While Barcelona has had a tough season, Real Madrid’s train keeps rolling. Especially for strikers Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior. She’s really on the right track this season.
The duo have scored 22 and 14 goals respectively in all tournaments this season. In total, they scored 36 goals, which is more than the entire Barcelona team has achieved this season.
LaLiga expert Peter Wieland believes that these statistics show the biggest difference between Real Madrid and Barcelona.
– That’s where the boot hits for the Barcelona part. After losing Messi, who was a guarantor of more than 50 goals and top scorer in each season, they were unable to adapt. They are experiencing a kind of post-traumatic shock with the loss of their big star.
Reminds us of the 2018/19 season after Real Madrid lost Cristiano Ronaldo. The difference was that Real Madrid handled it better. They changed their playing style and became more solid defensively, and were able to win the league in the second season without Ronaldo. Barcelona is even more confused, and they now have their third coach in a short time, Wieland tells Nettavizen.
The second best couple in Europe
Robert Lewandowski and Leroy Sane of Bayern Munich, with a total of 42 goals, are the only duo to score more goals than Benzema and Vinicius.
With a total of 36 goals in all competitions, the Real Madrid duo is ahead of big names such as Salah and Jota (34), Dortmund’s Haaland and Reus (27), Nkonko and RB Leipzig’s (26).
Karim Benzema has long scored goals on the assembly line, but since Cristiano Ronaldo left the club, he hasn’t had a partner who can match his goal. Vinicius’ prosperity this season has led to Benzema returning once again to his fellow Real Madrid striker.
Finally, Vinicius seems to have the potential we always thought existed. It’s been a vicious cycle, but now it seems that what once went in his favour is now in his favour, especially in critical situations.
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Wieland believes that Ancelotti’s approach to the player is different from Zidane’s, and that this may be one of the reasons why the young player is shining now.
In previous seasons, Vinicius was a poor striker, much of which can be linked to self-confidence. Under Zidane, he played with high shoulders, and seemed to think about the consequences, not the chances. Well, under Ancelotti, he plays with low shoulders and we will see his full potential.
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The difference in strength has never been greater
Barcelona and Real Madrid meet in the Spanish Super Cup at 20:00 on Wednesday evening. Since the final stage of the tournament is being held in Saudi Arabia, the match will be held at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.
Before the match, there are big differences between the two teams.
Real Madrid tops the La Liga standings and advances to the Champions League, while Barcelona, adjusting to Lionel Messi’s life, occupies a disappointing sixth place in the series, and must settle in this spring’s Europa League matches.
There were periods when the balance of power between clubs was very skewed, for example in the period 2000-2004, but recently the difference in strength has not been greater than it is now, says Wieland.
It is clear from the expert that winning El Clasico is always very important for both clubs, but he believes that the most important thing for Barcelona is to finish fourth in La Liga.
Winning titles is always important for a club the size of Barcelona, but given the financial situation Barcelona is in, it is essential to secure Champions League matches for next year. I think most people think that a season where they finish fourth in the league and don’t win any titles will be more successful than finishing fifth in the league and winning the Super Cup.
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It is important to start Torres
Barcelona’s new signing Ferran Torres is finally registered at the club and could make his debut in El Clasico tonight.
Ferran Torres is a player who fits into Barcelona’s style of play very well, so in terms of football, it makes a lot of sense to bring him. There is always a risk when you spend a lot of money on a player, but for a club in a financial position like Barcelona, there is additional risk.
Wieland was stunned by the many choices Barca made to score Torres. Samuel Umtiti was once sold by the club, but has now instead signed a new, longer contract, with his salary reduced to free up money. In addition, 18-year-old Austrian Yusuf Demir was left out of the first team squad, and demoted to the junior team.
Wieland believes these decisions will put additional pressure on Torres to perform in the red and blue suit.
They halted Demir’s career when they chose to prioritize Torres over him. It was already important for Barcelona that Ferran Torres performed immediately, but this puts additional pressure on the new signing.
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