in case you missed it – the “sin” edition

In case you missed it – Osasuna vs. Real Madrid [2011-01-30, Liga jornada 20].

In Spanish, the world “sin” means without, and in this game, Madrid was without goals, without ideas, without freshness, without a healthy Xabi Alonso, without air.   The gap between Madrid and Barcelona now stands at seven points.

Let’s go over the game first and then I’ll share some thoughts.

ONE. And from the game, let’s get the bad moments over first as well.  The loss, and the frustration that came with it.

On the way back to Madrid, the airplane was silent, with no one speaking to anyone else and not many people eating the in-flight meal.  Everyone had their “serious” face on.

TWO. Emmanuel Adebayor made his Real Madrid debut in this game.  I kind of feel sorry for him, getting thrown head first into the maelstrom that is Real Madrid.  I hope someone prepared him for this.  He played one-third of the game, but was incapable of breaking through to Ricardo’s goal, much like the rest of his teammates before and after him.

On the other hand, the triple substitution was quite unusual and at least we got to see Xabi barking out instructions.

THREE. This game was characterized by a lot of objects being thrown onto the field, from bottles to lighters to newspapers to cushions to oranges to empty cigarette packages to rocks to to even footballs.  After the game, Cristiano expressed his disgust with it all:  “it’s inadmissible for a football game to turn into a naval battle.  What happened today is not good for the entertainment that is football or for the children that enjoy this game.  I don’t like this at all.  The other day in Sevilla, Iker’s head was almost broken.  These types of actions should be fined.”  I agree with Cristiano, but since it’s Cristiano saying this as a Real Madrid player, he’s probably going to get fined instead and other lesser teams are going to speak out against him.  Here, you can see Ozi taking a corner with that part of the field absolutely littered with objects, and something flying at Sergio as he’s about to do a throw-in, and below, Cristiano tossing some lighters off the field.

The throwing of the extra balls was written up in the match report, with the referee noting that twice during the second half, play had to be stopped when “balls were launched from the stands on a side where local supporters were located.”  However, this happened at least four times after Osasuna scored their goal.  Some of the fans had kept the balls while the teams were warming up before the game just to do this with it.

Added to that were the insults that the Osasuna fans sitting right on top of Real Madrid’s bench kept hurling at the players and substitutes throughout the game.  But what do you expect from fans who also chanted at their own coach, José Antonio Camacho, “leave with them, leave with them” (with the “them” referring to Real Madrid, his old team) during the game.

FOUR. The excessive fouling.  Cristiano and Álvaro helped the referee to keep count of how many they had received.

FIVE. Cristiano got into a bit of a skirmish with Walter Pandiani as the first half ended, but luckily the two were separated before things could get bigger.  I like how it seems like it took a huge effort from the slight Ozi to push Walter aside, and how Sergio just comes up to Cristiano like a big brother would to tell him, “none of that, come with me.”

SIX. The Mou corner.

He looks kind of sinister there in the dark.

For José Mourinho, the loss could not be blamed on the players (“my players worked with dignity and I don’t have anything to reproach them for”) or the referee (“he did an excellent job”) because Osasuna “gave everything they had.”  His only complaint was that “in Spain, it always happens that when the team is winning, the balls disappear or other ones are thrown in.”

I loved how he hid behind his neck muffler throughout the game, but had to pull it down when he wanted to speak to his players.

SEVEN. And now onto the better moments, starting with Álvaro’s save (who’s it going to be in the next game?) and the hug between Carlos Aranda and Karim Benzema after the game.

(By the way, since we were facing Aranda, I went and dug out this old, old issue of Real Madrid’s magazine (back when they had a quality one) from when they won La Octava.  They have profiles of each of the players who participated that year, and under Carlos Aranda, it says “Lo mejor de Aranda es que, si mantiene esta progresión, será protagonista decisivo de los próximos títulos que conquiste el Real Madrid.”  This translates to, “the best thing about Aranda is that if he continues with this progression, he’ll be a decisive part of the next few titles that Real Madrid wins.”  Except for the fact that he was gone shortly after and may have been able to deny Real Madrid a title this season.)

EIGHT. The Xabi Alonso pose section.™

Oooh, feisty Xabi!!!

Let me help you with that, Xabi…

NINE. Iker’s profile, and his patented, “I cannot believe this is my defense” face.

TEN. Cristiano and his expressions.  We get both nodding and the shaking of his head.

ELEVEN. Following the game, the players showed some optimism (yes, I know they have no choice except to say these types of things, but I choose to believe that they still believe we have a chance):

Cristiano – we have to be positive.  I know it’s difficult but we have to think about the positive things.  We tried during the entire game but we couldn’t win.

Arbel0a – the Liga is not over.  We know that seven points are a lot based on what the Liga is like, but there are a lot of matchdays left and we’re not going to give up.

Iker – the seven points are an important difference, but not insurmountable.  It’s clear that we took a step backwards, but that doesn’t mean that everything is lost.  We’re going to continue working.

Xabi – there’s a lot left to play and we have to continue fighting.

TWELVE. Front and back.™  Well, I know today is a hard day, so we just have two backs, one of which is Sergio Ramos.

THIRTEEN. He didn’t have his best game, but how cute are his red cheeks?  I want to pinch them.

FOURTEEN. Win or lose, our boys still look fantastic, even if Cristiano did use up the entire gel supply in Navarra (and probably La Rioja too) after the game.

Sergio’s hair is just so shiny and glossy, no?

FIFTEEN. Meanwhile, a bright note was handed to us by Castilla, which beat Extremadura 3-1 behind goals by MFC, Joselu and an Extremadura own goal.  Let’s hope Álvaro Borja Morata Martín’s streak continues and continues!

And Mahamadou Diarra made his debut with Monaco, playing all 90 minutes against Marseille.  However, the game ended 0-0.  It’s great to see him return to action!

SIXTEEN. Looking ahead:  the team trained behind closed doors this morning, their first session in preparation for Wednesday’s Copa del Rey semifinal second leg.

SEVENTEEN. I’m sure everyone could use some encouragement right now.

I know we lost, I know there’s now a seven-point deficit between Madrid and Barcelona.  I know we didn’t play wonderful football, I know that we looked tired, I know that we couldn’t even manage to score against Osasuna.  I know that we’re in a scoring rut, I know that some of the tactical decisions have been iffy, and I know that Barcelona is fantastic.

However, I don’t believe this Liga is over until it’s mathematically over.  Stranger things have happened, and while Madrid has never overcome a seven-point deficit, it is still possible.  Remember the remontadas of previous seasons?  I might grumble, complain or switch part of my allegiance temporarily to Getafe at times, but my faith in this team is unshakable.  As is my support for them.  I know they won’t give up, and that’s why I won’t give up on them either.

Let’s not forget that we’re still alive in the other two competitions as well.  And if this season is not The Season, well the next one can be, once we have everyone healthy, and a year of experience playing together under our belts.

The bottom line: hey, at least we’re not Atlético!