In Anoeta the leadership and Martin Odegaard await Madrid

“Before we took two points from Madrid and now there are three.” An irreproachable but misleading arithmetic of Guillermo Amor, sports director of Barça, after the Barça puncture in Seville. Too the only way to increase the pressure on Madrid, that since midnight yesterday depends on himself to conquer this League that has gone from hand to hand. Wait to tonight East in his after the most demanding duel of all that remains, before a Real that falters (follow the match live on AS.com) but that has already won this year at the Bernabéu and it stays undefeated against the greats in Anoeta.

Two games, one point, one goal and one sentence, by Imanol Alguacil, after the defeat in Mendizorroza: “Confinement has been fatal to us.” The pandemic has been a lead for the Royal Society, which in March it was like a shot: six consecutive victories and an undeserved defeat at the Camp Nou, penalty discussed. But the tie against Osasuna and lThe defeat against Alavés in the return of LaLiga has been removed from the Champions and they have plunged him into a kind of mini-depression that has to do with lack of experience (the youngest Primera team with ten under 25s) and Odegaard.

The party spotlights, like all of this season against Madrid, point to Norwegian. Contractually conclude your engagement at the end of the season and must return to Madrid, although the Real appeal to a verbal agreement to retain him for another year and the player has not received guarantees of entering the Bernabéu with the role of indisputable, what you he is inclined to postpone his return by one season. He Madrid is also for it.

Odegaard has participated in six out of ten goals of the team this season, superior to those of Messi or Benzema, but chains six games without marking or attending. He has lost the angel and his team accuses him. Only Messi puts more passes in the area and that ability to filter balls in the field of truth has given many points to the San Sebastian team. Now It is less fine.

It also pays the price of injuries. Tonight Illarramendi, Guevara, Sangalli and Barrenetxea will be missing, plus Zaldua, expelled in Mendizorroza. In return Merino, one of the figures of the 3-4 at the Bernabéu of last February 6 that left Madrid out of the Cup. That afternoon Isak scored two goals and scored another. Imanol still does not see him as a reference nine. He has scored 14 goals, more than anyone else on the team, in 36 games, but in 22 of them he came from the bench.

Two wins and six goals

Madrid is at the other extreme. Two wins and six goals in the post-pandemic and a general strengthening of the squad with the recovery of Hazard and Asensio. IHe has even replaced the lack of goal with an unprecedented distribution: twenty players have set this season, the League record. With everything, Benzema continues to be crucial and he has no other relief than to improvise with Asensio, who has only played there, eventually, in the national team, or pull Mariano, who has already overcome his injury, but has only played 65 minutes in a year. The Balearic could debut as owner on the right wing, a role in which Valverde depreciates a lot. The square is full of candidates (Asensio himself, Vinicius, Bale …) and uncertainties. From the rest it does not seem that ZIdane will play too much considering that hea Real is the most complicated opponent of the nine days pending.

Madrid, despite the results, also have black spots. He only shot six times against Eibar, when his average exceeds 15 shots per game. Against Valencia rose to 19, but almost half came from outside the area, where their effectiveness drops markedly: four goals throughout the year for Barça's twelve. Other data, on the other hand, speak of good synchronization: 91% success in passes and a very high recovery (41 meters from his goal on average). The second part against Valencia, in addition, greatly extended their sides, whose average position almost surpassed that of Asensio or Hazard, the ends that ended the clash.

So he ventures a duel between two very territorial teams. The Real is in possession above Madrid (57% to 56%) and very even in the elaboration, and Imanol has taken the measure to the white team, with three victories in the last four games. Anoeta will regret the emptiness of its stands.