Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid: Who Will Be The Masters Of El Derbi Madrileno?

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Raul, Aguero, Real Madrid-Atletico (MARCA)

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El Derbi Madrileno is often a fixture overshadowed by the “other big game” in Spain, El Clasico. But there are still always fireworks and superstars aplenty on show when Atletico lock horns with Real Madrid.

Los Colchoneros have been extremely quiet in the transfer market this summer, but they have to be acknowledged for successfully retaining all of their big name key players from seasons past. The club board has admitted that hanging on their most valuable assets have actually cost them dear, as it deprived them of cash to spend to strengthen the squad. But if and when their troubles subside, the rojiblanco fans will be glad to see the likes of Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan still leading the charge for their team.

Los Merengues, meanwhile, headed the opposite direction in the summer and literally went to town for an extreme makeover. The players that the ‘White House’ brought in need no further introduction and although they are at the top end of the ladder, they still have their fair share of troubles.

But in El Derbi, none of that matters. Both sets of players on the field will have only one thing in mind and that is to make sure that they are not the ones who will be left imprisoned in their own homes for a week for losing to their city rivals.

But who will provide the biggest spark? Which of the superstars will flourish, and which will fizzle out?

Sergio Aguero vs Gonzalo Higuain

Two talented, young Argentine hot-shots. While Higuain’s rise has been gradual and steady, Aguero simply exploded into the world stage after a banzai 2007/08 season with Los Colchoneros.

Such was El Kun’s meteoric rise that it is now starting to look as if his leap to the next level of superstardom has stalled and it would require a move to one of Europe’s heavyweights to go from a prodigy to Ballon d’Or material.

Higuain, on the other hand, has become one of the national heroes for Argentina after helping the country save their World Cup qualifying campaign the same way he saved Real Madrid on so many occasions over the last three seasons.

But so far in this campaign, both youngsters are struggling for varying yet starkly contrasting reasons. For Aguero, it has gotten to the point where he is now expected to carry Atletico on his shoulders all by himself and the club’s failure to bring in any genuine high-profile reinforcements in the summer has left him with too much to do. In the opposite end of the spectrum, there’s Higuain, who appears to have gone a step backwards in his quest to cement a first team place at Los Blancos after his club brought in one too many galactic reinforcements.

If there is ever a time for one or the other to rise to the occasion and conquer their obstacles, it would be at El Derbi. Pride will also be at stake when they step out onto the pitch as they try to outgun each other.   

Diego Forlan vs Raul

If Kun and Pipita are the next generation superstars for their respective clubs, then Raul and Forlan are the two elder statesmen.

‘El Siete’ may boast all the proud records in Spanish football, but it’s Atletico’s No.7 who has been the lethal sharpshooter in La Liga over the past few years. However, the Uruguayan, like the rest of the team, has seen his confidence slowly crumble away after a horrendous start to the campaign. The 30-year-old has already missed two penalties, and despite being one of the most prolific strikers in terms of shots on goal, he only has three strikes to his name thus far.

Raul also has three goals, but he is rarely afforded the same kind of scoring opportunities as his counterpart. The 32-year-old has more to prove this season than any other in the past, as the knives, which have had plenty of sharpening over the past few years, have now turned into a sword. The ruthless criticism of the captain has multiplied almost tenfold this term and with the younger, faster, stronger breed of galactic forwards breathing down his neck, the only way for him to respond is to find the back of the net.

And that is his secret weapon against the rojiblancos: he has an excellent scoring record against the club that kick-started his youth career.

Simao vs Kaka 

It would have been some showdown between Simao and Cristiano Ronaldo, but as it were, the €94 million man will be a no-show at the Vicente Calderon this weekend… unless he’s up in the stands chomping on snacks again. 

Atletico’s Portuguese winger is the only true creative outlet in his team. The likes of Maxi, Jose Antonio Reyes and Jurado do provide their own doses of venom, but it’s often Simao who has to supply the attacking spark and furnish Forlan and Aguero with the gunpowder upfront. But like so many wingers, the 29-year-old tends to be simply dazzling in one game, only to disappear into oblivion the next.

That seems to describe Kaka’s career at present. So majestic at Milan, the Brazilian has been unable to rediscover any semblance of his old form at the Santiago Bernabeu. The good news for Madridistas is that with every passing game, ‘Ricky’ will only get better and like Zinedine Zidane eight years ago, it’s only a matter of time before he finds his second wind. The 27-year-old has had to put up with stubborn and strong-arm defences so far this season, but against Atleti’s wafer-thin rearguard, he may finally have a chance to shine.

Sergio Asenjo vs Iker Casillas

It’s a case of the master versus the apprentice. Casillas has long been Madrid and Spain’s undisputed No. 1 while Asenjo is just breaking into the scene, effectively trying to emulate what ‘San Iker’ did almost a decade ago.

The former Real Valladolid youngster has been touted as the next big goalkeeping sensation in La Liga. But the 20-year-old could not have asked for a more hellacious baptism of fire in his first season at a big club, all because of Atleti’s shoddy defense. He hasn’t had much chance or time to spend with his team yet this term due to his participation in the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt, but he has conceded a fair few number of goals whenever he has donned the Colchoneros kit.

As for Casillas, he, too, has suffered as a result of a less-than-reliable backline. His gaffe against Milan in the Champions League loss at the Santiago Bernabeu was uncharacteristic, and perhaps like Asenjo, he is still working out a way to communicate effectively with his new-look and constantly rotating defense.

Will the young Atleti shot-stopper outshine Madrid’s miracle man? Will this be the game that elevates Asenjo into pole position to succeed Casillas in the Spanish national team in the future?

Quique Sanchez Flores vs Manuel Pellegrini

The two men at the bench share a lot of similarities. Both are new at the job – although one admittedly newer than the other – both had some degree of success with their former teams, both have been tasked with saving their current clubs, and neither had much of a say in assembling the armies that they will send out to the battleground on Saturday. Which is why this will be a battle of wits, strategies and tactics.

Selecting the right players, gambling on formation tweaks, springing the right substitution surprises will all be key. In derbi games like these, the form book and head-to-head meetings often go straight out the window. And regardless of how much these two capital cousins are struggling at the moment, it’s up to the coach to make sure that his troops are in the right frame of mind before stepping out into the cauldron.

KS Leong, Goal.com

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