Barcelona humbles Real Madrid 2-1 at home
MAY 2004
Real Madrid lost to FC Barcelona 2-1 at home for the first time in six seasons on Sunday in the Spanish league. The defeat left David Beckham and his teammates with the real prospect of ending the season without silverware, having already been knocked out of the King's Cup and the Champions League.
Real Madrid needs to win their remaining matches to stand a chance of retaining the Spanish league title.
The match was played before a capacity 78,000 crowd, and Real Madrid's loss was front-page news on Monday. "Ronaldinho's Barcelona conquered the Bernabeu," headlined El Pais. "Madrid missed Ronaldo and lost to Barcelona despite having the best chances," stated La Razon. Title rivals Valencia took a point from a 1-1 draw against Athletic de Bilbao to lead the standings with 71 points from 34 games, while defending champion Madrid has 70. Barcelona is third with 66 points, four more than fourth-placed Deportivo de La Coruna. Madrid made an energetic start and was unlucky not to go ahead in the first half, with Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes having to work hard to keep his scoresheet clean. Valdes thwarted Raul in the 37th minute, then defender Carles Puyol headed off the goalline as Roberto Carlos sent the rebound toward goal. Zinedine Zidane had the measure of Ronaldinho, and Beckham measured up well to Edgar Davids.
Two minutes later, Raul sent the ball onto the bar after Valdes had parried an inswinging Beckham free kick, with Figo's followup header parried on the line by the Barcelona 'keeper. Valdes performed more wonders early in the second half when he denied Zidane and Figo in quick succession, only for Madrid to take the lead moments later. Beckham's cross was knocked away from goal by Roberto Carlos, and Argentine midfielder Santiago Solari scored in the 54th minute for Madrid with a power shot that cleared the packed defense and the diving Valdes. Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard reacted quickly, bringing on Patrick Kluivert and veteran midfielder Luis Enrique Martinez, and within a minute Kluivert headed home an equalizer after left-back Giovanni van Bronckhorst had beaten the offside trap and lobbed over Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas. Figo, whose move from Barcelona to Madrid in 2000 infuriated the Catalan team's supporters, then received his second yellow card of the game for a strong tackle on Spanish international defender Puyol. Ronaldinho burst into life in the 77th minute and beat three Madrid players before crossing for Kluivert to head just over the bar. Nine minutes later, the Brazilian star created the winning goal when his delicately chipped lob cleared Madrid's defense and Xavi flicked the ball past Madrid's Iker Casillas in goal. "The ejection of Figo was key," Rijkaard admitted. "Valdes worked miracles, he did the impossible. We won with a great team." Madrid's defeat is its second straight at home.
"We're going to battle on. The race is not over yet," Madrid captain Raul Gonzalez said. "Although we realize we have to start winning now, otherwise we'll hand the title to Valencia." Barcelona's victory extended its unbeaten run to 16 matches. "We used the ball well. From seven or eight games ago, we no longer look back, we aim to take the next team on," said Barcelona midfielder Luis Enrique, who played for Madrid from 1991-1996.
Other results Sunday were: Celta de Vigo 1, Osasuna 0; Real Betis 2, Real Sociedad 1; Valladolid 1, Mallorca 3; Zaragoza 4, Sevilla 4; Racing de Santander 0, Albacete 2; and Villarreal 1, Murcia 0. On Saturday, Deportivo drew 1-1 with Malaga, while Espanyol downed Atletico de Madrid 3-1.
Barcelona aims for seventh straight Spanish league victory
MADRID, Spain (AP)� A resurgent FC Barcelona seeks to stretch its winning streak in the Spanish league to seven matches against struggling Mallorca in this weekend's 27th round.
Since coach Frank Rijkaard's future hung in the balance following a 3-0 loss to Racing de Santander on Jan. 4, Barcelona has gained 22 points out of a possible 24, rising to fourth in the standings. Barcelona's eye-catching run is its best since the 1998-1999 season, when it went on to lift the league title, the club's last major piece of silverware. The Catalan team continued its winning ways Wednesday when it beat Brondby to reach the last 16 of the UEFA Cup. "The improvement is a triumph for all the players. They have done great work, they've overcome periods of sacrifice and disappointment and kept working and their moment has arrived," Rijkaard said.
Barcelona's star is undoubtedly Brazilian international Ronaldinho, whose flair has captivated fans since his arrival from Paris Saint-Germain last summer. Ronaldinho has scored four goals in his last four league games, match-winning form that is helped by Barcelona's improved teamwork, according to midfielder Xavi Hernandez. "We've learned to play as a unit and this has given individuals more chance to shine," the Spanish international said.
Barcelona's revival can be attributed to other factors. Tenacious Dutch midfielder Edgar Davids, who arrived on loan from Juventus in January, has added bite to the midfield and allowed Xavi to move into a more offensive role, where he has hit top form and regained his place in the Spanish national team. Meanwhile, Dutch striker Patrick Kluivert's absence due to injury has allowed Argentine international Javier Saviola to regain confidence and score four goals in the last five matches. Saviola is suspended for Sunday's game at the Camp Nou, and with Kluivert still in the treatment room, Rijkaard may select young reserve Sergio Gonzalez in attack for his fifth appearance of the season. Seventeenth-place Mallorca, which has gained two points in its last five matches, looks ill-equipped to halt Barcelona, especially as it will lack suspended goalkeeper Leo Franco of Argentina. Like Barcelona, Luis Aragones' team also reached the UEFA Cup's fourth round on Wednesday - although less impressively, with a home loss to Spartak Moscow. With two-thirds of the season gone, Barcelona lies 13 points behind leader Real Madrid, which took a step closer to reclaiming the title by beating Celta de Vigo 4-2 last Sunday.
Madrid, with 59 points, has eight points more than second-place Valencia and nine more than third-place Deportivo de La Coruna, both of which lost last weekend. On Saturday, Madrid visits 12th-place Racing de Santander, where it hasn't won on its last three visits. Madrid coach Carlos Queiroz will have to reorganize his defense owing to the suspensions of right back Michel Salgado and central defender Francisco Pavon. Alvaro Mejia, who has made a promising start to his first-team career, is expected to replace Salgado, who has accumulated more minutes on the field this season than any other Madrid player. Striker Raul Gonzalez is doubtful with a left ankle injury although Queiroz may rest the Spanish international anyway with a view to Wednesday's Champions League game against Bayern Munich. While Raul hasn't scored in his last eight league matches, the scorching form of his fellow striker Ronaldo has meant this has hardly been noticed. The Brazilian ace, who this week extended his Madrid contract to 2008, has notched eight goals since Raul's drought began. Overall, Ronaldo has scored 22 times in 25 matches.
Valencia, which hosts Deportivo de La Coruna on Sunday, hopes to improve on its recent form, after losing its last two games. Deportivo, whose 3-2 loss to Barcelona last weekend ended a four-game unbeaten spell, must avoid the distraction of its Champions League visit to Juventus on Tuesday. Deportivo holds a 1-0 first-leg lead. Spain's other two Champions League representatives, Real Sociedad and Celta, which both face an uphill struggle to stay in the competition next week, badly need to boost their sagging league fortunes.
Thirteenth-place Real Sociedad, which has taken one point from a possible 12, visits No. 7 Osasuna on Saturday. Three days later, it aims to overcome a 1-0 deficit against Olympique Lyon. Celta, which trails Arsenal 3-2 ahead of Wednesday's second leg, needs a victory even more. Its defeat by Madrid left it in the relegation zone, just one place above Saturday's visitor Espanyol.
