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Fall of the overlords?

Comment: 0 September 23rd, 2011 by: admin
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Recently, Barcelona vice-captain Xavi fronted the press and gloated about his squad’s top form.  It seemed nothing could contain his pleasure.

‘I think we’ve dominated all of the games so far this season, and have done well.’

The statement spilled over with the kind of pride that could only come from a player from a team reigning at the top of the league.

Except it’s not.  And neither are constant second-runners Real Madrid.  Right now, the leaderboard reads thus:

1st – Real Betis
2nd- Valencia
3rd – Malaga
4th – Barcelona
5th- Sevilla
6th – Levante
7th- Real Madrid

Perhaps Xavi could have taken a page from Real Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso, who admittedly stated ‘We’re not having the best of runs at the moment.’

A newly-inducted football follower would look at the table and shrug, until a La Liga fan points out that it goes beyond what has for years been considered normal.

That for the past three years, the team currently in 4th place ruled the top of the La Liga and won last season’s European competition.  And the saps three places above midtable occupied second place also for the last three seasons and reached the Champions League quarterfinals last year.

Barca and Real Madrid’s rule of the Spanish Primera Liga has been a constant, persistent and accepted fact. These two giants have (except for one season each) played within the top two spots in the La Liga as far back as 2003.

And although the current table reflects only the first four games of this season, eyebrows are beginning to shoot up.

For the past 2 season, both teams have displayed top form even at season’s start.  Barca’s current 2-2-0 record is no comparison to last year’s 3-0-1, and the 4-0-0 the year before.  As for Madrid, they stand at 2-1-1, after starting last year with 3-1-0 and the previous one with 4-0-0.

Anywhere else in Europe – including the English Premier League – a 2-2-0 or a 2-1-1 starting record is not worth a short blurb in an obscure publication.  In the La Liga however, especially for Barca and Madrid, it’s at least worth more than a few discussions.

Immovable forces

The reason behind this double standard is superficial, but widely-accepted: these two giants have to win.  For no reason other than because that’s what they’ve always done.  For every other squad, the understanding was that they were dealing with two immovable forces successfully keeping the competition at bay.

There were no intimidation tactics needed other than what the records displayed.  Last year, Barcelona failed to win a mere 8 games, amongst which they ended 2 with stalemate.  Real Madrid drew only 5 and lost 4.

For over a decade it was because performances such as this that other teams understood that the only way to the top is through these two squads.

In other words, topple Barcelona and Real Madrid, and in turn get a fair shot at the silverware. They were, after all, the Ivory Tower’s constant residents.  After them, there was nothing else but glory.

That belief did not thrive merely on the teams’ dominance alone; it was also the obvious lack of competition from the rest of the league.

This is most evident in last year’s league table, where after the four points separating Barca and Madrid, third placers Valencia trailed behind second place by a total of 21 points.  That’s 25 points behind first place.

It seems that for many reasons, for clubs that are neither Barcelona nor Real Madrid, La Liga glory remains elusive.

A crack in the foundation

It seems that for this season, it was poor road performances that made Barca and Madrid drop both points, and league rankings.

Barcelona’s away form stands almost directly contrast to their home performances.

Their two games at Camp Nou produced a spectacular total of 13 goals (keeping the opponents scoreless in both matches).

As they battled on enemy ground, however, the dominant squad evaporated and was replaced by one who could do no better than draws (with the last one against Valencia featuring an Eric Abidal own goal).

The same situation was true with Real Madrid who, after winning 2 games at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, began a two-game road tour that ended with 1 loss and one scoreless draw.

This trend was not only evident but unquestionably worrisome for the squads.

‘We’ve dropped five points in two away games and that is worrying,’ fretted Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho.  ‘We’ve scored one goal in our last three games and we must return to normality by scoring and winning on Saturday (against Rayo Vallecano).’

Barca’s Pep Guardiola, in the meantime, does not seem to find any reason for concern, in fact calling the event ‘a marvellous spectacle and a great exhibition of this wonderful game.’

The coach remains optimistic; although it is in fact decent and dignified, one wonders if overlooking a threatening problem is a good idea.

‘Thanks to the strength of my side, who have been together for four years now, we were able to have control of the game at the end,’ said Guardiola.

One can’t help but ask if Guardiola has taken into consideration the fact that his side’s away performance has shown the beginnings of trouble since last season’s close.

Unsteady gait

A look at Barca’s road results table from last season would show a short but sudden staggering as the season wanes.  By the last 5 games on the road, Barca were carrying two wins, two draws and one loss.

That poor form has carried over to this season, and now the team stand with a 6-game Premier League road record of 1 win, 4 draws and 1 loss.  This from a squad whose 6 domestic games previous to those showed 4 wins, 2 draws and no losses.

This from a squad that managed to tally 12 straight wins on enemy grounds.

Looking at the team’s overall performance, they have tallied 3 wins, 1 loss and 6 draws in their last 10 away games.

This evident decline in Barca’s away form could also compromise their bid to again trounce bitter rivals Real Madrid in the La Liga.

Despite their current road slump, Mourinho’s boys have so far avoided exhibiting more extensive signs of deterioration away from home, having avoided defeat in the 9 Premier League games previous to their Levante loss.

Overall, Real Madrid’s 10-game road record reads 7 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw.

In other words, Real Madrid’s away problems are limited to the last two games; Barcelona’s road problems, from what the records show have apparently begun as far back as May.

Something in the horizon

Should the two Spanish clubs’ forms improve as they travel back to their homes, there is a chance that this entire slump could prove insignificant in the end.

However, unless something is done to remedy their poor away performances, one could expect the La Liga tables to change dramatically.

One asks, however, if that is in fact an unfortunate event.  It is of course for Barca and Madrid.

But one could argue that toppling the two giants could level the playing field for Spanish football.  Vacating their permanent spot at the top of the table could make for a more competitive and exciting season.

The seemingly unending rule of two teams could break, and suddenly the top spot is up for grabs for whoever could race up the tables fast enough.  And in the end, the football world could witness a change in atmosphere as the entire Primera Division runs riot in their clamour for formerly-unattainable glory.

It would in some cases be a sight similar to citizens tasting freedom as the tyrant topples down from the throne.  It could prove to be the biggest revolution in recent La Liga history.

And perhaps it has begun.

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