Real Madrid started off knowing that this was going to be a very, very difficult game. They went out attacking Barcelona with all they've got. Starting with Iker Casillas, Alvaro Arbeloa, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Fabio Coentrao, Lassana Diarra, Xabi Alonso, Mesut Ozil, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain they knew what the mission was.
Starting off strong with shots coming from Higuain, Ozil, Ronaldo, and Kaka, Real Madrid were just not able to score. Then things started to go wrong as Pedro scored in the 43rd minute after being unmarked and recieving a smart pass from Lionel Messi. Madrid kept trying, but things got even more complicated as Dani Alves scored a "golazo" on the 45th minute making the tie look as good as over.
Second half was a new story as both teams kept attacking and Real Madrid putting more pressure than ever to finally score on the 68th minute with a great goal by Ronaldo and then just a few minutes later, Benzema scored to make it 2-2. 18 minutes left and Real Madrid needed one more goal, that is when things went wrong.
Fouls, penalties, unfair play, a goal and everything! They all went against Madrid and it was all similar territory once again. The referee was clearly favoring Barcelona after a disallowed goal from Sergio Ramos and a very clear 'textbook' penalty not counted, they kept trying. And the unfair refereeing never stopped. Why? No one knows I guess but, yet again, Real Madrid find themselves knocked out of a cup against the Catalans because of the referee. Something seriously has to be done!
How can it be that two seasons in a row, during the games where Real Madrid fully deserve a win, the referee makes sure it doesn't happen? Is someone from Barcelona bribing them? I honestly doubt it seeing that Barcelona are one of the biggest teams in the world, they wouldn't go to that level would they? I guess we'll never really know...
Real Madrid played beautiful football (excluding Pepe because he was simply a disgrace) .. They tried, they didn't give up in a match that many thought is as good as over. They were the better team but football didn't agree with us.
From the whole game, putting aside the referee, I have two major complaints: Pepe and, what I want to call, the "Mystery of Madrid"
Pepe needs to realize what team he's playing for and stop trying to be "Madrid's Busquets". He was awful with the elbowing, fouling, and the diving! Fine, this could benefit us if we get a good foul or maybe even injure Messi perhaps, but it's not worth it. He needs to respect the crest on his shirt and play pure football! I'm really hoping Jose Mourinho has a good talk or something with him.
Real Madrid are known for their fighting spirit, yes. But last night's game was simply amazing! My question is the following: Why do they fight so hard when they realize that everything is against them? The whole 'underdog' status could be talked about here, but they need to keep this spirit in every game because then, and only then, we will be unstoppable (a reference to the ref needs to be made here since he is apparently proving we're not unstoppable). They need to keep this game in mind when focusing on the future of the season.
Real Madrid are out of the Copa del Rey and that's that. But we didn't go down without a fight. Great game...
Worst Real Madrid Player: Gonzalo Higuain
Best Real Madrid Player: Mesut Ozil
1 comment:
I agree about Özil being Madrid's best player. So happy to see him play like that!
Underdog status: true. When they have nothing to lose because it's already lost, then they are empowered & you finally get to see the whole extent of what they're capable of! Well, that's how I feel anyway.
Pepe: Did you see him kiss Real Madrid's crest on his jersey last night, with a lot of passion but also anger, as a response to the insults thrown around by Culé fans when Real Madrid players were leaving the pitch? I found this image worth a thousand words. All the passion & rage at the same time, it was really inline with what he showed during the game. I've seen him one (and he threw a big smile at me!) and I swear he seems like the nicest guy, very shy too. So I have trouble picturing him any other way, even when he makes bad judgement calls.
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