Real Madrid fans are a hard bunch to please.
They are still not happy despite being seven points clear at the top and having a perfect home record. The highest number of points for a 20-team league since the introduction of three points for a win hasn’t excited them either.
The big moan is that the team have failed to consistently play the attack-minded football promised by new coach Bernd Schuster.
After all, Real got rid of Schuster’s predecessor Fabio Capello in June because the team had not provided the sort of entertainment demanded by the club and its fans despite the fact he steered them to their first league title in four years.
“I’ve never seen anything difficult in football,” Schuster told reporters at his presentation. “I’ve got great confidence in myself and the team and I’m convinced my idea of football will fit in with what the fans want.”
Schuster has done better than Capello in terms of results in the first half of the season, but the promised improvement in style has largely failed to materialise.
Once again it is goalkeeper Iker Casillas and striker Ruud van Nistelrooy who have been the club’s stand-out players. The Spain keeper has produced a host of heroic performances to prevent Real slipping to defeat against dominant rivals, while the Dutchman has been at his clinical best by taking full advantage of relatively few chances up front.
Like Capello, Schuster has often used the club’s most talented playmaker Guti as a second-half substitute rather than in the starting lineup, suggesting he is not prepared to take too many risks for the sake of entertainment.
Schuster has gone on record as saying that because of their status, tradition and the players at their disposal, Real and Barca are obliged to play the best football in the league, but his team have frequently resorted to the sort of counter-punching tactics that would have brought a smile to Capello’s lips.
Schuster certainly talked the talk when he took charge, but are the players finding it hard to drop the Capello style of play or is he taking a leaf out of the Italian’s coaching manual?
Simon Baskett, Madrid
PHOTO: Real Madrid’s coach Bernd Schuster walks on the pitch following their Champions League Group C soccer match against Werder Bremen Nov. 28 REUTERS/Christian Charisius
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2 comments so far
When it comes down to it, Madrid fans are like any other fans; they want victories.
If Schuster were instructing his squad to play the beautiful game but they lost or drew a few important matches, the outcry from disappointed fans would be twice as loud.
Schuster’s just using the tactical bag of tricks any manager has to use to win a major European title.
- Posted by june16_1904I think that the fans have got too much of a high standard for their club. They have got to realise that their club cannot keep consistently performing at the highest level!! Injuries, other tournaments etc. can damage a club’s squad and form. SO MADRID FANS BE HAPPY WHERE YOUR CLUB IS AT THE MOMENT!!!
- Posted by matty