Not sure about this one. Frankly, its hard to tell. What others say about the midfield might just be what RM needs on this one. With RM's boosted midfield, I bet Simeone has already planned something against it. Patience and composure might win the game. A very interesting match.
i think we have all season to judge real madrid but i think a midfield of james kroos and modric will strugle against tough opponents since all three players are more creative and they need a pure DM. time will tell though but you can see some weaknesses in this madrid squad specially defensively.
@XeneizeRuloso
No only scored a penalty but was very active throughout the whole game. Dribbled and took a shot multiple times and provided his colleagues with four opportunities to score. Atletico won, but it was a team effort. When it comes to individual performance, CR7 was the best that night.
Arda shouldn't have scored.
He should have been sent off for stepping on Modric's ankle 10 minutes earlier.
But Real was horrible in the second half anyway...
Real Madrid played a few good minutes but to win against tough oppositions you need to play more then that and to win the league, you simply cant lose 2 of your 3 games at the start. I guess giving Di Maria an 8 or 9 mil contract is out of our "economic" strength but going and buying Jamez and giving him that much is doable....very dissapointing this
@El_Duderino C. Ronaldo did pretty good job but wasn't enough to get through this invincible defense of Atletico~! Atletico is still great team even after all good players left the team.
Probable Starting XI:Casillas Marcelo/Coentrao Pepe Ramos Arbeloa/Varane Kroos Modric James/Isco Ronaldo Benzema Bale.
I dont think Ancelotti will try anything fancy, he saw what happened last year when he played Ramos in midfield against Barcelona, so logically he will stick to his regular setup. He has talked alot about 4-4-2 when defending, meaning that one of Benzema/Ronaldo/Bale will have to track back when Atletico attacks, obviously Bale being that person since he is the most suitable for it, falling back and defending as an old school Right midfielder would. The problem is when attacking, with the absense of Di Maria who caused all sorts of problems on the overlap with his pace and dribbling, there isnt anyone else in midfield that can do that. Kroos can distribute the ball well, Modric is good at holding the ball and passing but none of the two takes on as many opponents as Di Maria did, therefore there is no empty space created.
@Turan James and Isco are decent dribblers but are waaaay too slow. They dribble the opponent and after a few seconds he is back in front of them defending again. That is why they shouldnt be deployed on the wings, its the lack of pace and speed that causes them to be ineffective. They should be used behind the striker/ infront of Kroos/Modric in order to utilize their strengths. But then if they are deployed as no 10, then the team loses the balance because we dont have a proper defensive midfielder to mop up at the back. Neither of Kroos/Modric is great at defending and having James or Isco in the team only worsens the way the team defends and thus we lose equilibrium, the one thing that made our side relatively successful last year. That equilibrium was Di Maria!!!! Verdict? we are still a good team but we definetely need to buy a proper player to fill in Di Maria's boots.
@Turan Slow dribblers think a lot and easily crack the defense , mindless dribblers go on and just run in like a bull and then are easily cut off , in such intense game slow dribblers are key.
@commandozap Any kind of dribblers are needed anyway. Not to say that this is the only aspect of the game that matters though. But as Turan said, it is sort of useless to play Isco on the wing. With the players we have, 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 seem to be the proper formations. Sadly though.. still stuck with 3 central midfielders. As an answer to Turan, I was quite surprised last season, when di Maria and not Bale was playing the central midfielder role, as the latter has more experience with defensive work and is slightly more physical. Can't see why he couldn't fill di Maria's boots. But first problem we need to solve is the problem in defence.. for which a holding midfielder for sure is necessary.
@Exti Not to mention that Bale was more of a left-sided player and di Maria since joining Real was playing on the right. Anyway, we just need to fight with what we have, but I assume it will be very hard to replicate what we achieved last year.
This is a very tough game for Real Madrid. It is to be seen if we can find the balance between attack and defence. If Real Madrid is to win this match then we need a strong midfield and someone to create chances now that Di Maria is gone.
"Are Atlético violent? This isn't a game for pansies"
"Each team has its own style of play and the best thing we can do is impose ours out on the playing field. Each team has its own style from the characteristics of its players. That's football. Atlético has it's own, very intense. But that's football, this isn't a game for pansies, it's a game for men." - Carlo , prematch with Marca.
Atletico is pretty much likeable team for those who love the football to be played hard , as long as its in the rule , its the battle of mind & bodies , Atletico do it better than the rest at the moment to be honest. Eventhough they're our rivals , the hardwork , shrewd tactics , workrate and focus they put in such games is sheer ingenious even if its not aesthetic as Madrid , Dortmund or Arsenal.
Caughtoffside: Madrid could sign Hazard if Cristiano leaves
LMAO , British press is plummeting to new depth , Cr7 just expressed his love for utd , that doesnt mean he doesnt love real more. And Hazard isnt even half good as Cr7. Poor attempt at Yellow journalism
madrid are better off playing Pepe in the midfield, he's a game breaker, worked well with mourinho trying to get something against barca in his days. game would surely turn ugly, but he has some experience there.
@wsamara And pepe could get red carded , because he will be up against Gabi , Suarez and Tiago who will make a meal of him and frustrate him to his last cell in the body , a risk carlo shouldnt take and play illara who is professional.
@soul_snatcher it's possible, but illara is not very physical and would be easily gobbled up by atleti's midfield, also remember last season against dortmund? 2 goals came from his mistakes. he didn't build up a lot of experience, and i think he might fail if he's played in this big fixture. I agree that pep is a hot headed person and might be red carded, but illara doesn't seem the material who can face atleti's midfield. Pep can at least break up play much better than most players around.
@wsamara Illara doesnt have trust of Carlo but regardless he is excellent player , over 2 fixture he easily blocked barca attacks when he was at sociedad in 2012/13 season , he did almost against every team he played that season. He is true potential just waiting to burst open , carlo should deal well with him , hez only hope in midfield as kroos and modric dont suffice against bulldozer mid of atleti
@soul_snatcher Illarra doesn't have the trust of Carlo for a reason, his recent performances haven't instiled any faith in me at least. Past form doesn't count now, I have to say I am not really watching other games of La Liga, therefore I am not aware of what Illarra was able before he joined us. But, about the bulldozer mid of Atleti, look at the SuperCopa games. We didn't get overrun even with our lightweight midfield. I think we were quite equal to Atleti in the SuperCopa, the result could have easily been better for us in the first game, I'd say refereeing there wasn't at its best. So, I wouldn't concede yet just because they might play with Kroos - Modric - James again. But as you said, Pepe is not the man to be competing with Gabi and others, he isn't mentally strong enough and will probably crack and do something stupid again. Personally I would try Ramos as a DM, if it gets down to one of our CBs. He is the best on the ball and Varane is the kind of defender...
@Exti that doesn't tackle much but is more oriented in not being dribbled past or not leaving spaces behind him, he is not the kind of player who is chasing the ball at all times and making lots of tackles. But no Carvajal and I would see Arbeloa as a liability.. Griezmann would tear him apart I think. Therefore Ramos should be RB, Pepe / Varane CB and Illarra as DM, just no other choice at the moment.
Carvajal is out, Ronaldo is currently a doubt. Considering that Varane underwent "DM" training, I think it is quite safe to say that either him or Illarra will start in the midfield.
@soul_snatcher I am quite sure that if one of the CBs will be played as RB, it will be Ramos. Varane is just not that comfortable on the ball and Ramos started off as a RB anyway. Experimenting sure isn't the way but something needs to be changed and I personally am not convinced in Illarra's capabilities. I'd say using Illarra as the DM is already an experiment, considering his recent match practice and performances. But evening isn't far any more, we shall see :)
@yakuzin lol such statement can only come from brainded fan or chronic hater. We can deal with angels absence , we've many angels waiting in the wings to optimize their potential.
@commandozap LOL, who? James, kid known from 5 mudnial matches? Isco, one of the worst transfers last season? Please.
Real had problems with creation without DiMaria a year ago - even with bad league opponents. To much invidual players, to little workers and brains. Ronaldo plays in hot potato in creation, Bale is a bunch of wood - but good for attack. Benzema - no comment.
Only Casillas, Ramos & Ronaldo know the responsibility to wear the real madrid crest. Rest played like mouses who are there only for money. If you really are real madrid player show it on pitch , just kissing batch and exhibiting pseudo-madridismo is gonna pile-up lot of bad karma because you're breaking lot of passionate hearts. My shout-out to Isco as well , he gives 101% everytime he plays unlike others who i dont wanna single-out now. Go and defeat Atletico convincingly if you really are here to play for madrid and not for money.
Casillas - First, we must congratulate Real Sociedad. It’s unusual what happened, we were horrible, we didn’t play well. We can’t allow things to happen the way they did in this game. We need to do whatever we can to improve because wearing this crest is a great responsibility and this isn’t the example we want to show.
Hala Madrid
@HomaKP Did i say it was? I'd like to keep my word else my sureity weighs nothing. WS is amazing site , hence we're here , aint it? It has nothing to do with site just a restitution
Not sure about this one. Frankly, its hard to tell. What others say about the midfield might just be what RM needs on this one. With RM's boosted midfield, I bet Simeone has already planned something against it. Patience and composure might win the game. A very interesting match.
goodbye @soul_ snatcher :(
i think we have all season to judge real madrid but i think a midfield of james kroos and modric will strugle against tough opponents since all three players are more creative and they need a pure DM. time will tell though but you can see some weaknesses in this madrid squad specially defensively.
@dragunove yeah, there have to be a destroyer like Khedira oder Illara or smth
rma is losing even in the presence of cr7.... thts not cool
How did ronaldo get motm? He scored a penalty? So?
@XeneizeRuloso No only scored a penalty but was very active throughout the whole game. Dribbled and took a shot multiple times and provided his colleagues with four opportunities to score. Atletico won, but it was a team effort. When it comes to individual performance, CR7 was the best that night.
@XeneizeRuloso I assume you didn't see the game, especially the first half of it..
Good prediction whoscored
R. Madrid fans be like: but ”We have James” !!!!
-6 C in Madrid now,very col ))
i'm looking at Ramos' stats and it seems like he only got that rating because of who he is
@JoeB91 of course, who is he? just a defender. He deserves the rating because of his defense and calm today.
On a positive note, Coentrao seems quite dependable when defending, unlike Marcelo.
Win Lose Or Tie , Madridista till i die.
21 shots, 4 on target.. Very, very poor finishing from Madrid.
@HaychZee Ronaldo disagrees.
Arda shouldn't have scored. He should have been sent off for stepping on Modric's ankle 10 minutes earlier. But Real was horrible in the second half anyway...
@El_Duderino I think yellow would be appropriate there but there was even no foul given...
Real Madrid played a few good minutes but to win against tough oppositions you need to play more then that and to win the league, you simply cant lose 2 of your 3 games at the start. I guess giving Di Maria an 8 or 9 mil contract is out of our "economic" strength but going and buying Jamez and giving him that much is doable....very dissapointing this
Heh!
4 shots on goal isn`t enough in a game at home.
@neumi17 That's the paradox because two shots on target is enough for an away game.
If Real is lucky they might qualify for the CL next season...
Where is the Real that I saw on first half...
@Exti Simeone's prediction led to the total upset for Real Madrid
@Exti It went out to get a sandwich.
@Dempseydumpster Wait, I will call my neighbour too so we can laugh together.
YES!!! Go Atletico!!!
Ronaldo is simply unstoppable so far. Let's see him playing that way in second half too.
@El_Duderino Yeah... about that... :D
@El_Duderino C. Ronaldo did pretty good job but wasn't enough to get through this invincible defense of Atletico~! Atletico is still great team even after all good players left the team.
@El_Duderino We have seen. He was poor.
He was the only one actually trying.
Benzema .. oh my god.. that first touch.
Real is very good in the opposition third though.
Very good to see that James is in the game and very visible.. sad though that again we conceded from dead-ball situation...
Unfortunately i wont be able to witness this fierce clash , but i hope we crush atletico by 4 goals to one. Hala Madrid ! Yes we can.
@commandozap No you can't
@commandozap 3 dislike! So much hate. I luv it. :3 HALA MADRID
Probable Starting XI:Casillas Marcelo/Coentrao Pepe Ramos Arbeloa/Varane Kroos Modric James/Isco Ronaldo Benzema Bale. I dont think Ancelotti will try anything fancy, he saw what happened last year when he played Ramos in midfield against Barcelona, so logically he will stick to his regular setup. He has talked alot about 4-4-2 when defending, meaning that one of Benzema/Ronaldo/Bale will have to track back when Atletico attacks, obviously Bale being that person since he is the most suitable for it, falling back and defending as an old school Right midfielder would. The problem is when attacking, with the absense of Di Maria who caused all sorts of problems on the overlap with his pace and dribbling, there isnt anyone else in midfield that can do that. Kroos can distribute the ball well, Modric is good at holding the ball and passing but none of the two takes on as many opponents as Di Maria did, therefore there is no empty space created.
@Turan it will be coentroa not marcelo arbeola not varane james and not isco
@Turan James and Isco are decent dribblers but are waaaay too slow. They dribble the opponent and after a few seconds he is back in front of them defending again. That is why they shouldnt be deployed on the wings, its the lack of pace and speed that causes them to be ineffective. They should be used behind the striker/ infront of Kroos/Modric in order to utilize their strengths. But then if they are deployed as no 10, then the team loses the balance because we dont have a proper defensive midfielder to mop up at the back. Neither of Kroos/Modric is great at defending and having James or Isco in the team only worsens the way the team defends and thus we lose equilibrium, the one thing that made our side relatively successful last year. That equilibrium was Di Maria!!!! Verdict? we are still a good team but we definetely need to buy a proper player to fill in Di Maria's boots.
@Turan Slow dribblers think a lot and easily crack the defense , mindless dribblers go on and just run in like a bull and then are easily cut off , in such intense game slow dribblers are key.
@commandozap Any kind of dribblers are needed anyway. Not to say that this is the only aspect of the game that matters though. But as Turan said, it is sort of useless to play Isco on the wing. With the players we have, 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 seem to be the proper formations. Sadly though.. still stuck with 3 central midfielders. As an answer to Turan, I was quite surprised last season, when di Maria and not Bale was playing the central midfielder role, as the latter has more experience with defensive work and is slightly more physical. Can't see why he couldn't fill di Maria's boots. But first problem we need to solve is the problem in defence.. for which a holding midfielder for sure is necessary.
@Exti Not to mention that Bale was more of a left-sided player and di Maria since joining Real was playing on the right. Anyway, we just need to fight with what we have, but I assume it will be very hard to replicate what we achieved last year.
draw
This is a very tough game for Real Madrid. It is to be seen if we can find the balance between attack and defence. If Real Madrid is to win this match then we need a strong midfield and someone to create chances now that Di Maria is gone.
"Are Atlético violent? This isn't a game for pansies" "Each team has its own style of play and the best thing we can do is impose ours out on the playing field. Each team has its own style from the characteristics of its players. That's football. Atlético has it's own, very intense. But that's football, this isn't a game for pansies, it's a game for men." - Carlo , prematch with Marca.
Is Cr7 fit , Marca reported he trained 45 hrs a week , 6 hrs a day. Only machines can do that , la maquina isn't any different.
@soul_snatcher Said it yourself, only machines can do that. Cristiano is a human.
Ramos - Pepe - Varane - Coentrao will be our defense. Coentrao is our best defender atm.
@commandozap no varane
Cristiano, without a doubt. You’d have to be mad not to think that. He’s the best. Messi is good, but he’s not as good. - Chicha
@commandozap But Rooney aka White Pele is better than both - Chicha
To play for Real Madrid is the first miracle in my life. - Chicha
Atletico is pretty much likeable team for those who love the football to be played hard , as long as its in the rule , its the battle of mind & bodies , Atletico do it better than the rest at the moment to be honest. Eventhough they're our rivals , the hardwork , shrewd tactics , workrate and focus they put in such games is sheer ingenious even if its not aesthetic as Madrid , Dortmund or Arsenal.
Caughtoffside: Madrid could sign Hazard if Cristiano leaves LMAO , British press is plummeting to new depth , Cr7 just expressed his love for utd , that doesnt mean he doesnt love real more. And Hazard isnt even half good as Cr7. Poor attempt at Yellow journalism
@soul_snatcher Cristiano is in his prime now, but won't be in a couple of years, so a good replacement would be needed anyway.
madrid are better off playing Pepe in the midfield, he's a game breaker, worked well with mourinho trying to get something against barca in his days. game would surely turn ugly, but he has some experience there.
@wsamara And pepe could get red carded , because he will be up against Gabi , Suarez and Tiago who will make a meal of him and frustrate him to his last cell in the body , a risk carlo shouldnt take and play illara who is professional.
@soul_snatcher it's possible, but illara is not very physical and would be easily gobbled up by atleti's midfield, also remember last season against dortmund? 2 goals came from his mistakes. he didn't build up a lot of experience, and i think he might fail if he's played in this big fixture. I agree that pep is a hot headed person and might be red carded, but illara doesn't seem the material who can face atleti's midfield. Pep can at least break up play much better than most players around.
@wsamara Illara doesnt have trust of Carlo but regardless he is excellent player , over 2 fixture he easily blocked barca attacks when he was at sociedad in 2012/13 season , he did almost against every team he played that season. He is true potential just waiting to burst open , carlo should deal well with him , hez only hope in midfield as kroos and modric dont suffice against bulldozer mid of atleti
@soul_snatcher Illarra doesn't have the trust of Carlo for a reason, his recent performances haven't instiled any faith in me at least. Past form doesn't count now, I have to say I am not really watching other games of La Liga, therefore I am not aware of what Illarra was able before he joined us. But, about the bulldozer mid of Atleti, look at the SuperCopa games. We didn't get overrun even with our lightweight midfield. I think we were quite equal to Atleti in the SuperCopa, the result could have easily been better for us in the first game, I'd say refereeing there wasn't at its best. So, I wouldn't concede yet just because they might play with Kroos - Modric - James again. But as you said, Pepe is not the man to be competing with Gabi and others, he isn't mentally strong enough and will probably crack and do something stupid again. Personally I would try Ramos as a DM, if it gets down to one of our CBs. He is the best on the ball and Varane is the kind of defender...
@Exti that doesn't tackle much but is more oriented in not being dribbled past or not leaving spaces behind him, he is not the kind of player who is chasing the ball at all times and making lots of tackles. But no Carvajal and I would see Arbeloa as a liability.. Griezmann would tear him apart I think. Therefore Ramos should be RB, Pepe / Varane CB and Illarra as DM, just no other choice at the moment.
@wsamara Both teams are "Madrid".
Carvajal is out, Ronaldo is currently a doubt. Considering that Varane underwent "DM" training, I think it is quite safe to say that either him or Illarra will start in the midfield.
@Exti And Illara as DM ofc.
@Exti No time to experiment , Carlo could dent his chances of continuing as coach if he makes a blunder now. Instead Varane should play as RB.
@soul_snatcher I am quite sure that if one of the CBs will be played as RB, it will be Ramos. Varane is just not that comfortable on the ball and Ramos started off as a RB anyway. Experimenting sure isn't the way but something needs to be changed and I personally am not convinced in Illarra's capabilities. I'd say using Illarra as the DM is already an experiment, considering his recent match practice and performances. But evening isn't far any more, we shall see :)
Perez & Di Maria are having battle over spilt milk , typically in the tone of who dumped whom on valentines day.
Gabi is such a brilliant midfielder , despite being rivals i admire his gameplay and composure a lot, genuine capitano material.
draw probably. Real without Di Maria is half of last season team. No brain - no Ronaldo goals.
@yakuzin lol such statement can only come from brainded fan or chronic hater. We can deal with angels absence , we've many angels waiting in the wings to optimize their potential.
@commandozap LOL, who? James, kid known from 5 mudnial matches? Isco, one of the worst transfers last season? Please. Real had problems with creation without DiMaria a year ago - even with bad league opponents. To much invidual players, to little workers and brains. Ronaldo plays in hot potato in creation, Bale is a bunch of wood - but good for attack. Benzema - no comment.
@yakuzin Do you watch football from Mars and understand it from Pluto?
if Modric + Kroos are playing at the defensive midfield they will be overrun by Atletico's counter-attacks
If we lose this , fans would go berzerk
1-1 draw, Ronaldo to score first
khedira is injured , hope we play illara , Cr7s return is a bliss
no way atletico doesn't win this match
Only Casillas, Ramos & Ronaldo know the responsibility to wear the real madrid crest. Rest played like mouses who are there only for money. If you really are real madrid player show it on pitch , just kissing batch and exhibiting pseudo-madridismo is gonna pile-up lot of bad karma because you're breaking lot of passionate hearts. My shout-out to Isco as well , he gives 101% everytime he plays unlike others who i dont wanna single-out now. Go and defeat Atletico convincingly if you really are here to play for madrid and not for money. Casillas - First, we must congratulate Real Sociedad. It’s unusual what happened, we were horrible, we didn’t play well. We can’t allow things to happen the way they did in this game. We need to do whatever we can to improve because wearing this crest is a great responsibility and this isn’t the example we want to show. Hala Madrid
@commandozap well said mate.
I'm sure we wont lose this , if we do i quit this site as a respect to my statement.
@soul_snatcher Yeah about that
@soul_snatcher who is that we atletico or real
@soul_snatcher I wish you dont make another account and region
@soul_snatcher Lol~what will this website's fault be?
@HomaKP Did i say it was? I'd like to keep my word else my sureity weighs nothing. WS is amazing site , hence we're here , aint it? It has nothing to do with site just a restitution
Atletico to win 3-1
so early? bring it on