In case you missed it – Real Madrid vs. Hércules [2011-03-12, Liga jornada 28].
When Karim Benzema entered the locker room after the game, he was received by a bit of teasing. José Mourinho said, “we told him half jokingly that from now on, even in defensive corner kicks, he has to come down from his area and try and win the ball at the first post.” In yesterday’s game, Karim scored his third consecutive doblete, bringing his total goal count to 19, with nine of those coming in the Liga (last year, he only managed eight). Yay Karim!
ONE. Some fun moments to start this post – Iker and Sergio’s high five, and probably the only time during the entire night that Karim had to apologize.
TWO. I absolutely loved this! It makes me so proud of everyone. Both Hércules and Real Madrid came out wearing shirts that said “Ánimo Tote” (you can see them putting on the shirts on the left). Tote is of course the Hércules forward with the Real Madrid pedigree, having spent 10 years of his career with us between the youth teams and the first team. His season recently ended when he tore the ACL of his right knee, as I told you last week.
THREE. And both teams also held a moment of silence for all those affected by the Japanese earthquake/tsunami from last Friday. Madrid also wore black armbands.
FOUR. Karim said it was “thanks to Mourinho that I want to score and run more. It’s good for me that he’s worked so much with my head.” (Who else is picturing a miniature Mou diving into Karim’s head and fooling around in there?) And he proved it during this game; here are the goals and goal celebrations. Loving how Karim made a beeline for Álvaro after the first goal, and Iker’s slow clapping after the second one. And Karim’s head must feel very good, because everyone wanted to rub it.
FIVE. Esteban Granero also showed his worth, taking advantage of Mou deciding to rest Xabi and give El Pirata the start instead. During the 67 minutes that he was on the field, Mou constantly gave him orders and directions on how to organize the team, as if he were… Xabi Alonso. And Esteban made his case to become the teacher’s pet. He missed the first goal celebration because while his teammates were hugging Karim, he was running over to the bench, wanting to talk to Mou about how to order the team now that they were in the lead. He told Mou to meet him on the sidelines, prompting a surprised Mou to point at himself and say, you want me? Esteban got a big ovation when he came out, and a high five from his coach.
SIX. After the game, many of the players called for the Bernabéu to lend a hand on Wednesday against Lyon. Xabi said, “we would like the Bernabéu to be a stadium that pressures because that gives us a lot of strength.” Iker said, “we need the support of the public. We want to the people to come with the aim to support and cheer on the team.” And Mou also suggested, “if the Bernabéu responds, we will have won a part already and we will be much stronger… now it’s up to the Bernabéu to decide if they want to play with us, or just watch the game.”
SEVEN. Other interesting game moments – Iker yelling and Xabi dancing warming up.
EIGHT. Xabi being a tease. And he probably ran over there to check out the competition, to see how others are posing during corners.
NINE. Another one who had a great game was Ozi. I love the timid little clapping as he subbed out. And I guess he took the wrong seat as he returned to the bench.
TEN. Without Xabi there for most of the game, Iker took up some of the posing slack. He uses props well.
ELEVEN. Sergio warming up his arms and his mouth prior to the start of the second half. I’m loving Marcelo’s expressions!
TWELVE. Other game notes: Pepe and Xabi were rested for this game, as were Carvalho and Cristiano, who weren’t called up. Cris watched the game from the players’ palco. He wore light-colored pants. Again.
THIRTEEN. Manu Adebayor had some playground fun as the game wound down, and then stripped when the game was over. I hope this spirit is contagious.
FOURTEEN. For the wonderful game he had and for his tight shirt, here’s a picture of Álvaro Arbeloa.
FIFTEEN. There was no lifting up of the leg of his shorts, but Sergio was still someone you had to keep an eye on, no?
SIXTEEN. MFC Álvaro Borja Morata Martín didn’t get into the game (he did warm up though, so it was considered at one point) but I’m happy for that, because it means he could play with Castilla today! He looked so adorable on the bench. Look at that little face! And see, it was Antonio Adán who took him under his wing!
SEVENTEEN. Those shorts must have been really uncomfortable, because everyone (Sami Khedira, Xabi, MFC, Sergio C.) was adjusting them! Or else, all of these guys are just very, very good and know exactly where our eyes go when we look at them.
EIGHTEEN. The Xabi Alonso – and Esteban Granero – pose section.™
With Xabi starting the game on the bench, Esteban took over, not only on the field, but also in posing! As you can see, he picked up where Xabi left off, posing while waiting for the free kicks and corners. He did a very admirable job of filling in, no?
These two were practically interchangeable! See, even Madrid’s web site had trouble telling them apart.
NINETEEN. The Mou corner.
Mou praised his new pet, Karim Benzema, saying “he’s at his best now, he does things that he didn’t do before. Benzema is happy and we are happy with him.” Also receiving praise were his midfielders: “the people at the center of the field played very well. First Granero and Lass, and in the second half Xabi and Khedira played at a very high level.” And Mou finished with this: “Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world, but right now it’s asleep. It’s like a sleeping elephant, because only when it’s awake does it have all the power.”
And he also responded to what Florentino Pérez had said earlier in the day during an event with socios. FP had orated, “for some time, this institution has had what we call señorío. Señorío is recognizing the merits of the adversary, but señorío is also defending what we believe is just and denouncing those irregular behaviors, whether they are inside or outside of this institution. Defending Real Madrid from what we believe is unjust, irregular and arbitrary is also madridismo, and that is precisely what our coach, José Mourinho, does. What José Mourinho says is also madridismo.” FP received a round of applause for these words. In response, Mou said, “I haven’t heard what the president said yet. I’ve been told that after the movie The King’s Speech, we have the speech of King Florentino. It will be important for the future.” So FP is not only a superior being, he’s also a king?
TWENTY. Looking ahead, sponsored by these montages:
The big boys trained today, to begin preparing for that very important match against Lyon.
Meanwhile, Castilla played against Atlético B today, and MFC Álvaro Borja Morata Martín started the game and scored a goal as Madrid beat their neighbors 4-3! Jesé got some minutes too, coming in for MFC, after he was rested for Juvenil A’s game in anticipation of this one, because it wasn’t known whether MFC would be able to play until the Madrid-Hércules game was over. The other three goals were scored by Atleti (an own goal), Joselu and Álex. By the way, Pablo Sarabia was out with back problems. In the audience were the stadium’s namesake, Esteban Granero and Antonio Adán.
MFC and MSFC!!!!!