Duel of The X-Men at Heart of Real Madrid Passion Play With Barcelona - Sid Lowe - Football - The Observer

Duel of the X-men at heart of Real Madrid passion play with Barcelona...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/apr/24/real-madrid-barcelona...
Real Madrid v Barcelona, Champions League semi-final first leg, Wednesday 27 April 7.45
Forget Ronaldo v Messi, the midfield collision of Xabi and Xavi is set to decide a dazzling Champions League semi-final
Sid Lowe The Observer, Sunday 24 April 2011 Article history
Xabi Alonso, above, and Xavi are the 'brains' of Real Madrid and Barcelona, supplying their teams with superb passing and control. Photograph: Richard Sellers/Allstar
There was something striking about the cheat notes an English player smuggled into a Spanish press room and sneaked under the desk, ready to recite when the moment was right. "And how," he had asked as he copied out the phrases the day before, "do you say that?" The answer was simple: exactly as it's written. One of the beauties of Spanish is that it is largely phonetic. This is not a country that makes spelling mistakes, except for one: Bs and Vs sound virtually identical, ending up erroneously exchanged. Some things become indistinguishable like voting (votar) and bouncing (botar). Or Xavi and Xabi. Xavi and Xabi, Xabi and Xavi. Xavi Hernndez and Xabi Alonso. They are the X-men currently in the midst of their side's midfields and in the thick of an epic in four chapters a saga in which Barcelona have been left as virtual league champions and Madrid as actual Copa del Rey winners, in which the trophy that matters most, the climax, will be decided over the next 10 days. "Indistinguishable" might be pushing it. Not least because Catalan and Basque roots mean that those with sharp hearing can tell the pair apart not because of the V or the B but because of the X, from a "ch" sound for Xavi to "sh" for Xabi. And because there are differences to their games: Xabi is taller, more imposing, his position is a little more static, a little deeper; Xavi provides the final pass more often, Spain's most important assist provider last season. Xabi's passes travel further; Xavi's travel faster. Yet there is a striking mutual respect between them and a similarity that, for all the
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focus on Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi, may make of them the central actors in the drama about to unfold. One that means that it just feels right that they play together for Spain. These are the men who will face each other in the heart of midfield, the men entrusted with bringing an identity to their teams, whose job it is not just to play better but make others play better too. Xavi is Barcelona's ideologue bright, opinionated and analytical, the man Pep Guardiola told: "I can't imagine Bara without you." Xabi is one of the few players to discuss tactics with Jos Mourinho, to contradict him and suggest other approaches, a leader within the Madrid dressing room intelligent, communicative, quietly authoritative, bringing calm to a team that plays at breakneck speed. These are Madrid and Barcelona's cerebros: their brains. Real football people, insightful and passionate about the game, in awe at the passion it provokes and absolutely assured as to the way it can be played, they are team-mates and fellow travellers for Spain. And for all the differences between the clubs, for all that Guardiola and Mourinho have divergent approaches, for all that their identities diverged further over the past week than they ever have before, there is an inescapable similarity between them. Just ask the men who have faced them. When Almera played Barcelona last season, their then coach, Hugo Snchez, ordered one of his players to man-mark Xavi, cutting off Barcelona's football "at source". When Almera drew with Madrid earlier this season, their then coach, Jos Luis Oltra, was most concerned with stopping Xabi. "We had to make sure Alonso had as little of the ball as possible," Oltra said. "He is the Madrid player who most makes sense of the game he plays the best long passes, the best final pass and the controls the game best. There is a real criteria to the way he plays." Only two Madrid players have won possession back more times than Alonso, but it is that passing, the control, that has been judged to have most defined him here. Just as it is with Xavi. Guardiola rests Xavi only when he must. Mourinho has avoided rotations this season but when big games come it is Alonso he seeks to protect first. Apart from the 5-0 defeat to Barcelona in November, Madrid have been beaten just twice by Osasuna and Sporting. Alonso did not start either game. He was missing last year, too, when Madrid were knocked out of the Champions League by Lyon. Liverpool fans who witnessed their side's collapse after Alonso's departure will be familiar with the feeling. "It turned out that Madrid could play without Cristiano Ronaldo," wrote one columnist, "but they couldn't play without Alonso." As for Xavi, the thought of his retirement has fans of Spain and Barcelona breaking into a cold sweat. They play as they do because he makes them. Although he identifies most closely with the city of San Sebastin, Xabi Alonso's father, Periko, played for Barcelona for three years and played for Sabadell, meaning that Xabi lived in the Catalan capital for six years, near the city's Avenida Diagonal. So maybe there is a natural affinity, born of experience and location. There is a certain a complicity of criteria and approach, as well as a mutual appreciation. Friends recall Alonso returning to Liverpool from the Spain squad, stunned by what he had seen Xavi do. But do not take their word for it. Alonso describes Xavi as the player who "probably has the best passing ratio in history if you look at possession, participation and how rarely he loses the ball." "When you are in the middle of a Barcelona rondo [keep the ball]," he told Pblico, "you feel impotent. You need to know when to put your foot in or else, pum-pum-pum and they get away from you. Xavi loses so, so few. I am lucky to have enjoyed that with the Spanish national team. But when I am with Madrid, I suffer it." He added: "In fact, that was the worst experience of my footballing life." The lack of control hurts. Much like his counterpart, control is what Alonso is there to provide. While Xavi Hernndez has completed more passes than anyone else in Spain this season, 2,794 400 more than anyone else Xabi Alonso has completed 1,558
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(before Saturday's games). That is more than anyone in the Madrid side, by a huge difference. He is the only Madrid player in the top 10 and just two non-Barcelona players are ahead of him: Verd from Espanyol and Villarreal's Bruno. Perhaps, then, it is little surprise that, asked which Madrid player he would steal ready for this series of clsicos, Xavi replied: "Xabi." "Xabi," Xavi said, "is the player that could best adapt to our associative game. He has enormous talent, he is very quick in his use of the ball and very intelligent." Last Saturday in La Liga, you might have begged to differ; on Wednesday night in the Copa del Rey final even more so. Alonso's game appeared altered. He played long and direct, rarely choosing his passes with characteristic care and reaching half-time with the kind of statistics that screamed at you, so unusual were they. He had completed fewer passes than Vctor Valds. By the full-time whistle, with the score at 1-1, he had completed just 16. Xavi, in contrast, had clocked up well over one hundred. That was a fact most noted in the Barcelona camp and with a quiet hint of disappointment, as if they looked on Alonso like a good kid who had got in with the wrong crowd. Patronising, perhaps. Puritanical, certainly. After all, Madrid had stemmed the bleeding. Defeated 5-0 in November, now the score was 1-1. And better was to come. But, still, it was true. Three days later, the feeling grew even more intense, this time turning bitter and angry. In an often fractious Copa del Rey final, in which the mutual affection appeared buried forever, in which Spanish national team-mates on both sides were locked in feuds all over the field, Xavi again racked up a huge number of passes: 135. Alonso completed just 35. But this time, it did not matter: Real Madrid won the Copa del Rey and might even have found a formula for beating Barcelona in Europe, too. For Xabi that new formula meant a revolution in his role. Yet he embraced it. He had not failed; he had, rather, succeeded in playing a different role. The question is whether it is a role that will prosper over the next two meetings. A role in which Xabi was not like Xavi. This time telling them apart was easy. Xabi Alonso was the one holding the Cup.
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Comments
114 comments, displaying first Staff Contributor BradGoodman 24 April 2011 11:18AM Anybody else a little tired of Barca and their 1 million passes with 94% pass completion rate, holier than thou attitude? BankerBasher 24 April 2011 11:36AM Watching Barcelona is better than sex - pure orgasm!! Yes Barcelona is very pleasurable to watch - I just love watching them!! Recommend (264) Responses (0) Report
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Being a Liverpool fan I always knew how great Xabi Alonso is London2012 our best midfielder since the 90s, yes that includes Gerrard!! It's 24 April 2011 11:39AM a shame that he wasn't appreciated in the premiership and still Me too! me how the British press tried to hype Gareth "Snail" amazes Barry as I like than him!! Much as betterReal Madrid, I can't be bothered with the hype over Mourinho.is absolutely amazing especially the wayPrimera However, Xavi Shame there are only two teams in the he Ligue this year. controls and dictates play, and Alonso is no way near his class he is easily one of the best midfielder ever to grace football!! I Petete remember some stupid comments made by the British media 24 April during Euro08!! 2011 11:39AM This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs. London2012 24 April 2011 11:41AM Banker seriously? I can only think that either you are doing it wrong or you are doing it with the wrong person. Gwladgarol 24 April 2011 11:47AM @ Brad. No. BankerBasher 24 April 2011 11:50AM London2012, Lol....No mate, don't have a problem doing it wrong in that department!! My speciality is doing it the "Tika-taka" style complete domination of the opposition!! eltelspurca 24 April 2011 11:58AM This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs. Plutomuststay 24 April 2011 11:59AM As a Liverpool fan I find this article compelling but also incredibly depressing. This is a player who never had any intention of leaving, but was forced out by the sheer pig-headedness of our erstwhile manager. Rafa is a complete gent and a wonderful human being, but any notion that he should manage our club ever again should be measured against the seeds of havoc he sew through his treatment of Alonso. futbolari 24 April 2011 12:00PM bankbasher- do not forget it was Rafa who hyped up Barry and targeted him as a replacement for xabi-maybe because the latter

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wanted to be presenrt at his son's birth instead of going to work. StevenSmith19 As a Rsociedad and Liverpool fan I will never forgive him for 24 April 2011 12:07PM going to RM As a Rsociedad and Liverpool fan I will never forgive him for going to RM Can you blame him? He has come out several times since and stated that he loved Liverpool and wanted to stay but was made to feel insignificant and unwanted by Benitez. It didn't help that the British media campaign tried to declare Barry as England's most important player, versatile, truly brilliant etc. illocon 24 April 2011 12:09PM Great article, Sid.

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volveralpueblo 24 April 2011 12:16PM Well, in terms of injury situation, peak in form and ability to close down Barcelona for two games I guess most people's pick will be RM to go through. Just a little reminder then....Barcelona completely dominated the 2nd half on Wednesday and did actually create 3-4 fantastic chances, including an absolutely incredible Messi-move leading to a goal disallowed because Pedro was leaning 20-30 cm into offside. In addition, if there is something these players relish it is to play when everyone is up and questioning them and their style - cue November, where the consensus seemed to be that Madrid would win in the Camp Nou to affirm the 'regime change'. So I guess not all is lost just yet for us culs..... Talonade 24 April 2011 12:21PM I find Sid Lowe's writing hard to read, it just dosnt flow, he has a clumsy style that puts me off some interesting content. Also feels like a lot of ideas are regurgitated from Spanish press. Sweet gig he's got anyway, so peace. Hype over Barca is unbearable, tho I love their ethos. The clash with Mourinho's footballing realpolitik and tactical brio is fascinating, these are golden times. Man Utd - Madrid final as Mourinho's trial to take over from the great SAF and extend their imminent domestic preeminence? Raul to break Barca hearts at Wembley? "Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in" FormicaAtomica 24 April 2011 12:36PM Both great great players.

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Liked thebellotathing. x-men 24 April 2011 12:42PM Yes two football player and they are different. In Spanish Selection they are magic middle-field, but Barcelona and Real Madrid are different team. Two ways if you will win. Well Xavi and Xavi are special football player, the style, the kicker. Dolphinboy1984 24 April 2011 12:43PM Plutomuststay I'm a Liverpool fan also but your, and other, comment/s seems to forget the 2006/2007-2007/2008 seasons when Alonso was dire. In my opinion Rafa had good justification to sell a player who seemed content warming the bench. Then amazingly when an attempt was made to sell him to Juventus but fell through, he upped his game, and, for me, was player of the season 2008/2009. It would be very easy to blame Rafa but Alonso has to take responsibility for his poor performances during those seasons. I guess the story itself has some relevance to the Gerrard fiasco in 2005 when he flirted with moving to Chelsea. Benitez, being a terrible man manager, because of his cold hearted approach made Gerrard feel unwanted, maybe the same happened to Alonso. Although, reflecting on these events does make me happy that times seem simpler at Anfield. Anyways, on to the subject. Decent article Sid, although it will be very difficult to ever come to a real conclusion as to who is the superior. On paper Xavi will have the most direct influence on goal scoring but Xabi will usually orchestrate the beginning of a move rather than assist it. So many times watching Liverpool did I get to see Alonso provide that pass just before the assist. eltelspurca 24 April 2011 12:43PM @Talonade I find Sid Lowe's writing hard to read, it just dosnt flow, he has a clumsy style that puts me off some interesting content. Like, um Dan Brown or Stieg Larsson? Knock it off, Sid's good to read. "Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in" except when Mourinho's teams are playing . . . RealMad 24 April 2011 12:50PM Why Real Madrid would let Sergio Ramos be vice-captain over Xabi Alonso is beyond belief. Why they would let him hold the Copa del Rey? Ludicrous. Iker Casillas makes a good enough captain, but he isnt in the middle of the field. This seniority thing is over-rated.
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Time for subsub Equis. Capitan 24 April 2011 12:56PM utbolari 24 April 2011 12:00PM bankbasher- do not forget it was Rafa who hyped up Barry and targeted him as a replacement for xabi-maybe because the latter wanted to be presenrt at his son's birth instead of going to work. As a Rsociedad and Liverpool fan I will never forgive him for going to RM Bit harsh, that. He was bought for 10m and sold for 30m. His wife, apparently, told him that she wanted their children raised in Spain. He acted like a gentleman while at Liverpool. I wish he hadn't left, but I have nothing but good wishes for the man. subsub 24 April 2011 12:59PM I find Sid's writing a little strained at times, too. The British media has an obsession with slipping in a word or two of foreign language in the mistaken belief that it makes them sound sophisticated. I know Sid is fluent in Spanish, and that there are some words that really cannot be translated easily, but he chucks them in his copy so often, it feels like he's doing it for effect sometimes. BlueinBetis 24 April 2011 1:01PM For all those, who only weeks ago were predicting Barca's unprecedented winning of primera and segunda. Toma! volveralpueblo 24 April 2011 1:05PM As an interesting aside... Just read Guardiola's comments after the game last night and it seems he has decided a change of discourse is called for: - Questioned on the possibility of a Portuguese ref on Wednesday he said Mou would be 'delighted, just as he was in the first leg last year'. - Speaking of going to the Bernabu he said they'd 'have the chance to see if the grass has grown some more' And so forth. Personally, I'm happy with the change of style. While I don't want my manager moaning about the ref after every game, I don't see why Barcelona should never ever pressure the refs like Mou does on a daily basis. O senhor Benquerenca had a decisive impact last year at the San Siro and without him Inter would've been out, which is something that bears repeating every bit as much as Chelsea fans love to remember a certain Norwegian

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official. LordXenu 24 April 2011 1:13PM Anybody else a little tired of Barca and their 1 million passes with 94% pass completion rate, holier than thou attitude? Fuck no. JamesPatrickPage 24 April 2011 1:14PM I think Mourinho will be very happy indeed with a guy that sent off twice while at Porto in Portugal... But that cannot be Guardiola surely! Because Pep has literally stated several times that he never talks about referees. There must be a mistake somewhere. Kithou 24 April 2011 1:20PM This article is totally wrong. Xavi is pronounced with a 'sh' sound not a 'ch' one. Sounds exactly like Xabi, except maybe in the Balearic Islands where they do make a distinction between 'v' and 'b'. aguero 24 April 2011 1:23PM Pedantry warning I am sure Sid speaks very good Spanish and it seems churlish to point out that voting and bouncing are actually tranlsated as votando and botando not vote and bounce, but his "[t]here is a real criteria to the way he plays..." not only is not good English and makes criteria a singular when it is really plural but also falls into the trap of using a false friend. "Con criterio" (not "criteria") means something like with great judgement or, more idiomatically, "with fantastic vision"... markefrank 24 April 2011 1:27PM No, I don't get bored of their passing. It amazes me to be honest. And, I thoroughly enjoy when they are in form, their constant riddle-solving, always looking for the way through. It is like watching someone pick a lock. I love it. I know many, especially in the UK, don't really care for Bara, but I can't think of another team I would prefer to watch (although Tottenham on a good night is fantastic as well!). And, I think Sid Lowe is actually a splendid writer. He may be hard to follow sometimes, but that is because he is actually enjoying his choice of words, and playing a bit with them and what he is trying to say. I think Madrid are favourites, but I think Bara could still triumph. lambino 24 April 2011 1:37PM

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Outside of the clsicos, they are the key men for each team. But Ruprict when they go head to head, it looks much more like Di Mara and 24 April 2011 1:43PM Pepe are the key for Madrid, whereas Bara are still searching for Xabi Alonso is a very good player, but he is notthe last two the theirs. They've not had one standout player in remotely in same class as Xavi Hernandez. off, mind. games, not writing any of them Can see Pique and Iniesta being the men for the job. eltelspurca 24 April 2011 1:49PM @aguero Pedantry warning I am sure Sid speaks very good Spanish and it seems churlish to point out that voting and bouncing are actually tranlsated as votando and botando not vote and bounce, but his "[t]here is a real criteria to the way he plays..." not only is not good English and makes criteria a singular when it is really plural but also falls into the trap of using a false friend. "Con criterio" (not "criteria") means something like with great judgement or, more idiomatically, "with fantastic vision"... It is churlish, because in Spanish you tend to use infinitives where we use gerunds in English. Try "Fumando perjudica su salud". I'll give you "criteria", though. "Criterion" would be OK, and not really a false friend. It can mean "standard" which I think is what he wants to say. Any other teachers out there? PS What do teachers call Santa's little helpers? - Subordinate clauses. RichterBojack 24 April 2011 1:50PM @BradGoodman: No. I'm not sure what astounds me more, your post or the number of recommendations. When you can articulate what exactly is wrong with enjoying the best pure passing side in years, I'd like to hear it. Mehdi 24 April 2011 1:55PM Xabi Alonso - a celebration of complete mediocrity. Xabi Alonso is the most overrated footballer in the World. Real Madrid paid 35 million for a player that can't tackle, can't shoot and averages 5 assists a season. "That's not his role" yes his role is to pass square to superior team-mates. 35 million for that? Besonders 24 April 2011 1:59PM BradGoodman 24 April 2011 11:18AM Anybody else a little tired of Barca and their 1 million passes with 94% pass completion rate, holier than
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thou attitude? eljuli 24 April 2011 2:11PM I get bored with it sometimes. I wouldn't or Picasso? King Kenny or Ian Rush? Tesla or Edison? Velazquez watch them if they didn't have (1) incredible quality (2) Lionel Messi doing something one? It is in this society to Why do we always have to choose different. undermine one and supportsomeone play a perfect ten-pin On (1), it gets like watching the other one. Madridista myself and in love with Barcelona' style (most likely bowling match, or game of pinball. Remarkable, yes, but for how because that gave us the most important trophy I will ever long? How long could you admire the Arsenal offside trap, as celebrate) and I think we have one of the best confrontations of outstanding and successful as it was? And put up with their fans our times in front of us. eulogising it because it won trophies? Mourinho is an excellent coach that has excelled in a lot of On (2), imagine if every Guardiola has turned a well known style different situations and team in the World tried to play like

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Barcelona? They can't all be as good, and theythe field and Xavi is into pure art. Xabi is Mourinho's guardian in can't all have Messi. It'd be like watching the 1994 World Cup finals, where all Guardiola's mirror. the sussessful teams had the same defensive-minded counterThey are both equally admirable. attacking style. P.S. Touching briefly on the Xabi situation at Liverpool. I
personally blame Rafa for misreading theattitude. But I thinking I don't know about any holier-than-thou situation, for have had thatexperience that if you do anythingfamily. Rafa' success is the football was on top of someone's less than drool over precisely some his extreme dedication to football and having tika-taka,due to people talk to you as though you don't know everything under control but that they know life was way anything about football. (Whereastime Xabi's everything, ahead football they worship Barcelona and Spain). because and Rafa didn't understand or didn't want to understand. Tika-taka is just one kind of football, same as catennaccio, Total Football, and passing it back to Clemence/Grobbelaar. Barcelona JamesPatrickPage are great at it, but I'm glad they're the only ones devoted to it. 24 April 2011 2:18PM Xabi Alonso is a superb football player,. It's not even funny suggesting the contrary. Whoever has followed Madrid last two seasons, or Liverpool the previous one knows how important and influential the Basque has been. He's an incredible footballer with fantastic positioning, awareness and ability to set the tempo in midfield and read an incredibly wide set of game situations executing the right option at the right moment. I fail to see a player who is as good as him as deep lying midfielder in the world at the moment. aguero 24 April 2011 2:22PM @etelspurca Fair enough re: the infinitives! (Though in your example I'd translate it as smoking - he wouldn't let it lie...) on criterio do you really think he means standard? I think the whole point is the players are above standard... cultured, superior reading of the game, fine judgement, discernment, etc. I suppose I said false friend because its a classic case of a single word translation not working and I think Sid does that quite a lot. But I know this thread isn't about this - it's just that I've got nothing useful to say about the football, other than that I think they are both great, but that I've always particulalrly liked Xabi's bearing. Sorry I won't bother you again subjectiveobjective 24 April 2011 2:26PM Superb stuff Sid - I really like your staccato sentences Recommend (13) Responses (0) Report Recommend (3) Responses (0) Report
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punctuating the longer paragraphs. It makes for great reading. Allgoaliesaremad 24 April 2011 2:52PM Personally I prefer Xabi to Xavi. Despite the wonderful viewing that Xavi and his teammates provide his style sometimes To even mention Gareth Barry in the same sentence as either frustrates me, as if he is playing one pass to many. I realise this is Xabi or Xavi is a joke. I agree though, Alonso when he was at somewhat paradoxical considering the philosophy of 'tiki-taka' Liverpool was effective but not amazing. Xavi and Iniesta on the and the rondo, and especially Xavi's role in the team as the other hand are outstanding. metronome, but I sometimes long for more of those Xabi passes that float languidly over the heads of the midfield and land on Eldritch the chest or the feet of the winger on the other side of the pitch. 24 April 2011 2:56PM It's the trademark of Scholes and, recently I've noticed, Rooney too, and it's what makes an indiviudal a particularly special It has to be said: this is lovely writing. footballer en mi opinin. Although these two men are unfortunately nearing the end of bmmalik80 their careers the man to take over the mantle is an even more beautiful 24 April 2011 2:58PM player to watch methinks - Andres Iniesta. no point mentioning mourinho and beauty in the same post, those 2 words simply dont go together, and frankly, i dont think the growing number of nihilists in madrid really care. and i think its time pep did voice his opinion on certain issues that impact games. " we will see if the grass has grown longer". hahah thats hilarious. and perhaps is answers one of the questions that this article throws up. xabi vs xavi, ronaldo vs messi, ozil vs iniesta. i know barca are a well tuned unti, but its pretty obvious that the barca players mentioned above are reasonably far ahead of their madrid counterparts and i guess mou knows this or he wouldnt be packing players behind the ball and kicking the shit out of the opposition. barca are certainly down right now, and it seems that the footballing world in general believe that the tide has turned ( even barca fans are now filled with trepidation). mourinho said that barca were very good but they were only spanish champions. i guess his mama never told him not to tempt fate. RealMad 24 April 2011 3:19PM Off topic: Sid's interview with Raul was pretty soft, none of the hard questions we'd all like to hear his answer to. But more importantly, here's an interview I would love to see in the Guardian: Sid Lowe takes on Matilde Mourinho. Enquiring minds want to know. Magnusson 24 April 2011 3:26PM bankerbasher Being a Liverpool fan I always knew how great Xabi Alonso is - our best midfielder since the 90s, yes that includes Gerrard!! It's a shame that he wasn't
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appreciated in the premiership and still amazes me JulioGotanCornelio how the British press tried to hype Gareth "Snail" 24 April 2011 3:34PM Barry as better than him!! Good article Sid Lowe What are you on about? The only person in England that didn't Xabi Alonso is overrated. In England he was seen as a tactical appreciate how important Alonso was to Liverpool was his master and midfield beacon because: compatriot: Benitez! 1.It' was England.. where anyone with 10% tactical knowledge is already ahead of locas 2.Next to Steven Gerrard it isn't hard to look composed and measured. Xabi's first season with Real was poor. As a few switched on media folk said, if he'd been an African player the press would have attacked him (Mahama Diarra). In the World Cup Xabi was a slow, ponderous substitue for Marcos Senna (who had a similar role at Euro 2008). He takes ages to decide what to do. The odd throughball on the counterattack against weaker la Liga teams isn't enough for him to be anything but the worst player in the Spain team. He isn't the brain of anything. Nice man though, I gather Magnusson 24 April 2011 3:37PM Don't really understand the criticism regarding Sid Lowe's writing. Seems a bit petty and pointless given that this is a football (not litterature) blog. Anyway, not a Liverpool fan but always admired Alonso as a player. From interviews Ive read he also seems to belong that very rare breed of footballers that are talented, modest and knowlegeable. lambino 24 April 2011 3:41PM Hard to say who is better out of Xavi and Xabi. Hard to compare anyone to Bara midfielders, they practically play a different sport. Xavi has been brainwashed playing rondas and i'm sure Alonso would be just as good in the role if he'd been doing it for so many years. Likewise i'm sure Xavi would be just as good at spreading it about were he to play in a more open system. He'd probably be quite like Sneijder. People criticise Guardiola for making poor signings but for me most of them fail because they need time to adapt to this system and are shot down by impatient fans/press. It nearly killed off Mascherano, and i'm sure even Alonso would suffer for a while. Magnusson 24 April 2011 3:45PM JulioGotanCornelio 1.It' was England.. where anyone with 10% tactical knowledge is already ahead of locas Nothing like a good stereotype to justify an argument! JulioGotanCornelio

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StatesideAussie 24 April 2011 3:48PM 24 April 2011 3:54PM @Magnusson I admire Barcelona's pressing game but that endless passing Cheers ;-) bores the crap out of me. I do not agree that 650 passes, with a p.s. your Skeletor (or and 70% dominance of possession, mean a 95% completion rate Rivaldo) pic- best avatar I have seen at Guardian EVERto win" (even if they actually didn't score more team "deserves goals). This is football, not synchronized swimming. The "better team" is decided by the scoreboard, not by some elitist, self-promoting concept of what constitutes "beautiful football", or how football "was meant to be played". The idea behind dominating possession is pretty obvious: to score goals, you need the ball; also, to avoid the other team scoring goals, you need the ball. What bores me about Barcelona is that they value possession over, it seems, almost anything. Whereas I see possession as a means to an end, Barcelona see it as a means unto itself. It smacks of conservatism. They would rather hang on to the ball than take the risk of losing it, even if that means doing nothing with it for long periods of time as opposed to actually attacking. And even now I can imagine some of you getting ready to slate me for promoting "long-ball" (or "route 1") football, but that isn't what I mean. And if you think ti is -- if you really believe there are only two alternatives, tikka-takka and route 1 -- then the only thing that matches your arrogance is your ignorance. Barcelona only know one way to play. To their fans, this is a point of principle, a badge of honor as it were: if Barcelona could play a different way, they would of course refuse to do so. The problem with that, in any sport, is that once someone figures out how to beat or neutralize your method, then unless you have a Plan B, you're stuck. And that is precisely what has happened: Barca have now come up against a coach who has figured out how to beat them -- and who has proved himself capable of getting his players to execute those plans (with two different groups of players, too). Oh, I know, some of you are frothing at the mouth in your eagerness to rant about Mourinho "parking the bus" and playing "anti-football", but before you do, remember that those tactics were executed in the second leg of the CL semi-final last year -- a match that Inter actually lost. The matches where Mourinho has won were those in the first leg of that semi-final, and last week's Copa del Ray. And while the execution of the tactics was slightly different, the idea was basically the same: compete in the midfield, be disciplined in defense, and attack with speed and width. As has been pointed out elsewhere, Barca's pressing game, and their high defensive line, are interdependent aspects of their game -- you can't really have one without the other. In order to press in the midfield, they have to shift their troops forward. Because for your midfielders to press constantly and successfully, they have to be mobile and they have to move in pairs or groups (which is in fact what Barcelona do). It is great to watch (as I said, I do admire their pressing game), but with the midfield that mobile, the defense has to move up in support. Which of course, simply means the space is shofted to a different part of the field.
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That is a weakness Mourinho has figured out how to exploit, and JamesPatrickPage it is very difficult to see4:01PM 24 April 2011 what Barcelona can do to counter it. If they continue to play a high line, Real have the players to get in Xavi Hernndez and Xabi Alonso don't have the same role and there. If they don't continue to play a high line, their own don't play in the same riskier and less effective. pressing game will be position either. They provide different solutions to teams with different needs. Since some years ago Xavi plays in a more advanced zone, a change of position that was basic for him to find his best level. Alonso is the main reference just in front of the back four.

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Duel of The X-Men at Heart of Real Madrid Passion Play With Barcelona - Sid Lowe - Football - The Observer

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Duel of The X-Men at Heart of Real Madrid Passion Play With Barcelona - Sid Lowe - Football - The Observer

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Duel of the X-men at heart of Real Madrid passion play with Barcelona...

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