<div id="attachment_2243" style="width: 510px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><div><figure class="image"></figure></div>Oscar Ustari can only stare blankly as Gonzalo Higuaín beats him for a second time.</div>
The fashionable district.&nbsp; The working-class south.&nbsp; The established.&nbsp; The disrespected.&nbsp; Commerce.&nbsp; Industry.&nbsp; A comparison between the two top Madrid clubs.&nbsp; Getafe just wants to be in the conversation.&nbsp; They are in the city too, they say.&nbsp; Real Madrid does not disrespect them because they are not in Real’s radar.&nbsp; With Atlético Madrid struggling to steer their campaign in the right direction, Getafe CF had a chance to be noticed in the capital against Real Madrid at the eminent and illustrious Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
The recent difficulties for Real Madrid have been well documented.&nbsp; Outclassed by Sevilla, beaten by AC Milan, mediocre against Sporting Gijón, and embarrassed by Alcorcón.&nbsp; All told, one win, one draw, and three losses in the last five for Madrid. &nbsp;It only took until the middle of October for the rumors to start about the future and viability of Manuel Pellegrini at the Bernabéu.&nbsp; The last event that Pellegrini needed to happen was another slip-up at the hands of their unnoticed cousin from the southern part of the Madrid metropolitan area.
The first half hour of the match saw few chances between the two teams, and the funereal atmosphere within the Santiago Bernabéu did not help in spurring on Real Madrid.&nbsp; What sparked both the Madridistas and the players occurred in the 28th minute, when Raúl Albiol unjustly received a straight red card.&nbsp; Apparently, in the eyes of referee Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz, Albiol prevented Getafe striker Roberto Soldado from a direct goal-scoring opportunity.&nbsp; Albiol did pull the shirt of Soldado somewhat, but they both went for the ball in the air, leading to inevitable contact.&nbsp; At worst, Mateu Lahoz should have given a yellow card to Albiol, but this highly controversial call gave Getafe the one-man advantage and more hope that they could upset Real Madrid in their own stadium.
Pedro León’s subsequent free kick could not curl enough as it flew a couple yards wide of the right post, but Getafe neglected to use the extra man to their benefit.&nbsp; Paradoxically, Real Madrid actually played better with more vim and vigor after the red card and constantly threatened the Getafe goal through halftime.&nbsp; Kaká and Karim Benzema played a two-man game down the left wing in one attack, with Kaká laying a perfect pull-back from the byline to Benzema, but Benzema’s strongly struck shot stung goalkeeper Oscar Ustari’s hands as he parried it away from goal.&nbsp; Even though it was a 0-0 score at halftime, Real Madrid seemed more likely to open the scoring, while Getafe played a more conservative game after Albiol’s dismissal.&nbsp; The whistles rained down from the Madridistas, but they aimed their anger more at the referees as they headed into their dressing room for halftime.
When Gonzalo Higuaín broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute to give Real Madrid the 1-0 lead, the run of play dictated that Real deserved to be ahead.&nbsp; From the left wing, Marcelo whipped in a cross to Higuaín, who split between two defenders in the air, and after chesting the ball down to create space, it was a simple finish as Ustari had no chance to prevent the inevitable.
Getafe only changed their tactics after Higuaín scored.&nbsp; After the referee sent off Albiol, Getafe continued to tread water rather than go for the lead.&nbsp; When the goal transpired, panic seized through Getafe manager Míchel and his team, and they decided to be more gung ho in attack.&nbsp; This tactic backfired three minutes later, when Lassana Diarra created a turnover in midfield, and there were only two Getafe defenders in their own half.&nbsp; A two versus two battle between Mario and Cata Díaz and Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuaín yielded predictable results.&nbsp; With the defenders on their heels, Benzema slotted a through ball to Higuaín, who took two touches and side-footed his shot across goal and across Oscar Ustari into the back of the net.&nbsp; 2-0 to the home team and assured three points.
Fabio Celestini had a couple of long-distance efforts that forced Iker Casillas into some good saves, but the second goal took the wind out of Getafe’s sails as they played out the final half hour without any significant scoring chances.&nbsp; In eighth place starting Round 9 of La Liga, Getafe looked to continue their good form against a reeling Real Madrid side.&nbsp; In particular, Roberto Soldado, Miguel Torres, Dani Parejo, and Adrián González wanted to prove to their former parent club that they should not have given up on them.&nbsp; All members of the Real Madrid cantera, they disappointed as they failed to appreciably affect and effect the game to their fullest extent.&nbsp; Especially when Real Madrid was handicapped with one less man, they did not have the gusto that was required to defeat any Real Madrid side.
To their credit, Real Madrid arguably had their most impressive performance of the season.&nbsp; It was not necessarily due to stellar football, but it was their resolve and grit to take control of a game when they went a man down and seemingly every call went against them.&nbsp; The 60/40 ratio of possession in Getafe’s favor meant nothing when observing the game; Getafe was ponderous with the ball, while Real were decisive and efficient after the red card.&nbsp; Real Madrid expected to win this game, and even when they went a man down, they were the slightest of favorites to come out with a result, but Getafe never tilted the scales in their favor when they had the chance, and for that, they should be utterly frustrated with themselves.

Getafe Fails to Capitalize Against a Ten Man Real Madrid - World Soccer Talk

Getafe Fails to Capitalize Against a Ten Man Real Madrid

<div id="attachment_1812" style="width: 532px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><div><figure class="image"></figure></div>Sergio Agüero and Atlético Madrid cannot see or find their form.</div>
Atlético Madrid prolonged their faltering start with a 1-1 draw against Racing Santander on Saturday.&nbsp; Even with a man advantage for the majority of the second half, they lacked the finishing touch to nip the win from a feisty Santander side.&nbsp; Racing came off a 4-1 drubbing at El Sardinero by Getafe, including a hat trick by Soldado, so Racing did not have the greatest levels of confidence leading into a match against a highly explosive offensive team.
Atlético had many of its players participate in the two World Cup Qualifying matches in the previous weekend, so they were not at full strength.&nbsp; Diego Forlán sat on the bench after playing for Uruguay, Simão Sabrosa started but played in Portugal’s two qualifying matches, Maxi Rodríguez was not in the eighteen as he picked up a muscle strain with Argentina, and Sergio Agüero also participated in the two Argentina matches.&nbsp; This clash with Racing also commenced an era without John Heitinga, as he made a €7 million move from&nbsp;Atlético to Everton, and starting at right back for Los Colchoneros was Juan Valera, who interestingly enough played for Santander on loan last season.
For the first half hour, Atlético had the better of the play, but both teams were lifeless.&nbsp; Paulo Assunção fizzed a shot past Santander keeper Toño in the ninth minute but also breezed just wide of the post.&nbsp; Sergio Agüero fired a shot in the 21st minute but headed straight towards Toño and was able to make the save.&nbsp; Despite Atlético controlling the ball at a two to one ratio, Racing created the best chance in the first thirty minutes as talisman Pedro Munitis provided a lovely through ball into the box for Alexandre Geijo.&nbsp; Geijo, however, was caught in between taking the shot and crossing the ball back to Munitis, and Geijo’s effort flashed across the six-yard box, went wide of the post, and was too far for Munitis to get on boot on it.
After this opening stanza, Atlético seemed to get their legs under them and began an assault on Toño’s goal.&nbsp; Simão missed a golden opportunity in the 34th minute when he shanked a shot from twelve yards after Agüero slipped in a beautiful ball into the penalty area.&nbsp; José Jurado rifled a shot towards Toño’s near post after a quick dribble and run in the 38th minute, but Toño parried it away successfully.&nbsp; Florent Sinama-Pongolle made a run into the six-yard box, and if it were not for a desperate yet timely challenge by Sepsi László, Sinama would have Atlético up 1-0.&nbsp; With all this attacking pressure by Atlético, that left gaps in the defensive line, and Geijo almost made Atlético pay for their men going forward in the 38th minute, but a last ditch sliding tackle in the box by Tomáš Ujfaluši took the ball from Geijo’s boot.&nbsp; Racing made another foray into Atlético’s box in the 41st minute, and Oscar Serrano’s combination with Manuel Arana sent Arana towards goal, but a kick save by Sergio Asenjo stopped the attack.
Atlético finally took advantage of a goal-scoring opportunity when they scored in the 43rd minute to give the supporters in the Vicente Calderón something about which to cheer.&nbsp; Off a corner kick, Racing headed the clearance out of the penalty box, but only towards Jurado, and he took the ball first time on the volley and breached the Racing defense and Toño’s goal.&nbsp; As Atlético is wont to do, they conceded a goal within a few minutes of scoring themselves.&nbsp; The build-up to Racing’s goal started with a hopeful long ball into the box for Geijo.&nbsp; He laid the ball off for Arana who in turn laid the ball off to Serrano, and his late run gave him the space to shoot and score.&nbsp; The Atlético defensive pressure was lacking, and their attempts to stab tackle the ball away from Racing were deemed fruitless as Racing equalized one minute into first half stoppage time.
To jump-start the attack in the second half, Abel Resino substituted Agüero out for Diego Forlán.&nbsp; Atlético missed his prowess towards goal as well as his off-the-ball runs, and it was clear that Agüero ran out of steam by the end of the opening forty-five minutes.&nbsp; When José Ángel Crespo received a red card in the 47th minute for illegally tackling Simão when he had a clear goal-scoring opportunity, Atlético’s second and third goals became inevitable.&nbsp; These goals never materialized, as Santander’s defensive discipline kept Atlético out of their net.&nbsp; Atlético constructed some offensive attacks but never really put their boots on Racing’s throat when they had the man advantage for nearly the whole second half.&nbsp; Atlético’s best chance occurred in the 58th minute when Forlán’s swerving free kick hit the post.&nbsp; Atlético played as though they already had the lead and merely tried to sit on the score line.
After being humiliated by Málaga 3-0 in the opening weekend, many expected Atlético to fight back and take out their anger on a Santander team who were embarrassed themselves by Getafe.&nbsp; At the end of the match, the players were clearly frustrated, but that frustration did not compare to Los Colchoneros in the stands, who whistled, heckled, and demanded the immediate dismissals of club president Enrique Cerezo and general manager Miguel Ángel Gil Marín.&nbsp; It may be hyperbole to talk crisis in the south of Madrid, but Atlético’s history shows that this type of situation is ripe for internal and external turmoil.&nbsp; Soon, the chants for Abel Resino’s head will commence and all of this occurring when they kept their two stars Sergio Agüero and Diego Forlán.&nbsp; Atlético Madrid has a Champions League group stage match against APOEL Nicosia on Tuesday and then a collision with La Liga champions Barcelona at the Camp Nou on the weekend.&nbsp; If they do not beat APOEL and get some sort of result against Barcelona, all hell may break loose within the boardroom and the Vicente Calderón.

Atlético Madrid Continues Their Stumbling Start - World Soccer Talk

Atlético Madrid Continues Their Stumbling Start

Azulón president Ángel Torres came out with all guns blazing as his team will be without their two goalkeepers in less than a month.&nbsp;&nbsp; What made the club prsident more indignated was the fact that he did not receive a call from any Argentine footbal federation official to talk about the matter and arrangements as far as retribution for the absence of both players.
¨We expect the proper executives to have the appropriate insurance as we have been affected severely,¨said Torres in an interview with Argentine radio.&nbsp;&nbsp; Getafe will also consider denouncing the Argentine Football Federation to FIFA in the event that they do not get in contact with the club. &nbsp; The club has also been left out in the dark as far as formal doctor´s observations and formalized reports.
Starting goalkeeper Roberto Abbondanzieri will be out for approximately two weeks after suffering a lacerated knee in Argentina´s 1-1 draw against Paraguay on Sunday. &nbsp; Ustari will miss the majority of the 2008-09 season due to an ACL tear that he suffered when playing for Argentina in the Olympics in Beijing.
Getafe were able to obtain Valladolid netminder Jacobo Sanz on a loan basis for the rest of the year as he will get a better chance to earn minutes in the Getafe net immediately and battle Roberto Abbondanzieri as soon as he returns from his injury.

Getafe Is Seething Mad - World Soccer Talk

Getafe Is Seething Mad

Getafe will not be able to even use his one of their signings and the big Spanish teams will now have more reason as to not letting their players go when London 2012 rolls around.
Argentine international Oscar Ustari will be out of action after he tore his ACL in the quarterfinal match against the Netherlands. The extent of the injury was confirmed after team doctors did an MRI on the player´s right knee.
The injury ruled him out of the upcoming Spanish League and that will once again bring AZ Alkmaar star Sergio Romero to go under the sticks for the Albiceleste as they will face archrivals Brazil in the Olympic semis. Romero´s experience is quite vast at his young age. He was the starting goalkeeper for the Argentines when they played in last year´s U-20 World Cup in Canada.
Coach Sergio Batista called up Napoli youngster Nicolás Navarro to be Romero´s backup for the remainder of the tournament.

Ustari Out For Eight Months - World Soccer Talk

Ustari Out For Eight Months

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Atletico Madrid

Getafe Fails to Capitalize Against a Ten Man Real Madrid

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Atlético Madrid Continues Their Stumbling Start

Leagues: La Liga

Getafe Is Seething Mad

Leagues: La Liga

Ustari Out For Eight Months