The Whites lose against a great Almeria, but continue leading the table
Almeria 2-0 Real Madrid
February 2, 2008 -Almeria's stadium is a tough venue to play in, and the team itself knows how to stand its ground against any rival. Despite their defeat tonight, Real Madrid continue being leaders with a seven point-lead over the runners-up.
Almeria deserve to remain in the First Division. They already proved their quality at the Bernabéu on Matchday 3 and, four months later, they defeated Real Madrid on their turf.
Diarra returned to the Whites' starting line-up in midfield replacing Gago, who was suspended for the game. Sneijder took Baptista's place. The rest of the team were the same players who faced Villarreal last weekend.
The first dangerous chances for both sides came in the first ten minutes after a period of time in which both teams were rather inefficient in midfield. Raúl was the first to have a go, with an amazing lob from the right wing on the 5-minute mark. Former Madridista Negredo and Juan Ortiz began to siege Iker Casillas' goal with several chances, one of which resulted in a goal after Cannavaro bumped into Negredo, fell, and a shot was efficiently taken by Juanito (16'). Iker reached the ball with an amazing stretch, but it had already gone over the goal-line.
Almeria grow strong
Pressure on Guti prevented Real Madrid's game to flow smoothly, but they still had chances, especially from set-pieces and in counterattacks. Van Nistelrooy came close to drawing the match from a corner by Guti, but keeper Alves grabbed the ball (21'). The Whites' clearest chance came four minutes later when Robinho passed the ball to Sergio Ramos. The defender ran with all his might diagonally towards the goal, but clashed with Alves right outside the box. A free-kick was awarded and Guti missed the top right corner of the goal by inches with a beautifully curved shot.
The second half had a bad start for Real Madrid. Negredo was pushed inside the area by Cannavaro and scored from the penalty that was awarded (1'). Van Nistelrroy had been replaced by Higuaín at the start of the last 45 minutes because he had received a hard blow from one of the locals' defenders at the end of the first half.
The Whites don't react
Schuster's men tried with all their might to turn around the score, but their hearts ruled over their minds. Baptista replaced Salgado, widening the team's scope on the pitch and bringing more speed to its game. Balboa also came on, pulling off the most dangerous chance Real Madrid enjoyed in the entire second half, crossing the ball into the box for Raúl to head in, but Alves once again saved the day for Almeria (55').
Minutes went by and Real Madrid still didn't find a way to score, while the locals wanted even more. Baptista had one of the Madridistas' last chances with a shot from just outside the box on the 87-minute mark, but the ball grazed past the post. In the end, Almeria once again stood their ground firmly against an opponent at their stadium and Real Madrid will now have to think about defeating Valladolid next weekend.
MATCH REPORT:
2 - ALMERIA: Diego Alves, Bruno, Carlos García, Pulido, Mané, Juanito, Felipe Melo, Juanma Ortiz (Soriano, 80’), Corona (Ortiz, 64’) Negredo (Uche, 78’) & Crusat
0 - REAL MADRID: Casillas, Salgado (Baptista, 63’), Sergio Ramos, Cannavaro, Torres, Sneijder (Balboa, 74’), Guti, Diarra, Robinho, Raúl & Van Nistelrooy (Higuaín, 45’).
REFEREE: Clos Gómez. Booked Sergio Ramos (15’), Casillas (25’), Sneijder (44’), Guti (74’), Felipe Melo (24’), Diego Alves (25’) and Soriano (87’).
GOALS:
1-0, min.15: Juanito.
2-0, min.46: Negredo.
NOTES: Matchday 22 of the Spanish League. Real Madrid wore black arm-bands in mourning for the death of Uli Stielike's son, who passed away on Thursday. Almeria's and Real Madrid's players held a banner supporting Juanma, a three-year old boy from Almería who has a degenerative illness. Attendance: 21,300. One minute's silence was held in memory of Isabel Mª Robles.
Match report by Arancha Díaz
Photography by David R. Anchuelo
Translation by Michael J. O'Donnell
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