What a Difference a Week Makes...

After a historic victory, in which Madrid thrashed Valladolid 7-0, the team came back and lost with an unimpressive performance against Real Betis. The loss, combined with Barcelona’s controversial victory against Zaragoza, has once again opened up the league by shrinking Madrid’s lead to five points in the table.

After a very quick lead, Madrid began to sit back and Betis put in two in five minutes, mostly due to two blunders by Marcelo. After that Betis parked the bus in front of goal and Madrid couldn’t get anything going offensively.

It might not be a bad thing to get humbled heading into the Champions League. Coming off a 7-0 victory, the team might’ve been experiencing a little euphoria, especially with all the talk that the league was over. Now they know that they are going to have to work really hard and step up their game both in league and in Europe.

One positive that I took from the last two games was the emergence of two Dutch giants. One is already one of soccer’s elite, the other is emerging into one. I’m talking about Arjen Robben and Royston Drenthe.

We here at American Madridistas had become very critical of Robben, saying that his purchase may have been one of the biggest blunders in recent transfer windows. While this is still entirely possible, he showed everyone that he wants and deserves a place in Madrid. We mostly criticized the economic side of the transfer, we all know that he is a world class player when fit, but if he can give the team what he gave over the last two games then he will be worth every penny. With the addition of Robben in the squad Madrid have an actual winger who can provide service into the strikers. This gives the team more options on the attack and it gives the opposition more to deal with. This is especially important considering that it is only a matter of time before more teams figure out that to stop Madrid you simply have to shut down their center midfield.

Speaking of Madrid’s future, we were all shown a glimpse into one of the future stars in Royston Drenthe. He was signed to the team after a dominant performance for the Dutch Under-21 team. He scored in Madrid’s last two games, and has shown the pace and flash for which he was brought.

The two Dutchmen combined to score Madrid’s only goal over the weekend.

I didn’t agree with Schuster’s decision to take out Drenthe because at that point the wings became nullified and Guti had been wholly ineffective throughout that entire match. The problem is that without wings, Madrid relies too much on Guti’s through passes. When he has the space he needs he is deadly but when opposition shut him down the offense basically stops. Julio Baptista has been a good second option but with the injury to Ruud Van Nistelrooy, the Beast has been pushed forward. Madrid needs wing players to expand their attack.

Let’s see what Schuster decides for the clash in Rome.

They Just Keep on Winning

With style or with out, Madrid are on a historic run right now. They have the most league points to this stage of the campaign in their history. They almost have a double digit point lead on the second place team Barcelona. Not only that, but they have a confidence and a swagger that can’t be seen in any other side at the moment in Spain. They are coming off a crucial victory in La Liga in which all of their closest rivals dropped points while they gained three very valuable points. The game was not only important from a league table perspective but also from a performance basis. This was the first game in a while where the regular starters played and won with a true team performance. The last few weeks they had been relying too heavily on miracle saves from Iker Casillas and deadly strikes from Robinho and Ruud Van Nistelroy. However on Sunday everyone stepped up their game.

One player that made a very significant improvement was Fernando Gago. He was winning balls and making excellent passes, including a phenomenal flick to Sneijder which led to the game winning goal.

Also in the middle of the park, Guti had a very positive performance. He tends to be on and off but on Sunday he was most definitely on. His assist to Robinho was brilliant and his overall game play and passing was spot on.

As has been the case lately, Robinho is to be commended for a brilliant performance. He has transformed into a phenom on the pitch. Finally all the promise is coming to fruition.

The defense was rock solid and a special recognition should be made to Michel Salgado who played his heart out and only came out due to injuries.

There are a few out there who are beginning to whisper that with the victory over the weekend, Madrid may have all but wrapped up the league. I for one don’t agree with this sentiment and in fact it is this type of thinking that could ultimately lead to the team’s demise. However that fighting spirit that was kindled under Capello has lingered with this bunch and one gets a sense that they’ll continue to fight for every game until the season ends.

One interesting thought about this game and the next few to come. What is Schuster to do with Arjen Robben? The team is solid right now and throwing Robben in the mix could hurt the chemistry that is building between the regular staring eleven. Also with no more Cup games, Robben will have to build back his form and confidence in league games or heaven forbid a Champions League tie.

Things look good and are going well but let’s not forget to stay humble because at this time last year we were looking up to Barcelona.

First Half in Review

Now that the the dust has settled in the Nou Camp and the first half of Madrid's season has ended, let's review what the team has done up to this point:

Best Game:
Madrid v. Villareal September 2, 2007

The best game of the year was only the second game of the season for Madrid. Coming off an impressive debut against Atletico Madrid, the team put on a show at El Madrigal.

The game was the complete package for fans as the first half was thrilling back and forth action between two very even teams. But then in the second half Madrid completely dismantled their opponents and put five balls behind the net. This game was not only visually great, but it was also huge psychologically because it put all of Europe on high alert; no one really knew at this point what Schuster's Madrid were going to be like.




Best Signing:
Wesley Sneijder

The young Dutchman came much to the relief of Madrid fans as he filled two critical areas for the team: a creative midfielder and a dead ball specialist. He quickly became a fan favorite when he was instrumental in Madrid's early victories and after the first few games was the leading goal scorer in La Liga. After his initial goal scoring explosion, he cooled down a bit and instead has taken a more supportive role, but he has nonetheless become a vital member of the squad.



Most Improved:
Robinho

This was a very difficult category to choose but in the end, Robinho gets the nod for several reasons. Before this season Robhino was constantly criticized for his inability to turn his potential into a reality. This seemed to all change during the Copa America where he was made one of the central figures in Brazil's offense and Robinho absolutely flourished in the role. He brought that confidence and spirit back with him to Spain when the season commenced and hasn't looked back.

The man is everywhere on the attack, looking dangerous when he shoots and when he creates for others. His pace, power and finesse make for a deadly combination on the pitch. Watching last year's Clasico over the weekend, where Robinho was having trouble cracking the starting eleven, and comparing that to this year made it very clear who the most improved was.


Best Player:
Iker Casillas

Another extremely difficult category to choose considering what great performances many on the squad have turned in, in the end "San Iker", as he's been called for his miraculous saves, wins out.

No other player has changed the outcome of games as Casillas. He is often forgotten because he doesn't put the ball in the back of the net but without this rock in between the posts Madrid would not find themselves atop La Liga. This is especially true when one considers how shaky Madrid's defense was in the beginning of year.


So far this has been a list of only positives so here are some areas for improvement:


Inconsistent Play:
One week they'll look dangerous and free flowing, the next they'll grind out a one nil victory and not impress in the least.

Schuster and Calderon's Comments:
Schuster comparing Madrid to Roger Federer and Calderon saying that Messi wouldn't crack Madrid's starting eleven are both ridiculous and irritating. The only thing they are accomplishing is adding fuel to the fire for Madrid's opponents. As if they aren't already fired up to play Real Madrid, teams now have the incentive to make management eat their words. Please just shut up and let the scores do the talking.

Signing Arjen Robben:
All that needs to be said has been said in a prior post so it need not be repeated now, but the fact that it is late December and he has yet to play a game completely match fit is alarming. Hopefully he will have a second half that makes all the critics take back what they've said.


It's been a fantastic first half of the season for all the right reasons. Last year's first half was fascinating but mostly because of the saga that was Capello. This year the focus has been on the pitch where it needs to be.

Here's to an even better second half.

2008 Wish List Part I: Lulinha

Madrid are almost incessantly linked to high priced transfer talent, ranging from Didier Drogba to Diego to Kaka.

Madrid is behind a lot of the top European talent in terms of future stars, and they should try to stockpile as much young talent as possible in order to find their Giovani dos Santos, Bojan, or Alexandre Pato. Madrid simply don't have anyone near that level, and there are several young players that could be on that level that Madrid should target in the coming year.

The first such player is Lulinha, (Luiz Marcelo Morais dos Reis), born in Maua, Brazil on April 10, 1990.

Already being dubbed the "The new Ronaldinho" by Fifa.com, this 17 year-old world-beater is well on his way to a big-time transfer in the near future.

The 17 year-old just recently committed his future to his Brazilian club Corinthians, and it will *keep* him with the club until December 31, 2012. The four-and-a-half year deal will reportedly pay him the equivalent of £24million, an amazing sum for the young star. Lulinha actually rejected advances from top European talent, namely Chelsea and also Inter Milan, so it will be a project to get him to leave before the end of his contract.

Corinthians President Andres Sanchez, understandably proud of being able to keep top world clubs at bay, said after the signing, "Now to take him off Corinthians, the interested club would have to pay $50 million American dollars, and the player has 25 per cent of his rights."

This kind of statement, while some may read it as saying the player is off-limits, I interpret as an admission that Lulinha can be had, for the right price. People that are curious may note that, for a club dealing in euros, $50 million is a shrinking figure, and certainly not an outrageous sum for Madrid to pay for a young player.

Need I remind anyone of the two headscratchers of the past year, namely the 20 million euro transfer fee payed by Madrid for little known midfielder Fernando Gago, as well the outrageous 30 million euro transfer paid for little known defender Pepe. Neither was rated anywhere near Lulinha's stratosphere, but the Madrid brass deemed them worth those hefty transfer fees.

Madrid have the money, as well as the gall, to pay 34.7 million euros for a player who's unproven at the highest level. He is, according to a Fifa.com article, blessed, "With his breathtaking cocktail of flicks and tricks, defence-splitting through-balls and assured finishing, the 17-year-old, who is equally at home in an attacking midfield role or operating as a second forward, is every bit the classic Brazilian No10." He's about as good a bet to be worth a big time transfer as anyone, much like Sergio Ramos was when Madrid paid Sevilla crazy money back in 2005. That's worked out nicely I would say.