Malaga and Real Madrid are both chasing goals currently out of reach and with only ten games left to play, there’s very little room for mistakes.
Kick-off: Saturday, 4 April 2009, 22:00 CET –La Rosaleda, Malaga
So Close, Yet So Far
Malaga put on one of their best performances of the season against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu back in early November in the corresponding fixture when they came close to pulling off an upset. They took the lead three times against the reigning champions but still ended up losing 4-3 despite having one extra man on the field.
They’ll be looking to make amends this weekend as they continue their surprise push for a top-six finish and in the process, dent Los Blancos’ title dreams. But the Andalucian outfit will be more concerned about their own cause.
Having already accumulated what is generally regarded as a sufficient tally of points per season to avoid the drop, Antonio Tapia’s men will now be hoping to put the cherry on top of the cake by qualifying for next term’s inaugural Europa League. The competition will be extremely tough, though, as seasoned campaigners Atletico Madrid, Valencia and Deportivo La Coruna are all after the two available spots. All four sides are currently locked together on 43 points and over the past few weeks, the quartet were barely able to be separated as they traded and swapped positions round after round.
The battle is expected to go all the way down to the wire and it will be no shame at all if Malaga were to fail to make the cut. But they would sure hate to come so close and miss out after such a brilliant season.
Full Steam Ahead
With no more interruptions from now until the end of the season, Real Madrid can centre a hundred per cent of their focus on La Liga. There are no more Champions League interruptions or international breaks from here on out. It’s just them and the finish line.
Ten successive weeks, ten league games and they need, more likely than not, ten straight wins. It’s the exact same mission they had two seasons ago when they had to pull off one of the most epic and miraculous of title comebacks to pip Barcelona to the throne.
It’s certainly not impossible for Los Merengues to win every single one of their remaining games. They’d already won ten in a row before Atletico Madrid brought their hot streak to an end with a 1-1 draw a month ago. Not only that, during half of that winning sequence, the men in white weren’t even playing all that well as coach Juande Ramos patiently moulded a winning machine.
Now, however, they have recovered their confidence in defence and they have rediscovered their attacking flair, having scored 21 goals in their last six La Liga outings and conceded only four times. Their main problem, though, is that direct rivals, Barca, have also regained top form after a fumble in February.
Madrid won their 31st title last season, amassing 84 goals and totalling 85 points. If they can indeed win all remaining ten matches and maintain their current ratio of three goals per game, they will end this campaign with 96 goals and 93 points. It will be quite something if they can produce that record and still not win the title.
FORM GUIDE
Malaga
Mar 22 Barcelona 6-0 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Mar 15 Malaga 2-2 Sevilla (LA LIGA)
Mar 08 Getafe 1-2 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Mar 01 Malaga 0-2 Recreativo Huelva (LA LIGA)
Feb 22 Real Valladolid 1-3 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Real Madrid
Mar 22 Real Madrid 3-0 Almeria (LA LIGA)
Mar 14 Athletic Bilbao 2-5 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
Mar 10 Liverpool 4-0 Real Madrid (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)
Mar 07 Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid (LA LIGA)
Feb 28 Espanyol 0-2 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
TEAM NEWS
Malaga
Striker Salva Ballesta failed to train on Wednesday due to back problems but he has since recovered and will be available for selection. Welington and Pablo de Barros also missed part of training earlier in the week through minor niggles but both have been passed fit.
The good news for Tapia is that Moroccan forward, Nabil Baha, has shaken off the hamstring strain that ruled him out of the Barca clash two weeks ago. Javier Calleja will return from a one-game ban and he should reclaim his left-back slot.
Probable Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Goitia – Jesus Gamez, Welington, Rosario, Calleja – Apono, de Barros – Eliseu, Baha, Duda – Salva
Real Madrid
Juande Ramos will have to reshuffle his back-line again. Left-back Gabriel Heinze is suspended for card accumulation while regular stand-in Marcelo is sidelined after picking up a knock in midweek while on international duty. Young Miguel Torres should deputise, or Juande could move Sergio Ramos to the left and deploy Michel Salgado on the right.
Winger Arjen Robben, on the other hand, is doubtful after picking up a slight muscle cramp while playing for the Netherlands. Fernando Gago, having just returned from South America, will have to run a late fitness test to determine his condition. If he is unfit Guti could get a chance to start alongside Lassana Diarra.
Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Torres – Higuain, Lass, Guti, Robben/Sneijder – Raul (c), Huntelaar
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Malaga
Tricky right-sided winger, Eliseu, recently linked with a move to Atletico, gave Madrid’s full-backs endless headaches in the clash earlier in the season and even scored one of the goals. He should be a handful for the Merengues back-line again on Saturday while compatriot, Duda on the other side of the flank, should also provide some attacking options as well as defensive strength.
Real Madrid
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has gone from zero to hero in virtually no time at all. Almost immediately after causing the furore with rumours that he was looking to leave the Bernabeu, he has gone on a sensational scoring spree, netting 10 goals in his last eight games for club and country. In the same way that Lassana Diarra has brought defensive stability to the team, Klaas has injected more attacking firepower to the side.
PREDICTION
Madrid have an outstanding head-to-head record against Malaga. Not only have they won their last four visits to La Rosaleda, but they have never lost to the Andalucians in 15 previous meetings; winning 11 and drawing four.
Morale is not particularly high at the Boquerones camp after shipping in half a dozen goals at Barca a fortnight ago and they could be in for another difficult night if the Blancos fire on all cylinders.
Malaga 0-2 Real Madrid
Kick-off: Saturday, 4 April 2009, 22:00 CET –La Rosaleda, Malaga
So Close, Yet So Far
Malaga put on one of their best performances of the season against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu back in early November in the corresponding fixture when they came close to pulling off an upset. They took the lead three times against the reigning champions but still ended up losing 4-3 despite having one extra man on the field.
They’ll be looking to make amends this weekend as they continue their surprise push for a top-six finish and in the process, dent Los Blancos’ title dreams. But the Andalucian outfit will be more concerned about their own cause.
Having already accumulated what is generally regarded as a sufficient tally of points per season to avoid the drop, Antonio Tapia’s men will now be hoping to put the cherry on top of the cake by qualifying for next term’s inaugural Europa League. The competition will be extremely tough, though, as seasoned campaigners Atletico Madrid, Valencia and Deportivo La Coruna are all after the two available spots. All four sides are currently locked together on 43 points and over the past few weeks, the quartet were barely able to be separated as they traded and swapped positions round after round.
The battle is expected to go all the way down to the wire and it will be no shame at all if Malaga were to fail to make the cut. But they would sure hate to come so close and miss out after such a brilliant season.
Full Steam Ahead
With no more interruptions from now until the end of the season, Real Madrid can centre a hundred per cent of their focus on La Liga. There are no more Champions League interruptions or international breaks from here on out. It’s just them and the finish line.
Ten successive weeks, ten league games and they need, more likely than not, ten straight wins. It’s the exact same mission they had two seasons ago when they had to pull off one of the most epic and miraculous of title comebacks to pip Barcelona to the throne.
It’s certainly not impossible for Los Merengues to win every single one of their remaining games. They’d already won ten in a row before Atletico Madrid brought their hot streak to an end with a 1-1 draw a month ago. Not only that, during half of that winning sequence, the men in white weren’t even playing all that well as coach Juande Ramos patiently moulded a winning machine.
Now, however, they have recovered their confidence in defence and they have rediscovered their attacking flair, having scored 21 goals in their last six La Liga outings and conceded only four times. Their main problem, though, is that direct rivals, Barca, have also regained top form after a fumble in February.
Madrid won their 31st title last season, amassing 84 goals and totalling 85 points. If they can indeed win all remaining ten matches and maintain their current ratio of three goals per game, they will end this campaign with 96 goals and 93 points. It will be quite something if they can produce that record and still not win the title.
FORM GUIDE
Malaga
Mar 22 Barcelona 6-0 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Mar 15 Malaga 2-2 Sevilla (LA LIGA)
Mar 08 Getafe 1-2 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Mar 01 Malaga 0-2 Recreativo Huelva (LA LIGA)
Feb 22 Real Valladolid 1-3 Malaga (LA LIGA)
Real Madrid
Mar 22 Real Madrid 3-0 Almeria (LA LIGA)
Mar 14 Athletic Bilbao 2-5 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
Mar 10 Liverpool 4-0 Real Madrid (CHAMPIONS LEAGUE)
Mar 07 Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid (LA LIGA)
Feb 28 Espanyol 0-2 Real Madrid (LA LIGA)
TEAM NEWS
Malaga
Striker Salva Ballesta failed to train on Wednesday due to back problems but he has since recovered and will be available for selection. Welington and Pablo de Barros also missed part of training earlier in the week through minor niggles but both have been passed fit.
The good news for Tapia is that Moroccan forward, Nabil Baha, has shaken off the hamstring strain that ruled him out of the Barca clash two weeks ago. Javier Calleja will return from a one-game ban and he should reclaim his left-back slot.
Probable Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Goitia – Jesus Gamez, Welington, Rosario, Calleja – Apono, de Barros – Eliseu, Baha, Duda – Salva
Real Madrid
Juande Ramos will have to reshuffle his back-line again. Left-back Gabriel Heinze is suspended for card accumulation while regular stand-in Marcelo is sidelined after picking up a knock in midweek while on international duty. Young Miguel Torres should deputise, or Juande could move Sergio Ramos to the left and deploy Michel Salgado on the right.
Winger Arjen Robben, on the other hand, is doubtful after picking up a slight muscle cramp while playing for the Netherlands. Fernando Gago, having just returned from South America, will have to run a late fitness test to determine his condition. If he is unfit Guti could get a chance to start alongside Lassana Diarra.
Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Torres – Higuain, Lass, Guti, Robben/Sneijder – Raul (c), Huntelaar
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Malaga
Tricky right-sided winger, Eliseu, recently linked with a move to Atletico, gave Madrid’s full-backs endless headaches in the clash earlier in the season and even scored one of the goals. He should be a handful for the Merengues back-line again on Saturday while compatriot, Duda on the other side of the flank, should also provide some attacking options as well as defensive strength.
Real Madrid
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has gone from zero to hero in virtually no time at all. Almost immediately after causing the furore with rumours that he was looking to leave the Bernabeu, he has gone on a sensational scoring spree, netting 10 goals in his last eight games for club and country. In the same way that Lassana Diarra has brought defensive stability to the team, Klaas has injected more attacking firepower to the side.
PREDICTION
Madrid have an outstanding head-to-head record against Malaga. Not only have they won their last four visits to La Rosaleda, but they have never lost to the Andalucians in 15 previous meetings; winning 11 and drawing four.
Morale is not particularly high at the Boquerones camp after shipping in half a dozen goals at Barca a fortnight ago and they could be in for another difficult night if the Blancos fire on all cylinders.
Malaga 0-2 Real Madrid
