La Real is once again the solo leader of the First Division 17 years later. The last time he commanded the championship with an advantage over his pursuers, he brushed the third league title in his history with his fingertips. On matchday 36 of 03/02 the txuri urdin had one point ahead of Real Madrid. The parallels with that mythical team do not end there. In a league start similar to the current one (4 wins and two draws), Real reached the lead alone on October 19 on matchday six. A week later and with one more defeat (4 wins, two draws and one game lost), the current Real has also climbed to first place. If the Remiro, Monreal, Silva, Merino, Oyarzabal Y For your are the Westerveld, Aranzabal, Karpin, Of
Pedro, Xabi
Alonso, Nihat Y Kovacevic of the present time, only time will tell. The truth is that 17 years later, the Real returns to command the League. These are the keys to your success.
1. ENGLISH AVERAGE POINTS, TWO PER GAME
With the victory against Huesca, the fourth in seven games, the Real reached the much desired, and difficult to achieve, English average score, two per game. He adds 14 points in this season start which, projected to a full season, would lead him to add 76 at the end of the season. With that figure, last season, the txuri urdin would have finished in third position behind Real Madrid and Barcelona.
2. TREMENDOUS GOALING PRODUCTION: TWO PER GAME
La Real has scored as many goals as they have added points: 14. It is the highest scoring team in the First Division with an average of two goals per game, forcing its rivals to score at least two more to score. All their victories have been by a landslide (three 3-0 and one 4-1) and with Álex Isak's target, there are already six players in the squad who have seen the goal: Oyarzabal (4), Portu (4) Januzaj (2), Roberto López (2), Mikel Merino (1) and Isak (1). The first two, together with Suárez, Fati and Alcácer, make up the league's pichichis record.
3. FOUR TIMES THE GOAL TO ZERO, ONLY THREE GOALS AGAINST
The most attractive thing in a soccer team is its offensive front and at Real it looks great as it has about a dozen players with tremendous attacking talent. But if something stands out at the start of the season, it is the great pair of center-backs that Elustondo and Le Normand are forming and that the team has left the door to zero in four of the seven days. Remiro is the second least thrashed goalkeeper (3), only surpassed by Oblak (1), and Cascante's has appeared in decisive moments of several games to deny goals that have kept Real alive.
4. LARGE WARDROBE FUND AND REMARKABLE WEIGHT OF THE QUARRY
If the Real can feed their most ambitious dreams this season, it is because they have one of the best squads in their history. His last two exhibitions, in Seville or against Huesca, have been given without being able to count on Zubeldia, Zaldua, Januzaj, Illarramendi, Barrenetxea or Merquelanz, players who would be starters in many First Division teams. Imanol has lined up, at least once, up to 20 footballers as starters (including Diego Llorente) and in the 'eleven' type per minute played there are six homegrown players, with what that implies a feeling of belonging.
5. THREE POINTS LESS THAN IN THE SUBCHAMPIONSHIP SEASON
La Real has signed the best league start since the runner-up season, even improving last season when at this point they had 13 points (4 wins and a draw). It is difficult not to establish some kind of comparison with that campaign of 18 years ago in which the title was brushed by reaching the leadership also at this time. So, yes, Real, bordering on perfection, had 17 points in seven games (5 wins and two draws) and had even scored five more goals (19). His goal, yes, it was much worse closed since Westerveld had conceded 12 points for the 3 of Remiro.