CHAPTER 236: Barcelona (2) - Real Madrid (0) [analysis]

Alternative Title: 12 Points Ahead Baby!!

This game reminded me a lot with the Champions League final in Paris back in 2006. Barça having to score against a defensive rival, and the rain was pouring down. And two goals late in the second half. Freakin’ hell!

Positives

• Winning against Madrid.
• Victory achieved. 3 more points.
• The third straight win now. Barça’s on a good roll.
• Barcelona obtained a difficult victory against a rival that relied on difficult tactics (they really parked the bus didn’t they?)
• In addition, an excellent run in the Tourmalet thus far.
• Barça kept a clean sheet.
• And it’s the third clean sheet in a row! All against the Tourmalet rivals thus far!
• Well, Barça attacked most of the time……and pulled out the victory in the end.
• Valdes, absolutely crucial performances…and absolutely crucial saves and stops that he made in the game (Sneijder, Drenthe and Palanca).
• Toure gave another important play in midfield. Damn it, he even went and dribble through the Madrid players in the first half and could have scored an amazing goal!
• Puyol was real tough. The best thing was when he ran up to the corner and jump up higher than Ramos and Gago (and everybody else) and headed the ball into Eto’o position. That jump from the Captain was something!
• Daniel Alves gave another tireless performance. I believe that he had a constant battle against Denthe and won most of his battles against the Dutchman.
• Sergio Busquets gave another good performance. Came on as a substitute and help change the dynamics of the game for Barça and helped out by further making Barça control the midfield war. Besides, he won the penalty.
• Samuel Eto’o scored a crucial goal, and it further increases his goal tally.
• Not only does Barcelona further increases the point gap against the other teams, Eto’o is increasing his goal tally gap against his goal scoring rivals.
• Messi scored a great goal.
• Hleb and Henry made great passes and play through in the end that Messi scored the second goal for the team.

Negatives

• Eto’o missing the penalty. A weak shot.
• Wasn’t the best or among the best Barça performance. Very hard win.
• Marquez’s yellow card. Now his yellow card tally is added up.
• Even though I mentioned that Alves won majority of his encounters against Drenthe, there was that one moment during the first half where Drenthe beat him and had his one on one chance against Valdes (thank God Valdes stepped up and saved that, big time).
• Gudjohnsen was damn poor in this game.
• Xavi wasn’t really in the game. His play was nullified by Madrid’s midfield and hassles.
• Also, both Eto’o and Messi didn’t have the best of games.
• I found that Abidal had trouble with Palanca.
• Other negative point
  
  • Didn’t really see the suppose mosaic at the Camp Nou (most probably had to do something with the rain).

Other things to state…..
I’m just wondering, did Pep played mind games with Ramos (and the press)? Because there was talks and stuff that Guardiola would have brought in Iniesta for the game, and that Madrid had a similar situation with Sneijder. In the end, Iniesta still out, but Ramos picked Sneijder. Evidently Sneijder could carry on the game and Ramos had to make that switch with Palanca. Whatever it is, I believe that it further complicated matters for Ramos strategy wise (especially in substituting players) as the game went on.
Bloody white a-ssed bast-rds were gang-hacking Messi.
Maybe Barça caught the hype surrounding the game, but most important was that the victory was achieved.
And now we’re twelve points ahead!!

image sources: Mundo Deportivo, SPORT