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Zac Lee Rigg: Barcelona's superior resolve sees it past Real Madrid
Used to coming from behind, Barcelona had to withstand late pressure from Real Madrid for a change in the most recent Clasico.
Jan 26, 2012 8:26:00 AM
By Zac Lee Rigg
Getty
Barcelona isn't used to taking the lead against Real Madrid.
In three of the four previous meetings this year, Madrid took the lead. In each of those instances – and particularly the 3-1 La Liga win in December when a Victor Valdes error allowed Karim Benzema to score in the first minute – Barca remained calm, returned to its passing game and earned a favorable result.
Gonzalo Higuain's finishing meant that this time the Catalans had to assert their adamantium resolve differently.
In the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal, strangely, Barca took the lead. First Lionel Messi's deft dink set up Pedro for the opener and then Dani Alves channeled his inner Zeus to strike a lightning bolt past Iker Casillas seconds before the halftime whistle.
(GolTV commentator Ray Hudson called it "a hit that would blister pure steel.")
That gave Barca a comfortable 4-1 aggregate lead with only 45 more minutes to play. Madrid, naturally, made it as uncomfortable for the home side as possible. Goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema provided a new and different sort of discomfort than the Clasicos have offered Barca.
All of the sudden, Madrid had the momentum, had the upper hand heading toward the final whistle. All of the sudden, Carlos Puyol turned into Jamie Carragher – drop-kicking any ball that dared come near him towards the clouds. All of the sudden, Jose Manuel Pinto's poor distribution was threatening to sever Barca's passing at its base. All of the sudden, Andres Iniesta's injury meant a hell of a lot. All of the sudden, Madrid edged possession, holding 51 percent of it in the second half.
"What was looking so safe and sure and locked up in the Bank of England for Barcelona is now looking like a Wall Street meltdown," Hudson said.
But again, Barcelona refused to panic. Refused to defer. Refused to relent even for one match.
"We knew we had to suffer until the end," Dani Alves said.
Barcelona started the second half at a slackened pace. Instead of worrying and becoming frantic when Madrid scored twice, the team kept the same sluggish pace and used it to neuter the match. Tiki-taka is as much a defensive tactic as it is offensive.
Slowly, the minutes edged towards Barcelona progression.
The Catalans calmly stared the charging, rampaging bull in its beady little eye and coolly stepped to the side at the last moment.
“The players showed great strength,” Pep Guardiola said.
Real Madrid blamed the referee. In the tunnel after the match, Casillas told ref Fernando Teixeira to go party in the Barca locker room. Jose Mourinho, for some reason wearing his boating gear, cattily only congratulated Barca for the first leg win, suggesting it is "impossible" to win at the Camp Nou.
Given the softness of the two calls surrounding Sergio Ramos – his disallowed goal and his ejection – most in the capital camp will focus on the referee's performance.
In Barcelona, though, they can genuinely laud a resolve, an intensity, an obstinance that Real Madrid simply has yet to match.
Follow ZAC LEE RIGG on
or shoot him an email.
In three of the four previous meetings this year, Madrid took the lead. In each of those instances – and particularly the 3-1 La Liga win in December when a Victor Valdes error allowed Karim Benzema to score in the first minute – Barca remained calm, returned to its passing game and earned a favorable result.
Gonzalo Higuain's finishing meant that this time the Catalans had to assert their adamantium resolve differently.
In the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal, strangely, Barca took the lead. First Lionel Messi's deft dink set up Pedro for the opener and then Dani Alves channeled his inner Zeus to strike a lightning bolt past Iker Casillas seconds before the halftime whistle.
(GolTV commentator Ray Hudson called it "a hit that would blister pure steel.")
That gave Barca a comfortable 4-1 aggregate lead with only 45 more minutes to play. Madrid, naturally, made it as uncomfortable for the home side as possible. Goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema provided a new and different sort of discomfort than the Clasicos have offered Barca.
All of the sudden, Madrid had the momentum, had the upper hand heading toward the final whistle. All of the sudden, Carlos Puyol turned into Jamie Carragher – drop-kicking any ball that dared come near him towards the clouds. All of the sudden, Jose Manuel Pinto's poor distribution was threatening to sever Barca's passing at its base. All of the sudden, Andres Iniesta's injury meant a hell of a lot. All of the sudden, Madrid edged possession, holding 51 percent of it in the second half.
"What was looking so safe and sure and locked up in the Bank of England for Barcelona is now looking like a Wall Street meltdown," Hudson said.
But again, Barcelona refused to panic. Refused to defer. Refused to relent even for one match.
"We knew we had to suffer until the end," Dani Alves said.
Barcelona started the second half at a slackened pace. Instead of worrying and becoming frantic when Madrid scored twice, the team kept the same sluggish pace and used it to neuter the match. Tiki-taka is as much a defensive tactic as it is offensive.
Slowly, the minutes edged towards Barcelona progression.
The Catalans calmly stared the charging, rampaging bull in its beady little eye and coolly stepped to the side at the last moment.
“The players showed great strength,” Pep Guardiola said.
Real Madrid blamed the referee. In the tunnel after the match, Casillas told ref Fernando Teixeira to go party in the Barca locker room. Jose Mourinho, for some reason wearing his boating gear, cattily only congratulated Barca for the first leg win, suggesting it is "impossible" to win at the Camp Nou.
Given the softness of the two calls surrounding Sergio Ramos – his disallowed goal and his ejection – most in the capital camp will focus on the referee's performance.
In Barcelona, though, they can genuinely laud a resolve, an intensity, an obstinance that Real Madrid simply has yet to match.
Follow ZAC LEE RIGG on
or shoot him an email.
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