In case you missed it – Villarreal vs. Real Madrid [2011-05-15, Liga jornada 37, 1-3].
Given that neither Madrid nor Villarreal was playing for anything last night, all eyes were on Cristiano Ronaldo, to see if he would break Hugo Sánchez and Telmo Zarra’s 38-goal single season goal scoring record. And the conclusion is… sort of. More on that later.
ONE. Prior to the game, Pipita hugged former teammate Cicinho (I had all but forgotten that Cicinho exists! He’s on loan from Roma), while Raúl Albiol hugged his former La Roja teammate Marcos Senna. And Manu Adebayor, heading to the bench, stopped to kiss Iker. Adorable.
TWO. The stadium held a moment of silence for the victims of the earthquake that devastated Lorca last week. As the coaching staff got up off the bench to take part, Rui Faria hit his head.
Karim looks like he’s drunk or asleep and hanging onto Sergio and Xabi for support.
THREE. Cris scored two goals last night, both of off free kicks. If you choose to believe the Liga’s stats, those were his 37th and 38th goals of the season. If you choose to believe Marca, which hands out the pichichi award, those were numbers 38 and 39. The disputed goal is from the Real Sociedad game back in September, as Cris’ shot deflected off of Pepe’s back, and the Liga awarded that goal to Pepe.
The first goal, however, came from Marcelo. Here’s the goal, plus Cris’ first one of the night.
The best part of the entire game was easily Marcelo’s celebration (sorry Cris, but Marcelo somersaulted AND danced!). First, he did a couple of flips (if we can’t have Sergio, this is a more than acceptable alternative, no?), and then he danced his way down the sideline to celebrate with Manu Adebayor, with Pepe also joining in. How come Cris and Kaká didn’t take part? We know that they too have moves.
Marcelo said that he celebrated his goal with Manu Adebayor because “he’s a very important player for the group, he’s an incredible person.” And so are you, Marcelo, so are you.
The celebration for Cris’ first goal was much tamer. His teammates mobbed him, especially his cohorts Pepe and Marcelo (check out the change in expression on Cris’ face when Marcelo comes up, and how Marcelo grabbed him by the neck), and he also did the now familiar hand motion.
The third goal also came off of a free kick, and Marcelo and Pepe were also the first ones to Cris, except this time it was Marcelo jumping on Cris. Got to move faster next time, Pepe!
Cris is currently in the lead for the pichichi award, as well as the European Golden Boot. He’s scored the same number or more goals than six teams in the first division: Sporting (35), Mallorca (38), Depor (31), Zaragoza (38), Hércules (36), Almería (35). And with the three goals from last night, Madrid is now the highest scoring team in the Liga this season, with 94 goals. Barcelona is second with 92, and Valencia third, but way behind, with 62.
More data regarding that goalscoring machine named Cristiano Ronaldo: he has eight dobletes, four hat tricks (Athletic, Villarreal, Málaga, Getafe) and two four-goal games (Racing and Sevilla). In 15 of the 27 games in which he’s scored, he’s scored two or more goals. He’s the first player in the history of the Liga to score three or more goals in six games. His goal average is 1.1 goals per game (33 games, 38 goals).
Of the 38 goals, Cris has scored 26 with his right foot, eight with his left foot and four with his head.
FOUR. Random moments I – Esteban is pissed, and Xabi tells him to calm down. And I completely agree with Joan Capdevila’s methods of defense.
FIVE. While waiting for the second half to begin, Mou signed some autographs for fans. That’s sweet of him.
SIX. Random moments II – Iker simultaneously direct his defense while being exasperated with them, and Marcelo’s goal got him rewarded with a hug and a punch from Aitor Karanka at the end of the first half.
SEVEN. A photo of Cris, from a nice angle.
EIGHT. Either Carlos Marchena spent too much time with Sergio Busquets in the concentraciones of La Roja, or else he’s a graduate of the Sergio Busquets Academy of Acting. As you can see, his chest made contact with Cris’ back, yet he fell down, clutching his face. Marchena does The Busquets™ perfectly, no? Sergio Busquets should be proud.
I also thought it was sweet that both Xabi Alonso and Álvaro Arbeloa were concerned for El Padre.
NINE. Iker’s back, so we’re also back to appreciating the profile! It’s perfect even when Iker is wearing his pissed off, I can’t believe I just got scored on face.
TEN. Random moments III – there’s something really interesting on the left. Any guesses?
ELEVEN. A mini-game! Since the little graphic showing the score and the time covers the eyes of the player on the left, like on TV or in magazines when they want to keep someone anonymous, can you tell me who this is? If you need a hint, and I doubt you do, check out the pose.
TWELVE. Mou tells Cris to go down on his knees and worship, and so he does.
THIRTEEN. The banquillo. It was quite full at the beginning of the game, but then the coaches sent everyone to warm up, so that when Pipita came back, only Jerzy was left, all alone.
Neither Kaká nor Karim looked too happy to be sent to the bench before the game ended.
FOURTEEN. Random moments IV: Mesut is overly concerned about his hair, and Iker grins widely (showing his lovely smile lines) before the game starts. That’s the Iker I love.
FIFTEEN. The flashes of flesh in this game came courtesy of Ricky Carvalho, with one shorts leg hiked up before the second half, and Marcos Senna, who took off his shorts to apply ice. And if Madrid’s kits are going to be that transparent, a little more won’t hurt, no? I’m looking at you, Sergio. I can practically see everything already, but not what I most want to see, unfortunately.
SIXTEEN. Our former canterano (and future player?) Borja Valero hugged his former (on Real Madrid) and current (on La Roja) teammates Sergio Ramos and Álvaro Arbeloa. Meanwhile, Sergio laughed with Villarreal coach Juan Carlos Garrido, who gave him a few playful slaps, while Marcos Senna (a player and person I really admire) hugged Esteban and then Sergio.
SEVENTEEN. After the game, Cristiano said he was “very happy. The truth is that at the beginning of the season, I didn’t expect to score so many goals, but being able to tie the record of two Liga legends is an honor. I would like to score more goals, but I’m not obsessed with it. I’m happy. I’m not lying. The most important thing is that we achieved a great win in a very difficult stadium.” Cris also revealed that his teammates didn’t say anything special to him, and some didn’t even know that he tied the record, but were happy for him.
Among the happy ones were Pepe, who said “if it’s needed, I’ll give him the goal from Anoeta,” and Marcelo, who said, “we’re all very happy for him, but above all we’re happy for the team. There’s one game left and I hope that Cristiano scores more goals.” Pepe was also happy for Marcelo, because “he’s now scored more goals in one season than Roberto Carlos.”
EIGHTEEN. The Xabi Alonso pose section.™
NINETEEN. The Mou/Karanka corner.
José looked more casual than usual, with a polo shirt and jacket.
After the game, Aitor Karanka said that the team played very well in the first half, and in the second, given their two-goal lead, they perhaps lacked a bit of concentration. And when asked if it’s been a long season, he replied, “it’s been a very tough year because we got to the end of everything. We have a game on Wednesday for Lorca, which we’re excited about, and then one against Almería.”
On the right, you can hardly tell that the team just scored a goal to give it a 2-0 lead, due to the very serious expressions on everyone’s faces.
TWENTY. On the subject of that game for Lorca, Madrid will play a game against a team made up of players from Murcia captained by José Antonio Camacho (he’s from nearby Cieza, Murcia) on Wednesday at 20h in the Nueva Condomina (Murcia). Proceeds will benefit those affected by the earthquakes which struck Lorca last week. Before the game, Madrid will visit the areas devastated by the earthquake to see the damages first hand and to cheer up the people of Lorca. Cristiano said, “it’s a great thing and we’re happy to do it. It’s good to help those who need it.” Tickets will go on sale starting today. Villarreal will also team up with Atlético to play a benefit game.
Meanwhile, the next training session will be on Friday.
TWENTY ONE. Iker continues to surprise with his Facebook account, posting photos of him with Ricky, and Cristiano, last night. I’m so pleasantly surprised that I can even ignore that purse he’s holding.
I love how Cris is pointing at Iker, how Iker’s hair looks full(er than usual), how Cris has a grip on Iker’s thigh, and how Iker’s thumbs-up is conveniently almost cropped out. It’s good to see that Iker gets along with Cris. Maybe he can give a few pointers to his girlfriend on how to do that, starting with how to say “hi.”
TWENTY TWO. Meanwhile, Castilla tied Getafe B 0-0 yesterday to end up third in their league, which means there’s a spot for them in the playoffs (three rounds = six games), and the chance to ascend to the second division! Dani Carvajal was expelled from the game, meaning he’ll miss the first playoff game. But that’s not the only worry. As both the U-19 and U-21 teams are playing at the same time as the playoffs, MFC Álvaro Borja Morata Martín, Pablo Sarabia, Álex, Carvajal and Tomás Mejías could miss some or all of the games. Castilla’s non-losing streak stands at 19, with 15 wins and four ties.
The playoff draw will be held at 16:30h today, and the possible rivals are Alavés, Melilla or Alcoyano. The ida will be played next weekend and the vuelta on May 29.