Back to the drawing board for Ancelotti

On Monday night it was plain to see: Carlo Ancelotti will have to get the drawing board out. Perhaps that is why he was so visibly in a foul mood. Real Madrid beat Córdoba but until very close to the end, when Cristiano Ronaldo scored, they did not breathe easily. What's more, the opening 30 minutes of the second half belonged to the visiting side, who played with expansiveness and calm, exploiting the spaces Madrid has left in the midfield. The same thing happened to Ancelotti at the start of his tenure, when three forwards and Isco became isolated up front. That he solved with Di María, sacrificing Isco. Now Di María has gone, and with James the same thing is happening as with Isco.

And that is not the fault of either player, to be clear. They are both fantastic players. But with three forwards who are disinclined to drop back, and an attacking midfielder who is more a violinist than a drummer, Ancelotti does not have it easy. But I imagine he will invent something. Last season he found a solution that nobody had foreseen, recycling Di María, a rebellious substitute to Gareth Bale, as an all-action midfielder. On Monday, Madrid only settled after the introduction of Sami Khedira for Karim Benzema, who found the net again, which is news in itself.

Later, Atlético presented their credentials in Vallecas, after Diego Simeone's ban had been made public: eight games, in reality two sets of four, to be spread between the league and the Supercopa. It is not the same as eight solely in the league. I am aware that there have been comparisons with José Mourinho's finger, a detestable incident and one that was punished at the time with benevolence. But Simeone mocked the rule book in a continual challenge that cannot be ignored. What he did cannot be condoned. At Rayo, his team went from average to dreadful, while Rayo went from average to good. Moyá, who started his Atlético career on the right note, earned his side their point.

from Últimas noticias | Diario AS http://ift.tt/1AQZrdn

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