectures at University, I began to redirect my focus from class to the incident. This was what I read on Goal.com which displayed the dialogue between the two Galacticos:

"Cris, give it to me...because I haven't even scored one goal. Let me score one. Let me."

"The next one, I promise you,"

"No, stop. Give me this one. Come on, give me the ball"

If you can't figure out who is who, well I'm sorry, you'll be confused for the rest of the article. This is according to Spanish TV station, Canal. Now I'm not trying to bring anymore attention upon the subject intentionally but it's a subject that must be addressed. This is a Real Madrid issue, and this is a Real Madrid blog. Now, I've read peoples comments about their thoughts about the subject but after observing and talking to some of my trusted football minds, there are a couple different mindsets to how this argument should have been avoided.

First let me dissect Ronaldo with my own thoughts. Everyone knows that Ronaldo has a huge ego. I believe his intentions are team orientated but I think he is transfixed and obsessed with being the player that makes the difference for the team. He also loves his image and reputation. This works both ways. It's positive because Ronaldo hates losing. He will do whatever he can to make sure his side wins, including taking on a lead-by-example role. He has a passion for the sport like few others. However, his passion leads to temper at times. His lead-by-example role makes him believe that he HAS to be the one to make the difference. For example, when he missed the penalty against Ameria and Benzema thumped home the rebound, he didn't celebrate with the Frenchman because he was so upset that he was unable to convert the go-ahead goal himself. His talent is great but it gets to his head as seen in this latest incident. So if Ronaldo can balance the two mindsets between passionate and prick he will go on to achieve more than he comprehends at this point because he has trouble doing what I just described. He does want the team to win. He knows he can't win without them and often when asked about himself in the press he deflects the praise and focus to the club or the team. He did this most recently when Marca reported his warning to Lyon when he made these statements:

"This is the team that is waiting for you and is going to do everything possible to beat you."

"I played well but the team was better. We are a hell of a team."

It's either Ronaldo has good intentions and is team orientated or he just had to find a more modest way to say "I am ready for you and I will beat you all by myself." It's up to you what you'd like to believe. I want to trust that he is a team player for this great club that he won't cause dressing room problems, but his personality always hints in the other direction. Anyway let's get into the ethics and morals of this spat.

I personally have my own opinion of what should have gone down. When Alonso asked to take penalty, Ronaldo, like a good teammate should do, should have smiled back at the Spaniard and said "Yeah, sure Xabi. Common now, get one!" I think it's childish and selfish that Ronaldo didn't grant his teammate (who is just as vital to the team in a more quiet way in my opinion) a goal that has so elusively avoided him. A goal for Alonso would surely lift pressure off his shoulders and maybe lead to a couple more. From what I've seen, most people feel the same way. The correct way to deal with situation would be for Pellegrini (who handled the Guti situation like a true professional) to pull the two aside before training and say something along the lines of:

"I don't know what was said, what it was about, or who was in the wrong. But you two are teammates in the greatest team on the world, professionals. We haven't got time or room for this kind of behavior on this team. Your actions against Villarreal were childish and reflect badly on the Team, the Club, and Yourselves. We're past this. We will hear nothing more about it. Shake on it and get your asses out to training."

Then Ronaldo, realizing he was in the wrong, gives the next penalty to Xabi Alonso. Everything goes back to normal and it's an issue of the past.

I ran the topic behind my close friend and brilliant football mind, who sees the game in a way most people don't see it. He said that the coach should already have the penalty takers set in stone and that without question about who has scored and who has not, that person takes it. That was a wise view I thought. It would have been understood by the whole team and the conflict would have been avoided. It's always a mystery on who will take the penalty for Real. It goes almost by a criteria system. Something like, if Ronaldo hasn't already scored then he takes the penalty and if Ronaldo has already scored but draws the penalty, he takes it, unless he is physically unable. Or if Ronaldo draws it and doesn't want to make his new best friend Kaka upset, he sometimes lets him take it. It's too confusing. How about Ron takes them. If Ron is not on Kaka takes them. If both are not on Xabi Alonso takes them. Simple and affective.

My friend also brought up the point that maybe, as harsh as it may sound, Alonso should get out there and score himself instead of asking for a handout from Ronaldo, who earned the penalty and is primarily the penalty taker (according to the ridiculous criteria lol). This is interesting too because automatically people want to blame Ronaldo's ego for the confrontation. It's hard for me to say Ronaldo was right but maybe Xabi Alonso would want a more memorable goal for his first tally in a white shirt, like one of his midfield blasts where he catches an unsuspecting goalkeeper off his line from around the center cirlcle. I have been wanting a Xabi Alonso goal no matter how it comes but could it possibly be that that wasn't the Spanish international's place? It's a perspective that I didn't think of and I know it was overlooked by many. Just something interesting to think about.

This all comes right after I was expressing my view of "Ronaldo is becoming a good team player" on The Offside comment section. So I'm little stressed on what I should think. I know people have opinions on this. I'd love to see who agrees or who looks at the football world a little differently. I was debating on whether or not to write about this but I think it's a good topic that needs addressing. Hopefully this situation has already been dealt with by our loved Club who always remains image conscience.

Hala Madrid

Bobby

Sank the Submarine

Los Blancos responded well to their more than disappointing Champions League loss to Lyon. The score finished 6-2 but it didn't always look like the Merengue were running away with it. The men in yellow cut the lead back to just one goal on two separate occasions giving me one or two reasons to bite my nails. However, our prolific strike force's torpedoes eventually sent the submarine to a watery grave below fortress Bernabeu. Although I was furious at giving up goals this game proved that we can overcome setbacks and adversity to eventually triumph. Hopefully we can take the lesson learned and transform it into a similar performance when OL come back to visit in March.

Summer spending payed off again. Four of the six goals were scored by new faces. Dos for Kaka, uno for Ronaldo, and Xabi Alonso tallied his first goal in a Real Madrid Uniform. May I offer him my congratulations. The game also acted as a stat booster for many. Ronaldo not only scored, he marked 2 assists and also drew the penalty that Xabi Alonso took (twice lol). Pipita returned to scoring form with 2 pieces of cheese. He is in 3rd place running for Pichichi with 14 goals, 2 goals off the leader, Messi, if my memory serves me correctly. Marcelo added to his assist total with his cross for Higuain's second which makes 6 goals created for the young Brazilian this season. In all fairness I think los blancos should have won by a few goals more. Ronaldo and Kaka both failed when 1v1 with the keeper and Ronaldo's breakaway was wrongly called offside. Madrid seem to rise to the challenge everytime it was thrown at them. When Villarreal scored we made it a bigger gap. When they scored again, we did the same. When Kaka converted the penalty I texted a fellow Madridista, and said "2 goals from deadballs. I want 1 from open play." Madrid then rose to that challenge as well.

Refereeing decisions were a question in this match. Many people seem to think that the penalty Ronaldo drew was a dive. Honestly I thoughts he got clipped from behind but honestly people, was it a match changing decision? No. On Higuain's first goal, when Arbeloa played the ball up the line to CR9, he did appear to be off by a step. However, later in the match as I said above, Ronaldo was called off when he was most certainly on. Though he had been flagged, play continued and he dribbled around the goalkeeper and passed the ball home. These decisions were not all correct but nonetheless wouldn't have changed the result.

We were a totally different team from what I saw in France. We were so lively. Runs in behind the back line on so many different occasions. The ability to find players was 20 times what it was on Tuesday. Creativity was a major boost. I think it raises more questions about our away form. I mean sure, our European away form has been good other than this loss, but we beat Zurich and Marseille away and only tied Milan. It's not like we beat the best team in our group. Our La Liga away form hasn't been pretty at all, a loss to Sevilla, a loss to Barca, a Loss to Bilbao, and Draws at Gijon and Osasuna where we failed to score both times. The only real significant away win that we've recorded was our thriller against Valencia, and if you think about it it that's probably the best team that we've beaten all season. We still have lots of hype to live up to ladies and gentlemen, but I'm gonna stop being pessimistic on a day with reason to be optimistic. Just pointing a few things out.

Let's start with what I was not pleased with, Lassana Diarra. Many player have hot and cold games but Lass has had and cold minutes. He is the fastest changing Dr. Hyde and Mr. Jekyll. He fouls too much. Right after Marco Senna scores from a well taken free kick, he goes and clatters some yellow shirt from behind a yard or two off the top of the arc. Needs to be smarter. Needs to stop dribbling. He looks a much better player when he plays it quick. I'm surprised Pellegrini hasn't said something more about it. Arbeloa played a good game but what bothers me is he always gets beat on a give and go (one-two). Track your defender, don't get caught ball watching. Wingers will get a free cross every time. For once, Marcelo wasn't horrific on defence but he can always do better. I can definitely call it an improvement from the Lyon game. Ramos, all I can say is class. I know he is a right back but he is a damn good center back as well. He too was beat by a one-two on Villarreal's second goal, scored by Nilmar, but that counter attack should have never happened. Too many opportunities to shut it down. We need to make sure we don't put too much emphasis on offense that we forget we have a goal of our own.

I don't know if it's just me, but Pellegrini seems to make subs very late on in matches. I know in this case it was okay because we needed to establish a gap in scoreline when the Yellow Submarine doesn't go away, but the subs hardly get any time to adapt to the match. Raul, Van der Vaart, M. Diarra, I can't even tel lyou how they played really. I'm never going to complain when we get a result like 6-2, but I don't even know what to say about them. I can say that today is the first time where I thought Guti wasn't missed as much. We had plenty of creativity. Granero may not get the credit for today but I thought he was solid. Quiet, but solid. He keeps the play moving in midfield. He doesn't do anything out of his element but links together big pieces like Higuain, Ronaldo, and Kaka. Benzema wasn't missed either today. Higuain found form again and it didn't look as if we would have needed him today anyway. With that said, I'm still sure it will be a boost when he returns to the squad.

This win will be in the back of Barcelona's head. When Villarreal visited them, the two shared the points. Now that we are within 2 points of the blaugrana and we are tallying up 6 goal performances in a still perfect record at home, where they still have to visit, they can definitely feel our hot breath on their necks. This match puts a smile on my face once again and I can look at the crest and know that we haven't failed it last time we took the field. Well done. Next up we have Tenerife away. We are expected to pick up 3 points there. Malaga visit Barcelona but I don't think the Catalans will drop anything there.

Hala Madrid!

Bobby

Pellegrini Selection Headache To Come aka Bobby's Chalk Session

Selection Headache? What Selection Headache? We're scrounging for players. We had 4 Castilla players in the squad list for Deportivo and the world's most expensive player is still out another game with suspension. The only player that even returned to training today was Gago and we planned that he'd be at Manchester City by this point. Exactly! (Huh?) At this point your probably a bit confused (wtf Bobby...) but let me explain. The match against Deportivo showed some crucial team depth and not only did we win at Riazor, we put on a performance. To go even further, not only did we put on a performance, we did so with a stretched line-up. Anyone notice that we played more covincingly against Depor, who were then in 5th place, than we did against Malaga who are low in the table. The catch is that against Malaga, which was a home game, we fielded what is arguably our best XI. Or is that our best 11? It poses a lot of questions. Goal.com put an article out this week about if Real Madrid plays better without Ronaldo. Should Granero be a starter? What happens to two-goal Benzema when Pipita recovers? Is the Lass/Xabi Alonso a good center midfield partnership? Are we playing the best formation suitable for this team. When everyone is available, who gets bumped to the pine? Can we alternate players with the Champions League on the horizon? Let's take a look.

Where do we start? How many questions did I just ask? Let's begin with what is arguably our standard formation, and starting XI with everyone healthy (excluding Pepe, get well soon).

I'm not stating that this is our best line-up. I'm just trying to get into Pellegrini's head. If all these players were available and everyone was well rested, I get the feeling that this is the starting XI we would see. So bring on the questions. Does Real Madrid play better without Ronaldo? Well all of us would hope not. We spent a fortune on him this summer and for our starting line-up to be more affective without him would be a nightmare. My answer to this question is no. If that relieves anyone, good. Here's why. Ronaldo is a unique player. He has everything a footballer would dream of. He has pace, moves, a rocket packed behind 90% of his shots, set play abilities only few can match, and more. Many think he is selfish, too self centered but that is not that case. Ronaldo has become more of a team player at Madrid than he was at Manchester United "With great power, comes great responsibility." -Uncle Ben (Spiderman). Ronaldo wouldn't be as useful if he didn't take responsibility into his own hands at times. It would be wrong for him to not use the God-given talent that he possesses. He can change the game an in instant! You're probably asking yourself where I'm going with this because everything I've said so far really isn't team orientated. Well here you are. To have Ronaldo in the side is a blessing. With brilliant players around him, he can feed off of their talent in forms of their great passing and through balls to latch on to, movement off the ball, ability to draw free kicks and penalties, quality corners to score from, good service from the flanks. He is just an Ace in the hole that can benefit from what Madrid has to offer. Therefore he boosts team performances. So when he goes missing and we still play well... what's that about? Let me reiterate Ronaldo can benefit from the Team's Talent. When Ronaldo is not there, the team is still capable of playing great football. The game plan might change a little, but whenever you lose one of the greatest players on the planet for a match, your team will need to make some adjustments. That is common sense. The matches like Deportivo just show Madrid is good enough to cope without Ronaldo as well as with Ronaldo. It's more of a testament to our depth than it is a problem with CR9. Now I do understand things may not run as smoothly at times when Ronaldo is on the pitch. But this team has to be able to adapt to Ronaldo. In a sense the word "gel" appears once more. I know people are getting tired of hearing it, after all we're past the midway point of the season, but the injection of Ronaldo can be a lot to get used to. And even though we are this far along into the campaign, our buddy CR9 has only played in 16 games, only starting 14, including the Champions League. Whereas a team (excluding a Copa del Rey we'd all like to forget) we've played 26. So once again I call for patience, something that is hard for us to embrace as Madrid fans, especially after all the recent Barca success. Have faith my friends. There is still a lot more to come from Real Madrid.

Pirata! Easily one of my favorite signings. The kid continues to impress. Everytime he comes on, he makes a difference. He has found the net on 3 occasions this season as a midfielder and only finds himself in the starting line up around half the time. In La Liga, he has 3 goals and 2 assists. Kaka has 3 goals and 3 assists. Not much of a statistical difference with a gap in the amount of minutes played. Granero often times doesn't get the playing time he deserves with our big name midfielders, but everytime he plays, his name grows larger. He was exceptional against Depor and is expected by many to be in starting line up when Espanyol visits this weekend. There are places open for the 22-year old with Van der Vaart still spending training in the gym and Ronaldo serving his second suspension of his two match ban. I just get the hunch he'll have a good day against Espanyol. It may not seem right if he doesn't get the start when the more prominent names start to return to the squad list. For me, if he is not starting, he's the first one off the bench every time. He is a very well rounded player that offers more than a solid midfield player. He also delivers good corners, allowing our taller players to be in the box to win headers. He is a great Madrid Academy product. Gracias for the goal on Saturday.

So what do we do about the Lass/Xabi Alonso center midfield partnership. The midfield seemed very effective this weekend with just one holding midfielder. This was only recently brought to my attention. Do they work well together? Do we need two holding center midfielders or can one be sacrificed for the addition of another forward? That would make us a little top heavy so maybe those playing on the outsides would have to tuck in and drop a little more defensively and with two forwards, the attacking center midfield, most likely Kaka, would have to drop slightly as well. So we've gone from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-1-3-2 like we did against Deportivo. So it may look like this roughly when going from an attack to losing the ball and having to defend:


The advantages of this would be:

1. Allowing us to play both Higuain and Benzema in the same formation. Or as a second striker, Ronaldo and put in VDV or Granero on the right hand side.

2. It would give us more power offensively and more combination options in the attacking third.

3. It would provide two forwards to hit when building out of the back opposed to one main target forward which could become easy to mark.

4. Kaka has now two forwards to sit behind like he does with Brazil.

Disadvantages:

1. It would send either Xabi Alonso or Lass to the bench because one holding midfielder would have to be sacrificed for a forward. That wouldn't fit squad demographics considering we have 4 defensive midfielders in the team. Xabi Alonso, Diarra, Lass, and Gago.

2. It might make the team too top heavy and offensive players may not get back (cough Guti) , leaving us open and more vulnerable to counters.

3. With so many players in the offensive half, we might have to limit our wing play from outside backs. Sergio Ramos and Arbeloa would have to stay at home more often.

Striker questions? The fallowing analysis of the striker situation has been conducted as if Pellegrini decides to stick with a 4-2-3-1. So now that Benzema is finally up and running, Higuain is near recovery and could return for the match this weekend against Espanyol. If Pipita is just returning, I vote that he doesn't get 90 minutes against the Catalan side. I want to see him return as much as the next Madridista but Benzema now has some confidence and it's smart not to push Higuain to his limit on his return. I know the squad has quality enough (as showed at the Riazor) to win without Pipita in the starting XI, especially against Espanyol. Here is my plan. Benzema starts against Espanyol, Higuain comes in for him around 65 minutes in the second half. Then, the next weekend Higuain starts and Benzema replaces him. This would be important to rest Benzema at this game so he be fully fit to face Lyon on the 16th. No one knows the French club like him. Maybe Diarra, but he hasn't been there in years, when Benzema has just played for them last season. So afterwards, because Benzema played in the European midweek, Higuain then starts against Villarreal at home. This all goes accordingly provided both strikers remain healthy and on form. So with the extra Champions League games, perhaps rotation could be an option for the time being.

That's all I have for you today. I left plenty to discuss and left plenty out that is worth discussing. Would be interested to hear the thoughts of a lot of you. I enjoy hearing what you have to say.

Bobby

Daniele De Rossi? Why? & The Canales Front

So it's late at night and go on to peruse the latest football news via the Internet and ultimately, against my greater judgment, I end up on Goal.com to see what they may have plagiarized or muckraked off any not creditable source. We, Madrid, seem to be the media frenzy already, usually in a negative way. More people want to see us fail than succeed so they decide to toss as much flammable ingredients to the fire as possible. I have one word for these people, "haters." Simple as that. Anyhow I came across an article on Goal.com about Daniele De Rossi to Real Madrid?

Uhhh wait... So I tried clicking the article and it's under maintenance so I'm hoping someone hacked their system under the influence of some foreign chemical unbalance and decided to sabotage the website by publishing the link (highly unlikely). I went to Catholic school (even though I'm not Catholic, long story) as a youngster but I would pray to several different gods just to make sure this didn't come true. De Rossi?

Wait! The page decided to load and it is a measly 5 sentence article... pathetic again from Goal.com. Why would you even publish that on your top stories? It is true that President Perez is a fan of de Rossi (one of the few bits of information available in the article) and tried to sign him in his first presidency and that Calderon was also interested but the price tag was a little hefty. But in all honesty where would fit another defensive/holding midfielder with Xabi Alonso and Lassana Diarra amongst the squad and a returning Mahamadou Diarra this week sometime because Mali was knocked out of the ACN. Don't forget Gago is still lingering around somewhere too. Sure, De Rossi has a pretty nice long range shot, but Xabi Alonso has been known to score from midfield. It's gonna take a little more something special that what De Rossi possess to get me even vaguely interested. I've been really down on him ever since he threw that awful elbow into Brian McBride in the last World Cup. Not to mention he would cost a fortune and already stated he wanted to finish his career at Roma. I know Kaka said he wanted to finish his Career at Milan but De Rossi is certainly no Kaka, despite what people have been saying about the Brazilians form lately. For me, it would be an absolute ludicrous decision if it ever amounted to buy him.

Let's switch gears. It's no secret that ever since Sergio Canales superb double performance in Racing Santander's 2-1 win over Sevilla, all eyes have been transfixed him. The teenager has said that at the moment he wants to wear the green and black. However, that's not enough to stop the super sharks (big clubs) from circling around the tank waiting for their chance to attack this fresh young talent. Santander president, Francisco Pernia, has spoken about the issue and mentioned that big clubs including English outfits, Manchester City and Chelsea, as well as ourselves, and several other big clubs have revealed interest. He seemed in favor of the loan back idea that the boy's father has considered. In which a club will buy Canales and then loan him back to Santander for a set period of time, most likely 1 or 2 seasons. Then after that period is up he joins with the club that bought him. This is what Real Madrid did with Garay for those of you who are unaware.

"Madrid don't give money away so when they call Racing, that's because they are in some way interested in going down that road," -Pernia

Hopefully the opportunity so sign this kid falls into the right hands and by the right hands I mean our hands. Giving him two years back where he is comfortable and getting regular first team time will develop him into an even hotter commodity. And by the time his loan spell is up, he will be ready to tackle a bigger task. At Madrid we can put him on a trampoline aimed in the direction of greatness. It's the perfect place to create your legacy for any Spanish player (and by Spanish player, I mean a player that actually considers himself as Spanish and regualry speaks Spanish. Im not trying to get under anyone's skin here...Barca, Bilbao, Depor and others... easy now). He is a Santander native. However there is connection between the northern Spanish city and Real Madrid. King Alfonso XIII, who granted Real Madrid it's "Real Corona" (royal crown) loved spending his summer holidays in Santander. For those of you who didn't know, Santander also has a corona on it's logo. The king even built the Palacio de la Magdalena as his Santander residence. Hardly football related but interesting.

These were just a couple thoughts I had while suffering through my spells of insomnia. It's about 4:15 am. I have class in a few hours. Goodnight readers. Hala Madrid.

Bobby

Frustration at its Peak: Athletic Bilbao 1-0 Real Madrid

To say that I am disappointed, sad, angry, frustrated, or let down are all understatements. I really don't know where to begin, so expect an unstructured rant-like review. You have to give props to Bilbao though. They executed their game plan perfectly. Banged and crashed until they got a goal early and then sat back and just defended with 10, and a lot of times 11 behind the ball. The worst part is Madrid must have been in on the plan because they gladly let it happen. This will be sure to add to an already blazing political/football fire. The rivalries burn on...

Madrid didn't even complete a pass before Athletic scored the only goal of the match from a free header the Lassana Diarra so kindly flicked on from a corner for Bilbao's none other than Llorente, who nodded the ball at ease past Casillas and into the net. San Mames erupted like volcano. Perhaps that was the sound of an alarm clock for Real Madrid. Los blancos decided maybe it was time wipe the sleepys out of their eyes and decide to show up. Too little too late though. If you want to be a championship winning team you have to wake up before you walk out of the tunnel at least. Real went on to dominate the rest of the match. Shot after shot was peppered away by Biblao's goalkeeper, Gorka Iraizoz, who must have went to church twice this week because he was blessed, no less than inspired by the lord today, easily my man of the match.

I wouldn't be so crushed about this game if we would have played as poorly as we did at Osasuna, but Madrid had 31 shots. The football was crisp, it was inventive, there was lots of energy, desire, but there was no goals. Madrid had 71% of the possession. We plugged away time after time only for the ball to be recklessly slashed or bombed away by a red and white striped player. They weren't even clearing balls up toward Llorente, the target forward, most of the time. They were just shooting missiles over our back line for the center backs to collect and restart the attack. After the goal was scored in the third minute, the Basques never even had another shot on target. Bilbao just frustrated us to the point of no return. You could clearly see the fluster on Madrid's faces, particuarlly Ronaldo who tried to take matters into his hands a few too many times. He even let the crowd get to him when he faked throwing a ball toward them.

I'm contemplating sending Pipita a "Get Well Soon" card, but then I changed my mind and went with a "Get Well Now!" card instead. Benzema was just absent today. He had his one effort that dinked off the post but other than that, I think Raul played a bigger part in the match and he came on in the 77th minute. As for other poor performances, I can't help but point the finger at Marcelo, shocking. He just got bullied by big Basque players all match. He looked like a marble in a pinball machine bouncing off everything he got near. I would have made the Guti for Marcelo substitution much earlier. For as soon as Guti came on, he created a unique combination which lead to one of our better chances. It was nice to have Ramos back in the line up. He had some buzz about him today. Lass... not so much. I've seen much better performances from him. Other than that. I really don't have much to complain about the players did well minus the opening three minutes. Kaka perhaps is still just a step behind. Maybe should have done better on that half volley from inside the area the went just wide of the near post and definately should have done better with the square ball accross the box.

Here is where I saw an issue. Bilbao fouled us 20 times. I would have to say at least 90 percent of those fouls were in the attacking half considering that's were about 90% of the game was played (for you math geniuses that's 18 fouls but of course this is an estimate). That gives us 18 set plays to work with. Now add another 9 corners to the equasion. That's 27 set plays that we we got nothing out of. At the beginning of the year, defending set plays was a big problem. Now it may be the attacking set plays that we should be capitalizing on that present a problem. I can hardly remember us scoring from a set piece situation in La Liga other than Garay's winning header at Valencia. Hopefully I have overlooked some. I didn't like free kick play with Ronaldo to Xabi Alonso. your at the edge of the area. Just have a go. Although that same play did work for Guti and Sneijder against Atletico Madrid a couple years ago; it didn't have the same result tonight. The Ronaldo run over and Guti shot was better, at least that one was on target. I was in a grim mood after the final whistle, only to hold back frustration tears when Barca smashed Sevilla 4-0 in a slow boring game that seem to drag on. Sevilla looked awful. Five points back looks mighty depressing from my angle.

In the end, I waited for this match all week and was mortified at the result after seeing the quality of play that Madrid produced. It just kills me to know that if we would have been awake for the first 3 minutes, we would have at least taken a point despite our lack of scoring. A team that looks so promising also looks so frustrating because of the expectations us Madridistas hold our players too. However, if you want the best, you can't expect anything less.

Bobby

Failure at the Brink of Opportunity: Osasuna 0-0 Real Madrid

As soon as everyone gets there hopes up to take top of the league into the hands of Real Madrid, los blancos crack under the pressure. The performance at Osasuna was very ugly when it comes to Madrid's standards. No one really even looked like scoring or even creating chances to score. Besides the break away miss from Higuain (which probably should have never happened in the first place; defender slipped), there was no real threat to the Osasuna goal mouth at all, a couple half chances here and there but nothing that stuck out. Van der Vaart managed to help to goal keeper with some catching practice and Benzema had an effort pushed away. For how high my hopes were, I'm very unsatisfied.

There were a couple "moans of the match" for Madrid. Number one, Marcelo was just shocking. Balls giving away time after time. He was even kind enough to the fans in Pamplona to shoot a souvenir ball in the stands (or was that a shot?). He started several counter attacks for Osasuna as well carelessly giving the ball away. I had said great things about the kid all week and this is how I'm repaid.

My second shocking performance goes out to Lass. What were you doing today man? You are a central midfield player. What is your number one priority? Keep it! We all know you are an exceptional talent on the ball but there is a time and a place. I feel like I'm coaching U10s saying that. There is nothing more disappointing than when it's close to full time, it's nil-nil still, we are pushing for a goal, we have a long string possession, building up an attack, and you come out second best somewhere in the central 3rd because you are trying to dribble.

I realize lately I've been extremely rough on Arbeloa, but he might have been our best player today...at left back. And you know you have problems when your left back is your standout. He was decent defending and useful and attack. He had a pretty set of tricks and maneuvers to spin a couple Osasuna players into their own turf in the first half. A lot better from him I thought (besides his attempt to dive in the corner, that was pathetic) . That's the best I've seen him play in a white shirt. May I say well done Alvaro.

However, enough with the individual performances for now. Let's turn our focus to the match. First half, we were dominated until the last 2 or 3 minutes. We were a step slower, looked sluggish. We fouled as if we weren't quick enough to defend properly. Osasuna carried the play and created chance through our lack of ability to deal with long balls. I can't explain how many times they would bomb a ball deep into our half. I would expect Albiol and Garay to send back missiles via headers. However, Pandiani and others were able to not only win those balls, but to trap them, turn, and find other Osasuna players. And when they did managed to clear the threat, it only went as far as an Osasuna player at midfield without a challenge from a forward. When observing this, frustration was an understatement. Casillas really bailed us out with the save from corner situation that he reacted to save off the line. Sergio Ramos was wearing his lucky boots as he nutmeggingly steered a dangerous cross through the oncoming attacker all in one touch (for those of you who didn't see the match, yes, that actually happened.)

Of course a major talking point is the Ronaldo penalty claim at the end of the first half. At first glance I wasn't convinced. However, I didn't see it very clearly considering I had to watch the match through a shaky, small, blurry, feed. But the replays were more than enough to tell you that he did get clipped. There is not a doubt about that. What may have contributed to the referee's decision to play on was the embellishment part. Ronaldo jumped. He added to what was already a penalty. I mean lots of players would but I think it took away from the authenticity of the foul. Seconds later as another one of a rare attacks was in motion Van der Vaart had a penalty claim of his own. He did get the pass off though which eventually lead to a deflected shot from Xabi Alonso. The referee perhaps played the advantage there.

As far as substitution decisions, I thought they were all pretty valid. I would have done the same except maybe have removed Marcelo earlier and made Raul my last sub. Benzema added a little something when he came on. I feel Granero didn't have enough time to get acclimated to that match, but looked useful in spurts after his late arrival to the game. Raul worked hard but benefited little from his efforts. Pellegrini had the right idea maybe timing was just a little off.

In the end it's a sad conclusion to a day Madrid fans planned to be celebrating. Hats off to Osasuna. They thwarted our plans to go top of the league and did it very effectively. Madrid will be kicking themselves for not picking up the points Barcelona dropped yesterday and will be begging for another slip up from the Catalans while at the same time trying to correct what went wrong in the performance today.

Bobby