An A to Z of Real Madrid's 2014-15 Season
So, it's all over. After 10 long months, Real Madrid's 2014-15 season has finished.
As ever, it was a season that had almost everything: Clasicos, local derbies, records, transfers, Cristiano Ronaldo milestones, whistles, elation, heartbreak, cups, controversy—you name, it had it.
Do you want to relive it all? If so, you've come to the right place.
Across the following slides, we provide an A to Z of Real Madrid's 2014-15 season.
A Is for ... Atletico: 'The Never-Ending Derby'
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The teams met a staggering eight times in 2014-15, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid clashing twice each in La Liga, the Champions League, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
Marca dubbed the capital battle "the never-ending derby," given that the five meetings in 2013-14 meant the derby was contested an extraordinary 13 times in two seasons.
For Real Madrid, the meetings with Atleti this season were often painful, with Carlo Ancelotti's men going winless in the first seven, losing four. But the city's historical heavyweight triumphed in the eighth and final showdown of the campaign, when Javier Hernandez's late winner dumped Diego Simeone's side out of the Champions League.
B Is for ... Birthday Parties
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Who would have thought a birthday party could cause such a furore?
Well, one did, when photos emerged of Cristiano Ronaldo's birthday celebration that took place immediately after Real Madrid's 4-0 hammering at the hands of Atletico in February.
According to Marca, Madrid's captain and vice captain, Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos, were "none too impressed." Injured players Sami Khedira and James Rodriguez who attended were reported to be facing disciplinary action from the club. Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes was forced to defend his client. And angered fans held up a banner outside the club's training ground that read: "Your laughter, our shame."
The reaction was simply ridiculous.
What was Ronaldo supposed to do? Go home and sulk?
C Is for ... Cup Competitions
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The 2014-15 season was crammed full of cup competitions for Real Madrid: The UEFA Super Cup, the Spanish Super Cup, the Club World Cup, the Kings Cup and the European Cup.
Though Real Madrid only lifted two of them, it was a lot of cup football.
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D Is for ... Di Stefano
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Though it technically happened prior to the 2014-15 season, the passing of Alfredo Di Stefano on July 7 last year has to be acknowledged here.
In a nutshell, Di Stefano is the player with which Real Madrid's rich history of success starts. The greatest player ever to pull on the famous white shirt, the Argentinian's move to the Spanish capital in 1953 changed everything about Real Madrid.
Before Di Stefano, Los Blancos hadn't won the league in two decades. After his arrival, the club won eight of the next 11 Primera Division titles, adding to the collection five straight European Cups, the Copa del Generalisimo and the Intercontinental Cup.
In 396 games, the powerful forward stormed to 307 goals, transforming Real Madrid and establishing the reputation the club still holds now.
E Is for ... El Clasico Final Denied
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Never before had there been a Clasico European final, but when Real Madrid and Barcelona reached the semi-finals of this year's competition and drew Juventus and Bayern Munich respectively, it felt as though 2015 might be the year.
On one side of the draw, Luis Enrique's surging Barcelona made relatively light work of the Bavarians to book their ticket to Berlin, but a 2-1 first-leg loss in Turin for Real Madrid put a Clasico finale in doubt.
A Cristiano Ronaldo penalty in the second leg at the Bernabeu quickly saw Real claim the advantage, but to Los Blancos' horror, the club's former player and academy product Alvaro Morata netted the decisive goal, dumping Real Madrid out of the competition and denying us a Clasico final.
F Is for ... Fatigue
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It was only November, and Toni Kroos was already feeling it.
"I can't wait for the summer," the German joked after his club's clash with Basel in the Champions League, according to El Pais (h/t Inside Spanish Football). "This year I played the entire second half of the season with Bayern, then I played the entire World Cup, then I played in the Super Cups with Real Madrid and now I'm not missing a single match."
"I haven't played so much in my whole life," Kroos added. "I'm starting to get tired."
For many of Real Madrid players, it was the same. The 2014-15 season was arduous, Los Blancos contesting matches on six fronts immediately after a World Cup summer and in the midst of European qualifying.
And by the season's end, Real looked as though they were running on empty.
G Is for ... Golazos
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You can always count on Real Madrid to produce the spectacular. The star power residing at the Bernabeu lends itself to it.
In 2014-15, we witnessed James Rodriguez's stunning volley against Granada; his long range strike vs. Deportivo La Coruna; his screamer against Almeria; his dual one-two special against Malaga.
Javier Hernandez also got in on the act in the visit to Deportivo; Isco's goal against Valencia was one to remember; Gareth Bale's free-kick against Espanyol sticks in the memory; Karim Benzema's curling finish against Real Sociedad was exquisite; Marcelo's right-footed blast vs. Schalke was spectacular.
It was a special season in front of goal for Real.
H Is for ... Hernandez
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Old Trafford had been a frustrating place for Javier Hernandez. In 2012-13, he made just nine league starts; in 2013-14, he made just six.
Sent to the Bernabeu on loan, the Mexican hoped for more in the Spanish capital.
He didn't get more.
But—and this is a big but—he scored one of the most important goals of Real Madrid's season in the Champions League quarter-finals against Atletico.
"Golden Chicharito" roared Marca afterwards.
I Is for ... Injuries
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The 2014-15 season will forever be one of those "what if" campaigns for Real Madrid.
What if Luka Modric had stayed fit? What if James Rodriguez avoided his long-term layoff? What if Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema had all been able to stay out of the medical room at important stages?
At one point, Los Blancos looked poised for a possibly historic season, sweeping aside opponents with alarming ease while storming to 22-straight wins and a bevy of records. But the injuries to Modric and Rodriguez in particular were major blows for Carlo Ancelotti's team, halting the club's momentum and proving fatal in Real's quest for major silverware.
J Is for ... James
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A fee of £63 million meant the expectation at the Bernabeu was immense for James Rodriguez.
Seventeen goals, 15 assists and one sparkling season later, he's proved he's worth every penny.
K Is for ... Kit Choices
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Last August, Real Madrid made the trip north to Basque country to take on Real Sociedad at the Anoeta. Dressed in all pink, the European champions went two goals up inside 15 minutes thanks to Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale.
And then proceeded to lose 4-2.
From that point, the pink kit was banished for the remainder of the season (it made a lone appearance against Schalke), as Real spent the rest of their away trips wearing shirts with dragons on them.
L Is for ... La Undecima Hunt Goes on
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In 1998, Real Madrid captured La Septima.
In 2000, it was La Octava.
In 2002, it was La Novena.
In 2014, it was La Decima.
Ten European titles, the hunt on for an 11th. But 2015 wasn't the year for Los Blancos—the outfit most synonymous with the European Cup—as Juventus ended the club's quest for back-to-back Champions League titles and La Undecima.
Might 2016 be the year?
M Is for ... Media Storm
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Remember Real Madrid's 4-3 loss to Schalke at the Bernabeu? When Los Blancos narrowly escaped humiliation after a ghastly second-leg performance in the Champions League round of 16?
That night, furious whistles echoed around the Bernabeu. White handkerchiefs were waved. Afterward, Carlo Ancelotti was forced to apologise for the performance. And on ITV's broadcast, Roy Keane labelled Real Madrid's display as one that belonged to "a pub team."
Naturally, the reaction in the Spanish press was severe, and Gareth Bale in particular was on the end of some scathing criticism from Marca. BBC Sport's Andy West then described Marca's treatment of the Welshman as a "brutal assassination," adding that the Madrid-based daily had "decided to make Bale the victim."
Marca's response was then spectacular. Not tasteful or at all accurate, but still spectacular.
"The BBC's reprehensiBale smear campaign," ran the headline, the article declaring that the BBC is "all about drama," that the organisation had "veered off the course that made it a byword for quality journalism throughout the 20th century," while also bringing up the sexual-abuse scandal surrounding former BBC presenter Jimmy Savile.
N Is for ... New Faces
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The annual turnover at Real Madrid has typically been high under the presidency of Florentino Perez, and 2014-15 was no exception. Fresh faces were everywhere.
Last summer saw the arrivals of James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos, Keylor Navas and Javier Hernandez. In the winter, both Lucas Silva and Martin Odegaard were signed, while deals for Danilo, Marco Asensio and Augusto Batalla (who will arrive for 2015-16) were also struck during the season.
O Is for ... Odegaard
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Last October, he became the youngest player in history to compete in the European Championship, coming off the bench for Norway against Bulgaria aged 15 years and 300 days. It was his second cap, and he'd already represented Stromsgodset in the top tier of Norwegian football numerous times before that.
Dubbed the "next Messi," he became football's hottest property last winter. According to the Guardian, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Barcelona, Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City were all reported to be interested. Europe had gone into a frenzy for Martin Odegaard, but it was Real Madrid who got the teenager.
But Odegaard's start to life in the Spanish capital hasn't been easy. Through he trained with the first team, the 16-year-old played in the B team—hardly a recipe for success in a team game. As such, he struggled for form and was dropped to the bench by Castilla coach Zinedine Zidane.
Naturally, the adjustment will take time. But still, Odegaard made history in Real's final league game of the season against Getafe, coming on in the second half to become the youngest player ever to represent Los Blancos in La Liga.
P Is for ... Penalties
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Opposing teams just couldn't stop fouling Real Madrid players inside the 18-yard box in 2014-15.
In La Liga, Los Blancos were awarded 13 penalties in 38 games, per WhoScored.com—the highest figure in the Primera Division this season. Sevilla, in second, won 10, while every other club took seven or less spot-kicks.
And it was similar in the Champions League, where Real took four more penalties—a number only eclipsed by Porto's five.
Q Is for ... Quote the President
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It was the ultimate reflection of Florentino Perez's impulsive and totally unstructured methods.
When announcing the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti, the Real Madrid president, per AS editor Alfredo Relano, was asked: "What are the principal reasons why Carlo Ancelotti won't continue and what did he do wrong?"
Perez's response: "Erm, I don't know."
R Is for ... Records and Ronaldo
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Though it was a season that ended in frustration for Real Madrid and Cristiano Ronaldo, the campaign wasn't short on statistical milestones.
Between September and December, Los Blancos put together 22 consecutive wins in all competitions, breaking the previous benchmark for Spanish teams (18) and coming close to the world record of 24 set by Brazilian club Coritiba. Real also equalled Bayern Munich's record of 10 straight victories in the Champions League, when Carlo Ancelotti's men defeated Schalke 2-0 in February.
For Ronaldo, 61 goals in all competitions represented the biggest single-season tally of his career, taking him to 313 Real Madrid goals and past the great Alfredo Di Stefano on the club's scoring charts. In doing so, the Portuguese became the first player in Spanish football history to record five consecutive 50-plus goal seasons. He also notched an astonishing eight hat-tricks in 2014-15, taking his total number of hat-tricks for Real Madrid to 31 and total in La Liga to 27—both records.
S Is for ... Sacked Manager
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In December, Marca reported that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez had said: "We want Carlo [Ancelotti] to be Real Madrid's [Sir Alex] Ferguson."
Ferguson, of course, spent an incredible 27 years as manager of Manchester United. At Real Madrid, only one of the last 11 managers has lasted three. But as Ancelotti led Los Blancos to a 22-game winning streak, his stock soared in the Spanish capital, earning the Italian a level of acclaim that had typically evaded coaches at the Bernabeu.
But seven losses, six months and five draws later, Ancelotti finds himself on Real Madrid's ever-growing manager scrapheap, title pushes in La Liga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey having fallen away under the Italian in a tumultuous second half of the season.
T Is for ... Thrashings
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Here's a selection of some of Real Madrid's scorelines from the 2014-15 season: 9-1, 8-2, 7-3, 5-1, 5-1, 5-1, 5-0, 5-0, 5-0.
Barbaric.
U Is for ... Underachievement
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They'd come off a season in which they'd lifted the Copa del Rey and Champions League. Following those triumphs was the capture of the UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup.
On their way to 22-straight wins, once on track for 145 league goals and possessing a swagger that was irresistible, Los Blancos looked to be on course for a possibly historic season in 2014-15. They seemed to have to it all—star power, force, balance, versatility, pedigree.
And yet, somehow, Real Madrid walked away from the season not with elation and trophies, but with frustration and difficult questions.
V Is for ... Valencia's Blows
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It started with Valencia and it ended with Valencia.
In January, it was Real Madrid's trip to the Mestalla to begin the new year that halted the club's record-breaking run, as Los Che came from a goal down to defeat Los Blancos 2-1 in physical and heated contest.
From that point, Real Madrid were never the same; Carlo Ancelotti's men could never completely recapture the brilliance of late 2014.
And when the return visit from Valencia came, Nuno Espirito Santo's men effectively ended Real's title hopes in La Liga, snatching a point away from the Bernabeu in early May to hand Barcelona a decisive advantage in the Primera Division.
W Is for ... Whistles and White Handkerchiefs
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The first whistles were heard during the league defeat to Atletico Madrid last September, as Real Madrid's crosstown rivals landed yet another blow to their more glamorous neighbours following Atleti's victory in the Spanish Super Cup.
On that night at the Bernabeu, Iker Casillas was the primary target. But as the season progressed, he wasn't alone. At various stages, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema would hear them too, the Welshman in particular enduring a rough relationship with sections of the Real Madrid fanbase.
Even Cristiano Ronaldo was whistled at.
But fury reached its boiling point in the Bernabeu when Real were beaten 4-3 in the Champions League by Schalke, white handkerchiefs waving around the stadium in the ultimate display of dissatisfaction in the capital's arena.
X Is for ... Xabi Alonso's Absence
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It was among the most surprising transfers of the summer, Xabi Alonso waving goodbye to Real Madrid to join Bayern Munich in a move that seemed to unfold alarmingly quickly.
In 2013-14, the Spaniard had been a critical component of Real Madrid's European Cup-winning outfit, anchoring Carlo Ancelotti's 4-3-3 system that had proved so effective. But the arrival of Toni Kroos from Bayern threw a degree of doubt over his future, and after Real's defeat to Atletico in the Spanish Super Cup, the Basque midfielder swapped Madrid for Bavaria.
Immediately, his departure gave rise to questions: Who would replace Alonso? Was Asier Illarramendi ready? Could Kroos be repositioned? Would Ancelotti have to change the shape? Had the midfield become one-dimensional?
The early indications suggested Real Madrid had few answers as losses to Atleti and Real Sociedad unfolded. But then came 22 straight wins, eliminating any talk of Alonso's absence, as Kroos, James Rodriguez, Luka Modric and Isco formed a sparkling central ensemble. "As the days tick by, nobody misses Xabi Alonso. Not the club, not the players," declared Marca in November.
By the end of the campaign, however, the feeling was markedly different.
Y Is for ... Young Talent
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The 2014-15 season was many things for Real Madrid, but youth was a major theme of the campaign at the Bernabeu.
James Rodriguez enjoyed an excellent debut season in white at just 23. Isco, at the same age, put together the breakout year of his career, while Daniel Carvajal (also 23) solidified his place in Real Madrid's first XI.
And other young faces arrived in the form of Lucas Silva (22) and Martin Odegaard (16), the pair set to be followed by Danilo (23), Marco Asensio (19) and Augusto Batalla (19).
Z Is for ... Zidane
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As pressure on Carlo Ancelotti intensified during the turbulent final months of the 2014-15 season, former Real Madrid great and current Castilla coach Zinedine Zidane was touted as the Italian's possible successor.
Such a step—from youth academy to the first team—would have represented an enormous challenge for the Frenchman, and many harboured doubts over his coaching experience and credentials (it had also been the same for Pep Guardiola at Barcelona, remember).
But for now, Zidane will remain where he is, coaching the Castilla team following the arrival of Rafa Benitez as first-team manager.
"I am going to continue for one more year at Castilla," Zidane told AS this week. "I have no ambition beyond Castilla for now, then we'll see. Obviously my goal is to coach in the Primera Division, but I do not know when or with which team."
Might that team be Real Madrid in the coming years?
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