Spain – Super Cup – Eternal battle
By David, BettingExpert.com | Published
The two Spanish super powers have been meeting each other like never before over the past months. So far Mourinho could have the better of his rival Guardiola on only one occasion. The least significant of all. The Portuguese manager claimed the Copa del Rey whilst Barca celebrated another fantastic season by adding the Liga and the Champions League to their trophy cabinet.
Barcelona – Real Madrid
Mourinho always seems to try and win the battle against Barcelona on a psychological and strategic level in the hours before the game kicks off. His press releases all try to deviate the attention on some irrelevant aspect. His latest mind game was trying to get the Blaugrana to believe that his team would not be taking this match as seriously. Bookmakers did not believe one single word though as odds on a Real Madrid were the lowest for the past year when they were to play Barcelona.
Nobody at Barcelona believed that either. Pre-season friendlies for the Blancos had recorded seven wins in seven games, proving moreover how determined the whole camp was at ending their bitter rivals’ dominance this year. That aim may have to be delayed though as the last match, valid for the first leg of this Spanish Super Copa, finished 2-2 for Barcelona. This handed them a considerable advantage in the two-legged competition.
It has to be said though that Real Madrid were for long stretches of the match the better team on the pitch. They were quicker and passed the ball better than usual. Barcelona, which did quite badly in pre-season encounters looked stiffer. Certainly not the Barca team we were used to. However, they did manage to overturn the result at one point passing from 1-0 down to 1-2 up. As the clock ran down the guests got moving better and their possession play was slowly setting in as well. In the end they were happy to take the 2-2 back home where they will be playing the second leg of this encounter.
The Copa America did take its toll on some key players for Barcelona. Most notably Messi and new signing Alexis Sanchez. The two ran but not as well as they should be doing. No doubt that they will eventually catch up and be ready for another great season for the Catalan giants. At the moment, however, Real Madrid have the edge in terms of fitness.
Will fitness alone be enough to have the better of the lions in their own den though? Barcelona is not Messi alone or just Sanchez, who still has to get a few games under his belt in order to assimilate Guardiola’s tactics to perfection. With the addition of Fabregas and the emergence of another sensational player from Barca’s cantera, Thiago Alcantara, what was already the best midfield in terms of mechanics of play has been rendered an iron fortress of football creativity and pace. Excluding Fabregas perhaps, due to the little effort he may have put in his pre-season as he watched from the byline at how one of the longest transfer sagas in English football history was to unfold, all other players in this great midfield are ready to rumble.
Verdict: Both teams to score
Guardiola did not start with his very best eleven at the Bernabeu but should not be giving up the chance of victory after the 2-2 in the first leg. Beating Real Madrid knowing they care so much for the trophy will be sweet. Guardiola should return to his stable formation with Sanchez replaced by Pedro and Pique featuring from the start. Mascherano, however, did suffer Real’s better physical condition and may damage his team as he keeps playing in place of injured captain Puyol.
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