Real Madrid: 4 Things to Learn from El Clasico
There is no doubt that Saturday's El Clasico was nothing short of amazing. Both teams played good football and entertained audiences around the globe.
If anyone was expecting a repeat of the reverse fixture, they certainly must have been stunned, because this game was by no means a one-sided affair.
The game must have been amazing for Real Madrid fans, who watched the magic of the "Special One," performing wonders in the Santiago Bernabeu.
This El Clasico, the first of four encounters to take place in the space of 18 days, would have delighted Real Madrid more than Barcelona—probably because of Real's ability to hold the holders to a draw with just 10 men.
All the same, a lot of things were added to my knowledge of football from the game.
Here are four of them.
Barcelona Are Certainly Not Invincible
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Despite huge amounts of possession, Barcelona weren't threatening enough. They weren't even able to capitalize on the score after Raul Albiol was sent off.
Even Messi was closed down repeatedly and found it difficult to stick to his usual playing style, with Pepe tracking his every move.
Mourinho was simply smarter tactically than Guardiola and showed some of the flaws in the Barcelona team, especially when they hit them on the break.
Dani Alves was the main culprit, as Ronaldo and Di Maria always passed through his wings. It certainly wasn't Alves' night.
Puyol returned to the Barcelona defense and proved to be a strong wall, intercepting crosses and stopping attacks. He will be needed for the remaining three meetings.
Adriano was also quite impressive, saving Barcelona from the wrath of Ronaldo on two occasions—one of which was a spectacular goal-line clearance.
Barcelona had much of the possession and stringed together a lot of passes, but most of these passes were in their own defense and the defensive midfield line.
Real Madrid came to play with a mission—not necessarily to win, but to at least find Barcelona's weakness and it certainly worked.
La Liga Is Over for Real Madrid
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I think it ended as far back as when Barcelona beat Madrid 5-0.
Since then, it has been a race which Real certainly couldn't keep up with. The draw is just a reassurance of the team that is winning the La Liga title this year.
That being said, Real's season is far from over.
They remain contenders for both the Copa del Rey and Champions League titles, which are far from easy.
Mourinho will have to conquer the same obstacle that thrashed him in the Camp Nou if he is to have a chance of winning either trophy.
So far, Real Madrid seem to be driving on a road full of nails. The players will have to work super hard if they actually want to win trophies.
Pepe Is Equivalent to a Tasmanian Devil
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If there was one player who was fantastic in Saturday's game, it was certainly Portugal's Pepe.
Usually a central defender, Pepe was played in the unusual role of defensive midfield, where Messi certainly felt his presence.
He was put there to foil all of Barcelona's attacks and he did just that—chasing the ball everywhere it went.
Each time Barcelona broke, Pepe, who was often in the opposition's box, would somehow catch up with the counter attack and force the stop.
For the first time in years, Messi remained very much toothless for the majority of the game, with Pepe continually closing him down before he could even control the ball.
The same goes for Iniesta, who somehow seemed invisible throughout the whole game. No space was given to him to operate—it was a bad day for him.
Pepe didn't only show abnormal pace and accurate tackling ability, but also an incredible amount of stamina. He is without a doubt a Tasmanian devil.
Mourinho Is Still the Special One
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Everything good that came out of Real Madrid's style came from the mind of the one and only Jose Mourinho.
Mourinho finally found a tactical solution that helped him neutralize Barcelona's game.
For long periods, his tactics enabled Real Madrid to push Barcelona's "tiki-taka" back into their own half so that Barcelona couldn't do anything with the ball.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, forced Barcelona to defend frantically when they broke on sudden counter-attacks.
The "Special One" was also certainly prepared for the negative events of the game.
When Raul Albiol was sent off for a silly challenge on David Villa, he made some surprise substitutions—particularly when he removed Xabi Alonso and put in Emmanuel Adebayor.
I didn't fully understand the whole gist of the change until I realized what he actually intended.
Pepe, who had moved back into defense after Albiol was sent off, was pushed back into the defensive midfield role. Sergio Ramos then entered the central defensive position, with substitute Arbeloa taking his spot at fullback.
The changes proved fruitful, especially with the introduction of Ozil, who now orchestrated the play and played a huge role in the penalty decision.
In a game where Lassana Diarra and Esteban Granero were absent, one must have wondered what Mourinho was going to do with the the midfield.
However, he certainly worked wonders in the middle of the park and managed to reserve his self-proclaimed title of the "Special One."
