An internalized idea

The stadium Gran canaria It is not part of the collective imagination of the txuri urdin follower of those scenarios in which the Real was accumulating infamies during almost a quarter of a black century in the Cup. Gran Canaria Stadium It is not Loinaz, Hospitalet, Zamora or Mallorca and, nevertheless, in September 2007, Real also left another black mark in this competition when they were eliminated by Las Palmas in another performance to forget, a few months after being relegated to Second. The embarrassment was not limited to the defeat but, in addition, the image of the team was on the ground with a final tangana in which Xabi Prieto and Skoubo They were expelled.

That Cup of 14 years ago or that of the 6-1 on Mallorca of 2012 or that of Miranda de Ebro in 2004 seem different compared to the current one. It is as if they were two different competitions. And having won this trophy only eight months ago has nothing to do with it. That was a consequence of respect for the competition, the way a team faces a tournament.

For many years, with the seriousness in addition to not learning from the mistakes along the way, the Real belittled the Cup, played it as a championship in which to play with the most residual part of their squad. With Imanol as a coach, he plays it as if it were just another game. Technician txuri urdin may be reproached for things but not that he is not coherent and faithful to his speech. In almost all of his sections, but especially in regard to the fact that he plays all the games equally, to win and with the best.

A recognizable team

It is evident that some license was taken such as giving Navarro minutes or Pacheco, for example, but players like Aihen, Zaldua, Aritz, Guevara, Port O Barrenetxea They could quietly be chosen for the ‘eleven’ that faces Real Madrid. And from that truth in the approach and a convinced staging, the Royal reduced to rubble the margin for surprise, which on the other hand was nil.

The chasm that separates teams like him Polished Bakery and the Real there is no format of the competition that can cut it. No Primera team has been eliminated in this round for now, although Sevilla were scared to go to extra time. La Real produced a perfectly recognizable team that had a fabulous staging that erased with a stroke the possible urgencies or anxiety of not finding a goal that end up causing precipitation or errors.

La Real eliminated Polished Bakery because between its resources and that of the canaries there is an ocean larger than the Pacific but, above all, because players like Zaldua, Ryan, Aritz, Port O Guevara have perfectly internalized the idea of Imanol to surrender to 120% whatever the scenario, which, without a doubt, is the first step to fulfill the forecast without any kind of haste and avoid past debacles.