How to Beat Real Madrid

Before the AC Milan away game I wrote a piece entitled How To Beat AC Milan. Today I’ll do the same for tonight’s opponents Real Madrid. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending whether you enjoy my 1000 word updates this won’t take very long because the simple answer is we can’t.

Yeah, yeah I know. Defeatist talk isn’t the way to approach a game like this and as I constantly get on my soap box about Redknapp’s apparent surrender of a top 4 place in the press it’s a little hypocritical of me to say the same but no matter how I look at it we can’t beat Mourinho’s team tonight. Our natural style of play will suit them and they’re not an overrated team playing in a poor Italian league or managed by a fat Spanish waiter. This is a real football team, with players currently on top of their game with a manager regarded by many, including himself, as the best there is. Add to the fact they lost at the weekend so will be looking to make sure that doesn’t happen again and it doesn’t look great but there are weaknesses in the side.

The strange thing is had we drawn Barcelona I could see more ways to beat them than I do Madrid. What we’ve got to do is be intelligent and realise this is a game over two legs. We can beat anyone at White Hart Lane, except Man United of course, but anyone else is fair game, so tonight will be all about damage limitations. An away goal could be crucial and there’s a chance we can get it but we’ve got to make sure by looking for it we don’t let the tie get away from us. The management and players have got to give us fans something to sing about and drive the team forward on April 13th.

Formation and Ball Retention

It seems an odd thing to suggest because as with any game the key to victory is often playing the right formation with the right players in their favoured positions and then keeping the ball. Tonight however, these two things are key, in particular ball retention. Spurs fans have been known to get on the back of players and the team at times when we feel things aren’t going well but compared to Madrid fans we’re saints. By keeping the ball, especially early on will result in the crowd getting restless. They experienced their first home defeat of the season on Saturday so we need to play on that. I know it sounds simple and it’s easy for me to say it but with their style of play it shouldn’t be too difficult at least for the first 15-20 minutes. If that means we play the ball along our back line then so be it. Get the ball and keep the ball.

The early stages of the game are so important to this entire tie. If Madrid get off to a flyer as Young Boys and Inter have done against us then we can look on the second leg as just a fun night out because the tie will over by then. That’s why instead of playing the now familiar 4-4-1-1 we need to be looking to play a tight 4-5-1 with van der Vaart being disciplined and staying deeper. Crouch needs to stay close to the midfield and if that means Gomes playing the ball out instead of looking to kick it long then so be it. When we have the ball we should be looking for Bale and Lennon to support Crouch making a 4-3-3. If however, vdV does push on as he will undoubtedly do we need to rely on one of Bale or Lennon to sit a little. If we find ourselves in a position where Crouch, vdV, Bale and Lennon are forward on a break we need to make sure we score or the ball goes out of play because Madrid will counter with pace which is something we’ve only come across once this season which was away to Bremen and they were fairly successful once they started doing it.

It’s a fine balance of attack and defence, like all games I suppose. If we sit too deep or allow Madrid plenty of possession like we did against AC Milan we’ll lose and could lose heavily. So keeping the ball and keeping it tight centrally is key tonight.

Xabi Alonso

Forget Ronaldo. As good as he is, he’s not the player we could do with being injured. Well, he’s not the ONLY player we could do with being injured. The moment Rafa Benitez tried to sell Alonso so he could buy Gareth Barry his time was up at Anfield. It’s the equivalent of selling Modric so you have enough money to buy Phil Neville!! Anyway, stop Alonso and we stop Madrid. Well, almost. They’ve still got plenty of options other than Alonso but he’s key to everything they do and here’s where I see a chink of light in my perceived gloom and pessimism. In Sandro we have a young player who has come into his own in recent months. So much so, it’s hard to see how Tommy Huddlestone will get back into the team without us changing the formation and someone like Lennon not playing. Sandro certainly doesn’t deserve to be dropped. Anyway, having started to adapt to the speed of the Premier League the one place he’s really excelled has been in Europe. The slightly slower pace seems to suit his natural game as he showed in man of the match performances in both legs against AC Milan.

If we can get Sandro near to Alonso and he plays to his ability we might be able to cut off Madrid’s supply line. This then brings us back to keeping possession ourselves. It’ll be Sandro’s job to close Alonso down, win the ball and pass it simple. If Alonso’s no longer available for the out ball his team-mates often look for they could start gifting us the ball, which is something we’re usually guilty of.

Defend Narrow / Attack with Width & Intelligence

As with the Milan game we’ve got to push Madrid wide by defending narrowly. We’ve done it very successfully against Milan this season but also Arsenal and Chelsea at home last season so it shouldn’t be a problem for the players to adapt to this style again. If we see an opportunity to attack we’ve got to use the flanks. It’s an obvious thing to say when you consider our wide options are Bale and Lennon, both with pace to burn, but it’ll also mean players like Sergio Ramos will be wary of pushing too far forward.

If we look for the long ball to Crouch, which is always an option when he’s in the team he’s going to have to be on top form. Against Carvalho he’ll be up against a defender head and shoulders better than what he’s faced so far this season and one who has past experience of playing against three metre Peter unlike the others. So the surprise element of his game won’t be there tonight.

Attacking with pace is one thing but once again I come back to the intelligence thing. Just hitting long balls hoping Crouch will get on the end of it or hitting the channels assuming Lennon or Bale will be able to out pace Madrid’s full backs won’t work. If Gallas or Dawson pick the ball up on the edge of their own area instead of the automatic hoof it tactic we need to be looking for Modric who has the attitude and ability to look for the simple ball out wide. Then it’s up to the match winners. Whether Bale or Lennon are fully fit I doubt, which could mean they’re less effective than we’ve been used to in Europe which is where my doubts come in again. Unfit players have a tendency to get the ball and lose it again fairly quickly. If we’re set up to break with pace but lose the ball Madrid will attack us equally as quick. They’re not a Barcelona who would play at a slightly slower tempo which could give us a chance to get back. Mourinho set’s his teams up with pace and they’ll use it if given the opportunity.

If Mourinho sets his team up to make sure Bale doesn’t get too many one-on-one’s with Ramos then we’ve got to be clever again. This will be up to Redknapp or the more “savy” players we have like Modric to notice which players Bale is taking with him and therefore knowing where the space should be. Bale can also play his part with intelligent movement. If he moves inside players will have to hand him to someone else which will mean either space on the left for someone to take advantage of or Bale himself finding space. It’s something he’s failed to do with any regularity in the league but he should find easier tonight if he tries it.

A final comment on intelligence. I worry about some of our players getting themselves a little too excited for this game, in particular Rafa. There’s no doubt he’ll feel like he’s got a lot to prove tonight but doing it in the same way he did against FC Twente will only result in the same result, a sending off. Let’s hope we’re not wondering what might’ve been had we had 11 players. The ref for tonight’s game has sent a player off in every champions league game he’s taken charge of so far this season with the exception of United against Marseille.

Conclusion

In any game of football, any team has a chance of beating another and this is hardly Premier League playing Blue Square Premier. On paper Real Madrid are better than us but by how far? I guess the answer to that depends on what Spurs side turns up. If it’s the one from Saturday the whole tie will probably be over by the hour mark but if it’s the one from the San Siro against AC Milan we’ll give them a good game and could keep any defeat to a single goal or even manage a draw.

That’s the best we can expect from tonight. A score draw would be brilliant and I’m sure everyone associated with Spurs would accept that now. It’s not a negative way to look at the game, we do have a chance but for that chance to become a reality everything’s got to go our way. We’ve got to play better than we did against AC Milan, Madrid’s star players have got to have off days, Redknapp has got to get his tactics right and we’ve got to have a little bit of luck. If all that happens we could be looking at another glorious night at north London in 8 days time.

Having said all that, we weren’t meant to get through the qualifier, then we’d finish bottom of our group and forget about beating AC Milan. If this season’s competition has taught us anything, it’s expect the unexpected.

COYS