Real Madrid defeated Barcelona by 4: 2. The impact of this game in Spanish football was huge.
"Real Madrid reignites hope of winning the title! This is the best Real Madrid of the season. "The bright night of the Bernabéu belonged only to the star-studded" Galácticos. "This was the headline on the front page of ABC. The newspaper believed that after Real Madrid defeated Barça with an indisputable score of 4: 2, the La Liga title opened a small door for Luxemburgo's team. There were still seven rounds left in the league and they were nine points behind Barcelona. Although it was still difficult to win the league title, Real Madrid saw a glimmer of hope.
"Barça saved three 'dead men' in one game — Ronaldo, Raúl, and Real Madrid." Barcelona's mouthpiece, El Deportivo, was angry at Barça's weakness at the crucial moment. "After losing to Chelsea, Barça lowered its head in front of Real Madrid. Although the league title is still in their hands, it has become a habit for Rijkaard's team to not see big scenes. Rijkaard said after Barça lost to Chelsea that all the players had learned from the nightmarish start of the game and the many mistakes. However, everything was a lie. The first half of the game against Real Madrid was almost a repeat of the game against England. The defense's performance was terrible, and no matter who played the main force, it was equally disappointing. The striker's performance was also pale and powerless. It seemed that he needed 100 chances to score a goal. "
El Deportivo's criticism could be said to not give Barcelona any face. "Any decent team would not easily give Real Madrid so many chances in their own defensive zone. Zidane and Ronaldo scored goals in the sixth and 18th minutes when no one was defending in the penalty area. At least two of their teammates were also unguarded at the time! Roberto Carlos gave Harvey a good lesson in speed and helped Raúl get Real Madrid's third goal. After Eto 'o scored a goal, Barça still had a lot of chances and had the advantage in possession. But if they could not convert it into a goal, everything was in vain. "
The Barça newspaper even questioned Rijkaard. "How did the Dutchman arrange the tactics for this game? To make matters worse, neither he nor his players knew how to read the game. They lost the game, and Eto'o is injured. The only thing we've gained is that Barça still has the advantage in terms of goal difference. Therefore, Barça is equivalent to leading Real Madrid by seven points. "
*****
Real Madrid won the El Clásico. As the mouthpieces of Real Madrid, AS and Marca naturally flattered Real Madrid. "The Whites played their best game since the start of the season. In terms of attitude and scoring power, they are far better than Barça. Of course, whether Real Madrid can win the title or not depends on whether Barcelona will lose the crown that is almost in their hands. However, the future of Rijkaard's team is full of doubts. The only thing that is not in doubt is that this game is the best and most intense battle of the century in recent years. "
Efe believed that Luxemburgo's tactical gamble had finally won. Like Chelsea and Betis, Real Madrid used counterattacks to defeat Barça and successfully took advantage of almost all of Barça's weaknesses. With seven rounds left in the league, Real Madrid was nine points behind Barça. Real Madrid's tactics were practical, direct, and prioritized results. Their techniques and tactics were correct, and they were very concise. There was nothing too fancy about them. Unlike the style of play that Real Madrid pursued in the past, Luxemburgo no longer guided the players to perform for the photographers. They played wholeheartedly for the score. As a result, the trident of Raúl, Ronaldo, and Owen completed the task brilliantly. Every player scored a goal.
While most of the media praised Real Madrid, Mundo Deportivo believed that Barça had suffered a worse result than a loss. This gave Sporting de Gijón, the biggest dark horse in the La Liga season, a chance to overtake Barcelona in the standings as long as they won this round of the league.
Mundo Deportivo warned Barcelona: Maybe we should pay attention to the Gijón people. They are like a hungry wolf that has been following us. Now, when Barcelona is in trouble, this vicious wolf may be about to bare its sharp fangs.
Mundo Deportivo reminded everyone that the media, who were enthusiastically discussing Real Madrid's big victory over Barcelona, suddenly realized that Barcelona's loss had given Sporting de Gijón a chance. If Sporting de Gijón seized this opportunity, they would overtake Barcelona in the standings. This dark horse team in La Liga would be at the top of the league!
*****
Although everyone had mentally accepted the sudden rise of Li Ang's team this season and had begun to get used to Sporting de Gijón occupying the second place in the league, and although some people would talk about the threat that Sporting de Gijón posed to the leader Barcelona, few people really believed that Sporting de Gijón could overtake Barcelona in the league and win the title. In the history of Spanish football, there had been no history of a newly promoted team winning the title: La Liga was founded in 1928, 77 years ago. Except for the three years of the Spanish Civil War in 1937-39, it had been held 74 times. There had been a total of nine champions, of which Real Madrid had won the most titles in history, winning the La Liga title 29 times, followed by Barcelona with 16 times, Atlético Madrid with nine La Liga titles, Athletic Bilbao with eight, Valencia with six, Real Sociedad with two, and Sevilla, Real Betis, and Deportivo with one title each.
Looking at the glorious history of La Liga, in addition to the two super giants, Real Madrid and Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, Valencia, and Deportivo were all traditional strong teams in La Liga. Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, Sevilla, and Real Betis were also traditional strong teams in La Liga. In the history of Spanish football, there had never been a precedent of a traditional mid-tier or lower tier team winning the title, let alone a newly promoted team.
Therefore, when everyone realized that Sporting de Gijón actually had a chance to be first in the league, they were all shocked. Although they were now the league leaders, it did not mean that this dark horse team could win the title. After all, there were still seven rounds in the league. However, everyone had to really face Li Ang's team, because they realized one thing: Sporting de Gijón was now a strong contender for the league title!
This was a fact, and it would not change based on whether you liked or hated Li Ang or that team.
*****
Sporting de Gijón vs Albacete. Sporting de Gijón was second in La Liga with 65 points, while Albacete was third from the bottom in La Liga with only 24 points. Both teams were newly promoted. The match between the two newly promoted teams should not have been noticed by many people. However, at this moment, on April 11, 2005, in the 31st round of La Liga, the match between Sporting de Gijón and Albacete could really be said to be the focus of attention. The entire Iberian Peninsula was paying attention to this match.
When the official website of La Liga looked forward to this match, it said: In the 77 years of La Liga's history, has there ever been a situation where a newly promoted team became the leader after the 31st round of the league? I believe the whole country is waiting to see!
PS: I was delayed by something during the day, so I didn't update until now. Please forgive me.
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