We Cry With You Casillas

He lived up to his title of San Casillas. The wings flapped out and the hands blessed by the gods of football blocked countless missiles fired from the ‘Reds’. However, with all his heart and might he could not stop the four goals that were shot passed him. It is a pity that our phenomenal keeper would have to walk out of Anfield the way that he did, with frustration and tears.

He was the only one who was at the height of this match, the only one who left everything on the field, and the only one who represented the badge with honor and dignity.  Every other player dressed in white has made a mockery of the Madridismo and what was displayed last night was unforgivable. An utterly atrocious performance and for the fifth  consecutive year the European dream is cut prematurely.  They left a poor and sorry image in Europe once again, but this defeat has to be one of the most degrading  defeats I have ever witnessed. One thing is to loose with our credibility in tact, but another is to not fight and be humiliated in such an outrageous manner. The only one that came out of Anfield with his credibility and the respect of the fans is Iker Casillas. He is one of the few players that truly feels the colors of this club and his tears are evidence of that. 

Grande Iker!!! Es el orgullo del Madridismo!!!

 

*The wound is still fresh but it must be said, Liverpool played stunning football and really did school Madrid on how a Champions League match is played. They were a flawless machine from head to toe that wanted it more from the first minute till the very last dying seconds. Hats off to Benitez and his boys.

Milan to Play the Santiago Bernabeu Cup

This where my heart begins to divide when I have to see two of my beloved clubs face each other for a cup. Thankfully it is just a sweet little pre season friendly match. Although nothing has been confirmed Galliani has said that there is great probability that Milan could play against Madrid this summer. They have the same sponsors so there most likely would be no problems in getting the deal closed. A very interesting match indeed with the return of the much beloved Seedorf and Ronaldinho who lived one of his most memorable nights at the Santiago Bernabeu.

All of Madrid Celebrates

Its hard to be an Atletico supporter because you never know what you are going to get from your team. They are a mixed bag full of surprises. One day its all bad football and the next they play the game of their life. Thankfully against Barcelona they played their hearts out and delivered probably the best match of the whole season. 7 goals and a lot of drama, really nothing new to an Atleti-Barca clash, but this time all of Madrid cheered and celebrated with their victory.

Before the match there was the whole Messi vs. Kun debate on who would be the star of the match, and I think its easy to say that Kun was brilliant especially in the second half. No one from Barcelona could stop him. He was a mad man on a mission and stormed through all of Barcelona’s defence, cracked the backs of the Azulgrana, and pleased all of the Calderon with his goals. Mission accomplished Kun! While Messi with some sparks of individualism was able to fire some light into a lackluster Barcelona, there was no taking the spot light off of the brilliant Kun. However, Forlan must not be forgotten for he was also utterly amazing. His first goal simply left me speechless and his second goal left me without a voice after screaming my lungs out. Now if only Atleti could just fix their sorry defence which has been their Achilles heel for so long. I think the question on everyone’s mind is why Pablo still is featured on this team.

To the surprise of many Madrid are now only 4 points behind Barcelona and still there is so much more Liga left to play. So this is where La Liga becomes fascinating and where little details will define who in the end takes the prize home. To think these both teams still have to play Atletico Madrid (Madrid still has to face them), Villareal, Valencia (who’s on a free fall), Sevilla, and most importantly have to face each other in El Classico…oh what a finale awaits us.

One Foot Outside of the Champions League

It is apparent that Real Madrid still has not learned the lessons of the past and now is stuck in a very complicated situation. Maybe they believed their own hype and under appreciated their rival or the decima is not meant to be just yet. Whatever the case may be it now seems Madrid are doomed to be eaten alive at the sacred grounds of Anfield. A 0-0 result may not have been an ideal score but it would have been better than a 0-1 defeat which pretty much kills any chances of at least going through to the next round. First off it is quite obvious that the calamity of the Lass-Huntalaar signup confusion has played its role in Madrid’s performance. Huntalaar was key in the last two matches where Madrid had showed improvement in their game and against Liverpool it was apparent that his presence was sorely missed. With Huntalaar there was an assurance of goals but better yet he opened the spaces for Higuain and Raul to move through while he distracted the defense. Simply put Madrid were a more forward minded team with the tall Dutch boy. Too bad he had too watch the match from his couch. Then there is Juande’s mistake of taking off Marcelo, in a newly discovered position, had played a good first half. With the entrance of Guti Madrid loss attacking power up front. Guti one of those frustrating geniuses that when the light bulb clicks on are purely magic and splendor, however, that is only when he feels like turning the light bulb on and that’s where Guti’s problem lies. Therefore you never know what you are going to get with Don Guti. Another problem came with Juande’s lack of ambition or daringness. With the time and ideas running out Juande never dared to put in Sneijder or Van der Vaart, who either one of them could have offered a little something extra to the attack. Towards the end it was quite visible that there was a huge gap between the two strikers and those who are supposed to deliver creativity. There was a fracture which led to disorganization and lack of possession. We began to see sloppy passes and desperation leading to errors like the one Heinze committed in a very dangerous zone. Free kick and Benayoun’s goal. A goal from one of Liverpool’s shortest players; I find it hard to believe that at this stage such silly mistakes in defending could cause Madrid’s elimination once again.

Now to 'thrash' Liverpool at Anfield?

Benitez, the genius that he is set up a tactically defensive team, which for the most part was looking for a scoreless draw, and now ends up returning to Liverpool with a very satisfying result. Liverpool they never seize to amaze me and at the Bernabeau they proved why the Champions League always suits them to perfection. Although there are 90 minutes left to this game it certainly looks like the Reds have one foot set in the next round while Madrid can add another year of European failure. Madrid will have to grow a pair and leave their heart, blood, and tears at Anfield in order to win. However, even with all of that it may not be enough to bring down Liverpool. For the moment the road to Rome looks much further away and almost intangible.

Far From Over

I look at the picture above and I still cannot believe what may eyes are looking at. What seemed like an indestructible team had fallen in its own soil and no one ever expected. Barca was a solid block that showed no signs of breaking not a single crack. However, now the impossible looks possible and all thanks to their inner city rival Espanyol.   Espanyol took Barcelona off the high horse and brought them back to reality. No team is unbeatable. Once again Espanyol has been a torment for Barcelona and the demons of the 2006-2007 Liga seem to reappear for Barcelona. Madrid scored six goal but the Bernabeu celebrated 8 goals that night. What seemed like a comfortable cushion between them and their eternal rival is cut down to only 7 points and La Liga begins to sizzle. And although 7 points is still quite a distance one has to remember that just a month ago everyone was already handing Barcelona the title, but now the seeds of doubt are planted and one begins to question if Madrid can actually pull it off and bring down one of the best Barcelona teams in the history of their existence. I personally think that Barcelona still have it in them to win it, but I now have what I didn’t have just a week ago, and that is hope. We all know that when Madrid get inspired and injected with faith they turn into a machine that will destroy whatever is in their way to get at what they so desire. So not only does this bring hope that Madrid will obtain a hold of La Liga, but most importantly defeat Liverpool and take one step closer to reaching la decima.