Real Madrid – Barcelona: The Clasicos are back...

...and there is no place to hide.

It was the 3^rd of May; Real Madrid just got eliminated from the Champions League in the semifinals by Barcelona. That game also brought an end to a tumultuous 18 days for the fans of Madrid and Barcelona in particular and the fans of football worldwide in general. A series of four clasicos in a span of just 18 days. It has never happened before. Judging by the tension, unsportsmanlike behavior from players on each side, coaches sniping at each other with verbal volleys and so forth, many a fan wished it never happen again. It was gripping drama that took so much out of the players and fans. It was the theater that showcased some of the best and the worst faces of all those involved. Despite all the negativity (that bordered on nasty at times) that permeated the days in the buildup to the games and the immediate aftermath of them, there was no doubt that the world was watching. It felt like one of those reality shows where you knew what was coming but still wanted to watch it anyway for the evil pleasure.

If you thought you had seen it all, fast forward 3 months to August and we are less than a week away from another Clasico. Madrid and Barcelona will resume their rivalry over two legs for the Spanish Super Cup on August 14^th at the Bernabeu and August 17^th at the Camp Nou. That’s two more clasicos in a span of 4 days. These games can’t come soon enough for hardcore fans. The neutrals are probably grumbling that they have to endure the blanket coverage and all the negativity that is associated with them. Yet, everyone will watch them because Real Madrid and Barcelona are arguably the two best football teams on the planet.

New signings

Both Real Madrid and Barcelona were involved in protracted transfer sagas this summer. Depending on who you talk to, Real Madrid have either missed out on Kun Aguero or it is a smart non-signing. The case of Neymar is a bit more complicated as the player and his current club have been sending mixed signals about when and if the player would move to Real Madrid. The latest on this is that Neymar will join Real Madrid in December after playing the Club World Cup with Santos. Apart from Neymar, Real Madrid have strengthened their side with Portuguese winger/left-back Fabio Coentrão from Benfica, Turkish midfielder Nuri Sahin from Borussia Dortmund and the young French defender Varane from RC Lens. They have also got Hamit Altinop for ‘free’ in the Nuri Sahin deal, who came in injured and after a undergoing a fairly complex back surgery will be about for at least 3-4 months of the season. Bizarre story, but anything is possible in the parallel world of football player market controlled by a few powerful and unscrupulous agents. Making way for them are Sergio Canales (loaned to Valencia), Ezequiel Garay (sold 50% to Benfica) and the impending departures Royston Drenthe, Pedro Leon and Lass. There is also a big question mark on the role of Kaka in this new Madrid but that topic deserves an article of its own. There is also the talk of Mourinho wanting to re-sign Emanuel Adebayor before the end of the transfer deadline.
All in all Real Madrid have strengthened their squad. There are more players that Mourinho can ‘count on’ than last year when he still had to do with mostly signings from a previous regime.

If Real Madrid’s transfer season has been protracted, Barcelona’s is worse. The new regime of austerity ushered in by president Sandro Rosell meant the negotiations for even the smallest of the pickups like signing a player for Barcelona B have taken forever. They signed Chilean winger/forward Alexis Sanchez from Udinese after more than a month of negotiations in a very complex deal laden with incentives. And then there is the soap opera of Cesc Fabregas. It feels like this has been running longer than Baywatch or Santa Barbara.

This issue can be explained in 3 simple sentences.

• The player wants to go to Barcelona.
• Barcelona wants to get him but not at any price.
• Arsenal are willing to sell but not at any price.

There hasn’t been a significant change in the positions of any of them for the past 3 years. A poster child of how and why negotiations fail. The United Nations must be proud of how they are trying to not find a solution here. Of all three, the player probably is the least to blame and Barcelona the most. But sadly, the worst affected by the impasse are the player and Arsenal respectively.

Jeffren (sold to Sporting Lisbon), Bojan (loaned to AS Roma), Gaby Milito (let go on a free to Independiente, Argentina) are the players who have departed the team.

While Barça have upgraded their forward line with the addition of Alexis Sanchez, they have done precious little to shore up their defence. But since they tend to dip into their ‘cantera’ (youth system), they might be ok but there is no doubt they have a thinner squad and lesser margin for injury compared to Real Madrid.

Preseason

Real Madrid have taken their preseason very seriously. They have won all the 7 preseason games and scored 27 goals in all. Benzema and Ronaldo are in mid-season form along with Mesut Özil. Fabio Coentrão seems to have gelled with the team quickly and could force either Marcelo or Di Maria out of the starting lineup very soon. One of the few sour notes are the injuries to Sahin, who injured one of his knee on the first day of training and when he was finally ready to play a preseason game last week in China, he injured his other knee. The lackluster displays from Kaka are a cause for concern too. Since he doesn’t have a starting spot anymore, Madrid would probably like to loan/sell him but suitors balk at his high wages.

In contrast, Barcelona’s preseason hasn’t been as smooth. They started the training camp one week later than Real Madrid, probably due to the fact that they played in the final of the Champions League. To make matters more complicated some of their main players like Messi, Alves and Alexis were involved in the Copa America and haven’t taken part in any of the preseason games. They have lost a couple of preseason games and drawn a couple more. All this makes it even harder to gauge their level at this point. Thiago Alcantara was by far their best player in the preseason. But it is evident that they are not at the same level of fitness or rhythm as Real Madrid are. The part about rhythm is very important because if any team needs to have their timing and rhythm going for playing well, it is Barcelona. Their short and triangular passing to move the ball up the field is predicated on timing.

The Games

While Real Madrid seems to have their starting lineup almost decided barring injury, it will be interesting to see if Guardiola will start the likes of Messi or Alves who haven’t played a minute in preseason. The key to the first leg will be the approach of Real Madrid and the tactics of Mourinho. If he chooses to play cautiously as he did in the first leg of Champions League last year, he will play right into the hands of Barça. I believe Mourinho should go for the throat in the 1^st leg as Barcelona will come in rusty and might need a game or two to warm up, especially someone like Messi. I would like to see the Real Madrid of Copa del Rey final. Barcelona would be happy with draw in this game.
Lineup highlights: Neither Messi nor Alves will start; Thiago will start in place of Messi. Coentrão will start in midfield in place of Di Maria.
1^st leg Prediction: 2-0 Real Madrid.

The 2^nd leg will be conditioned by the result of the 1^st leg. If Real Madrid comes in with an advantage, they might lineup very defensively and try to nick a goal on the counter. Since I predicted a Madrid win in the 1^st leg, I expect Barcelona to be much closer to their 100% but I doubt they will be able to overturn a margin greater than 1 goal.

Lineup highlights: Messi and Alves will start. Alexis will get his first minutes. Coentrão will start again ahead of Di Maria for Real Madrid.
2^nd leg Prediction: 2-1 Barcelona.

Conclusion

Real Madrid will lift the Super Cup

Who ever wins, will claim it as a moral victory and emphasize the positive impact it will have on the upcoming season. The loser will try to brush it aside as little more than a glorified preseason tourney. The truth probably lies somewhere in between.

Drama and excitement are assured. Hopefully the teams will tone down the negativity and the nastiness a few notches.

For more content about the transfers and the Spanish summer, check this out.

First Leg @ Bernabeu 4pm Eastern 1pm Pacific ESPN3.com & ESPNDeportes

Second Leg @ Camp Nou 5pm Eastern 2pm Pacific ESPN3.com & ESPNDeportes

Barcelona in Buenos Aires

It´s a much bandied about term. We´ll have them playing like FC Barcelona. It´s not so easy to implement though. Checho Batista, the much beleaguered Argentine coach, said that the best way to take advantage of the skills of their best player was to have him comfortable in a system he is familiar with. He hand picked his side, surrounding him with players that he said were analogues for Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets and Pedro. Well, we´re all aware of the massive failure that the Barcelona experiment has become. We are also aware that in an attempt to save his job let alone his reputation, Batista will turn to Messi the playmaker and entrust the rest of the Copa America to his forward line of Higuain, Di Maria and Aguero. It´s an admission at fault and it places Messi in a position finally that he certainly can´t fill. He is no playmaker. He´s a modern false-9. El Diez does not exist anymore. He is not Diego, but to win he has to become Diego?

The sad fact is that if there were any country capable of turning to that style where possession means more than athleticism, and where smallish players have a place it is Argentina. They have a long history of producing the sorts of players that fit the Xavi and Iniesta role. The problem is, does anyone coaching today have the guts to put Messi and a guy like Pablo Aimar together in the same attack? Is Saviola that much worse in attack than Lavezzi? Forget players that haven´t featured in years for the albiceleste. What does it mean that the best playmaker they have is sitting on the bench and hasn´t featured at all? You don´t think Pastore would link up better with Messi than the workmanlike pair, the static wonders of Esteban Cambiasso and Ever Banega? I understand one holding central midfielder in that Barca role, Javier Mascherano is already familiar with it, but three? It´s no wonder they aren´t effective. They have no width and no movement off the ball, two key components to Barcelona´s attack.

People complained of Maradona´s experiment in the World Cup with essentially four central defenders at one time, but this is worse. The onus of their entire Copa Ámerica campaign falls to Messi and as good of a player as he is, he cannot be three distinct players at once. He cannot be himself, while also taking on the characteristics of Xavi and Iniesta. And so he fails and people in his homeland question his dedication, his respect and desire for his country. Is it that he doesn´t have ¨the fire or spirit or the cojones that Maradona played with?¨ There´s your problem really. They compare him with Diego because he has a similar skill set, but in today´s game Diego would be playing on the wing. He would be looking for combinations with his team-mates. In today´s tactical game, with two holding mid-fielders in play geared to stopping those forward runs centrally in front of goal, Diego Maradona wouldn´t be El Diez either. So why should Lio?

You see, the failure of the Barcelona experiment is such that Argentina will just entrench themselves in their staid, traditional game, looking for the next Maradona, when the solution is not to become less like Barcelona but more.

La Liga Round-Up

Important life lessons, fatalism is good for you and God exists all in this week’s La Liga roundup.

Every once in a while the humble La Liga offers a life lesson. No not that a pigs head doesn’t make a good missile nor even that its probably not a good idea to spend nearly a billion euros on a squad of players then bugger the pitch they play on by infecting it with a BP style oil spill. No, rather that some things, like Paris Hilton going to jail or the Tories being out of power are too good to last. Alas, Atletico de Madrid’s title challenge of 2010/11 is no more.

After three months of unparalleled success including two European trophies, a cup final, somehow keeping one Uruguayan legend called Diego, then gaining another and after two victories which meant three weeks worth of opportunity to look at the table and see themselves atop it, Atelti fans are back to that familiar feeling of disappointment.

In fairness they were never even in the match and their potential challenge for the title was not the story. The story of the evening was scandal. Pep Guardiola wanted to reflect on what he described as a ‘scandalously good’ Barca performance, a first victory for him in three league visits to the Calderon. However, the ‘scandal’ that covered pages, front and back, across the planet on Monday morning was the sight of poor, little, defenceless Leo Messi’s ankle buckled under caveman looking Czech Thomas Ujfalusi’s studs. A sight so distressing that Argentina Football World described it as killing Bambi or Bambi’s mum, either way you get the point.

Ujfalusi immediately claimed the injury was down to bad luck rather than malice and apologised to Messi (via the phone of team-mate Kun Aguero) but the shocking images of Messi’s ankle blown up to thrice its normal size does again raise the issue of protection for small, skilful players. It is an interesting observation that when incidents like this happen in Spain the mainstream press immediately call for double-digit match suspensions, whereas in England, when an Arsenal player’s leg is snapped in half Arsene Wenger is criticised for ‘whinging’ about player protection.

Thankfully, Messi’s injury will only keep him out for around two weeks and with home fixtures against Sporting Gijon and Mallorca followed by an international break it is only on the tricky trips to the San Mames to face Athletic and to Russia for a reacquaintance with Rubin Kazan that Messi should be missed.

Messi’s injury also overshadowed what was in truth an absolute mauling. The Champions have responded in Champions fashion with two sublime performances since the amazing defeat to Hercules.

On the bright side for Atelti there were some obscure positives to take form the game.

1.They wont play Barca every week.

2.In days gone by Atleti might have collapsed and lost by a barrow load. See 5-2 and 6-1 defeats to Barca in the past two years and a 6-0 humiliation at the Calderon in 2007.

3.The reason Atletico didn’t collapse was David De Gea. The 19-year-old was fantastic and gives Los Rojiblancos the solid base they have been lacking for years (not mentioning any names………Leo Franco)

4.Expectation is Ateltico’s worst enemy. What is worse than being constantly disappointed? Being constantly disappointed when you don’t expect to be let down. For years Atelti fans have developed a sense of fatalism, a sort of constant anaesthetic to the inevitable pain. Hence, the ‘Daddy, why do we support Atelti?’ ads. The successful end to a overall poor campaign last season followed by an impressive summer transfer window and a bright start to this season had seen Atleti fans get way too far ahead of themselves. Now with a giant Catalan pin having been stuck in the balloon of hype and optimism, Atelti can concentrate on more realistic goals. Principally, Champions League qualification and a stab at retaining their Europa League crown.

Challenging Atletico for third place behind the big two will be Valencia. At the start of the season I couldn’t see how they could maintain their status without their two stars called David. However, they still have the flair and goals that many teams in La Liga lack. Two more screamers from Mata and Pablo Hernandez proved that at the weekend as they overpowered (sorry couldn’t resist) Hercules. They will struggle with playing twice every week from now on and will inevitably have the Valencian mid-season slump but at the moment they look well on track to qualify for the last-16 of the Champions League and be strong contenders to compete in it again next year.

Real Madrid won 2-1 at Real Sociedad. Real were pretty fortunate to come away with all three points and not just because their winning goal was so fluky even Ronaldo was disgusted with his effort as it cannoned off Pepe’s (fortunately restored shaven) head and looped over Claudio Bravo. Even better news for ‘San Cristiano’ (Marca have relegated him from God to just a saint after a dodgy start to the season) were the words of everybody’s favourite WAG, Sara Carbonero “Cristiano Ronaldo siempre ha sido así, egoísta e individualista en el campo y el Real Madrid ya le fichó así"….’Cristiano has always been an egotist and an individualist’…finally a female football journalist who knows what she’s talking about, take note Sky Sports girls!

The good news for all La Liga fans is the return of Sociedad to the top league. As Sid Lowe says this week a proper team in a proper stadium with proper fans. From my one solitary visit to Anoeta I have to concur.

Surprisingly, Depor and Getafe played out a cracker, sort of, in La Liga’s latest unenthusiastic version of Monday Night Football. If only they had the technology of Andy Gray and Richard Keys….oh wait that was meant to say Thank Christ they at least don’t have Andy Gray and Richard Keys. In the words of LaLigaLoca‘The earth rumbles and lions lie down with lambs! A goal for Depor. Not a proper one mind. A penalty converted by Guardado’ x 2. And just when everyone had finished booking their eye-tests having seen ‘Depor 2’ on the screen Arizmendi scored a beauty for Getafe! The pope was right on secularism there must be some explanation to all this.

In slightly less surprising news Osasuna still haven’t scored this season (oh the thought of Osasuna-Depor this season. That’s 180 minutes that should be put to some use like as a prison sentence or even better make those bloody bankers watch it then terrorise them with the thought that if the fuck up again we’ll fix the draw for the Copa Del Rey and make the bastards watch it again…that’ll teach ‘em) anyway at least Jose Antionio Camacho can still show his face in public…sort of

This week’s results in full

Espanyol 1-0 Almería
Mallorca 2–0 Osasuna
Sporting 2–2 Athletic
Real Sociedad 1–2 Real Madrid
Hércules 1–2 Valencia
Racing 2–0 Zaragoza
Levante 1–2 Villarreal
Atlético 1–2 Barcelona
Málaga 1–2 Sevilla
Deportivo 2 – 2 Getafe

By Kieran Canning

Messi Gol Part Deaux

Is someone laughing at us? Is there someone at the controls of life? Is God a cule? Well, if he's not, he's certainly a native of Buenos Aires. It's ironic that in the same year that Lionel Messi scores a goal to rival the best of Maradona that scant weeks later he replicates the worst that my namesake Diego Armando in Hand of God. It almost worked, Barcelona was 18 seconds from pulling away from their rivals, playing sublimely against well matched rivals Espanyol, but all anyone I knew wanted to talk about was the cheating Argie that emulates his hero just a tad too closely.

Well, I won't bore you with an old salt like, "Anyone who isn't cheating doesn't care enough" but we soccer fans tend to put way too much of the blame for football's ills on the cheating, diving, whining Latins who have defiled the proper British sport of football.

Frankly, it happens everywhere I've been and in every league I've seen, but Argentina it seems has a past that rears its ugly head, from Maradona to Simeone, or Kun Aguero to Messi this year. The heart of a Carlos Tevez, the ball skills of Pablito Aimar or El Conejo Saviola, or the guts of a Javier Mascherano are overshadowed by the darker side of their game: one of gamesmanship, professional fouls, negative tactics and time-wasting.

The fact is that a great player from south of the Andes is measured not only by what he can bring to the ball but by what he can do without it. One minute Aimar can pull off a move that will break an opponents ankles, but seconds later he can win a penalty like the one he won against Madrid this weekend, where he trips on himself a foot after he passes Helguera in the area. I guess we need to realize whether we like it or not that the games is and has always been about the balancing both sides of "the Force."

The Next Maradona

Diego Maradona was arguably, and I hate blogging about him in the past tense because despite hepatitis and an alcohol problem he is still very much with us, one of the best if not the best soccer players ever to play the game. Argentina has had a love affair with him on the level, and oddly  enough in the same manner, that they had with Eva Peron. I won't go into the gist of that  history. Suffice it to say: they crazy.

Almost from the beginning with Boca Juniors the Argentinian press and the public have worried, fretted about, and prayed (and preyed) for a successor. Each new Argentinian wunderkind to come out of the Boca or River academy (which constitutes every other club in Argentina by the way) is dubbed "the next Maradona" and sent on his way to play in Spain or Italy. We've seen since retirement, easily 15 new Maradonas.

The lineage is striking, a group of great Argentinian players like his contemporaries Ariel Ortega, Marcello Gallardo, Gabriel Batistuta, to youger models like Hernan Crespo, Javier Saviola, Pablo Aimar, Juan Roma Riquelme, or even younger still like Carlos Tevez, or Kun Aguero. Some if not all of them at any given time have been given the term "next Maradona" by the master himself. Most of us just laughed to ourselves and called it Diego was talking to himself again. No one believed him.

Until he said it again this past week, about Barcelona youngster Lionel Messi. Now don't believe me, but look at his goal (it's on google or youtube) and tell me if that's not Diego circa Mexico '86.

I won't go as far as to say that the goal was better than Maradona's. It was great, and Messi did finish it from a harder angle, but you have to factor who he did it against.

Getafe are a small neighborhood cousin of Real Madrid, and while they have had an excellent La Liga campaign and they are one of its best defensive teams, you cannot compare the level of defending to what Diego faced in the England squad of Mexico '86.

Still, none of those other "next Maradonas" had the goal. Messi's goal this week was a Hollywood reimagining of a timeless classic, not Casablanca recolored or Psycho reshot, but one that is as good as the original and comes at the beginning and not so close to the dire end of a remarkable career.

Lionel Messi may be the "next Maradona" or he may not, but I guarantee you that there are going to be youngsters born this week, this month or this year, and for many years to come with the unattainable moniker of the "next Messi".