CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2º LEG SEMI | FC BARCELONA - REAL MADRID | IF YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES...

The death of the "Most Wanted Man" in Pakistan by the United States has taken the attention & news spotlight off the CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2º leg return semi final match between FC BARCELONA & REAL MADRID. Indirectly a good omen as the pre-match build up was becoming a bit tense & the bigger fear was that emotions could spill over into the "personal" area on the ground &, god forbid, between fans. Back to footy...

Real Madrid 2011
Real Madrid players 2011

Real Madrid travel to Barcelona behind the 8 ball due to their 0 - 2 loss in the 1º leg, plus without  their Coach Mourinho & defenders Pepe & Sergio Ramos. They are firmly the underdogs & are not expected to pull back & go through the semi-final. This beforehand is good, as Real Madrid will be able to play without the heavy load of the pressure & nerves, plus they will need to go out to attack & look for goals which suggests that the starting 11 will have to be different, along with the strategy & tactics.

As it is habitual, there is plenty of speculation on the Real Madrid starting 11,  but I take this line-up as being a very close fit & may serve to orientate us:

Casillas; Arbeloa; Albiol; Carvalho; Marcelo; Lass Diarra; Xabi Alonso; Ozil; Di Maria; Cristiano Ronaldo & Karim Benzema 

The only doubt I have is that we may see Kaka in for Ozil from the start.

Obviously it is an attacking profile, with a look to want to have & touch the ball, & the added imperative need to have to score goals.

Can Real Madrid pull of a miracle result? Don´t know, can only assert that it will be a tough, intense, an aggressive match, & a more entertaining game than the first leg. Can Real Madrid win? Don´t know, can only say that Real Madrid played FC Barcelona with this same line-up & with the same intentions of attacking back in Novembre 2010 at "Camp Nou" & lost 5 - 0!

But as Bernard Berenson said:

“Miracles happen to those who believe in them.”
If Real Madrid go into the 2º leg believing in them...

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