BBC: The front 3 that changed the way teams construct their attacks

 

When Real Madrid signed Gareth Bale in 2013, many didn’t know how he would fit in the team. After all Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema as part of the team’s attack. DI Maria, Isco and many other players were a part of this offensive puzzle, as Real were originally a team  built on a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-1-2 formation under Mourinho. However under Carlo Ancelotti things changed.

Real transformed into a 4-3-3 with Bale, Benzema, and Cristiano Ronaldo making up a deadly front 3. This was seen as a tactical risk as the team initially lacked balance.and allowed many goals and performed inconsistently. But as the season progressed Real clicked into form and ended up winning the Copa Del Rey and the Champions League double. With some spectacular performances, a 6-1 destruction of Schalke, a 2-0 road victory against Atletico in the Copa Del Rey semi-final, a 7-3 win against Sevilla, and the apex a 4-0 beatdown of 2013 CL winners Bayern Munich in Germany. Real with this feared front 3 were kings of Europe again and this incredible trident was the major reason why.

Gareth Bale was the key addition, as it added to the front 2 already placed. Karim Benzema was the perfect no.9 to be in place of two goal-scoring wingers like Ronaldo and Bale. Bale and Ronaldo were not traditional wingers who cross the ball first and try to score second. These two players need service to score goals, so having a striker that can pass the ball is crucial. Benzema who averages about 15 assists per season was the perfect fit for this attack built around Ronaldo and supplemented by Bale. Benzema with his great hold-up and link-up play created space so the other 2 platers could operate.

In addition Gareth Bale’s pace was integral in building a counter-attacking machine. Him and Ronaldo could run at defenders in space making the job of the midfield and Benzema far easier. Their counters were so hard to defend that when Pep Guardiola was asked how to defend Real’s counters he answered “You don’t” Gareth’s heading ability and pace offered Madrid a new threat in the air. Bale of course went on to score the winner in the 2014 CL final with a header.The way Real gain balance is through Bale’s work defensively, he tracks back to cover for Carvajal and Marcelo, depending on which wing he is deployed. His former experience at left-back allows him to track-back well enough to make up for the team’s offensive full-backs.

Cristiano Ronaldo who had to carry the offensive burden of this team over the past several seasons, was helped out massively by the Bale addition. Since defenders had to focus attention on Benzema and Bale, Ronaldo had easier chances to score and create chances. 2014 and 2016 Ronaldo had brilliant years winning the Balon d’or both years as well as scoring a combined 33 goals in the CL both seasons. In 2014-15 he produced his best statistical season scoring 61 goals and 20 assists. His pace, power, and movement from all 3 forward positions is crucial to the success of the BBC. He cab play as a no.9 and both wings, which allows for flexibility for the attack. Allowing Benzema to play as a 9 and a half, and Bale to switch flanks with Ronaldo causing havoc over opposing defenders.

These three players combined to score 100 goals the first season, 102 goals the second season and 99 goals the 3rd season. The front 3 has been questioned because of their cohesion and chemistry, however stats don’t lie. They are supremely effective. Real Madrid have won 2 Champions Leagues, 1 Copa Del Rey, 2 UEFA Super Cup, 2 Fifa Club World Cups since 2013. The front 3 has changed the way teams are built.

This front 3 with its tendencies to stay forward and not link up as much with the midfield is a noble concept in counter tiki-taka. Instead of building up possessionTg, Real decided to spring rapid counter-attacks and using the indvidual brilliance of the BBC to score. The midfield’s goal is to get the ball to the front 3 and allow them to do their magic. It is a strategy that has been mimicked by Barcelona.

Luis Enrique beeded a linkup striker to get Neymar and Messi to play together. In the summer of 2014 Barca signed Luis Suarez to accompany Messi and Neymar. The MSN was born and set records as Barca won the treble in 2014-15 and the domestic double in 2015-16. Instead of tiki-taka, Barca built a tean that would be more focused on the counter-attakc, Suarez like Benzema has great ability to hold up the ball, and his great goal-scoring ability was the piece that Barcelona needed. Neymar had a career year in 2015, and Messi won the Balon d’or in 2015.However this front 3 was built due to the success of the BBC.

The BBC redefined the 4-3-3, instead of being total football or tiki-taka, it became total counter-attack. This warp speed counter created by these 3 strikers created the modern day attack of Real and Barca. The previous mode of pure possession football was replaced with a more direct style of play. The BBC help change the formation of the 4-3-3 and the tactical innovation is through pace, power, and goal scoring.

The ideal art of pragmatism, how successes by big clubs have shown the power of commitment, defending, tactical nous.

The aesthetics is something that is valued in football and to some extent almost too much. The value of defending is rarely seen as pleasant, though it is an art. Not conceding a goal helps your odds of winning a match a lot more than scoring a goal. A clean sheet guarantees that your team will not lose, but yet fans and media regularly bitch about teams “parking the bus” in front of goal. Incidentally this iconic phrase was coined by Jose Mourinho one of the most cited practioners of defensive football, when Spurs held his Chelsea side in a League game in 2005. Yet this much derided tactic despite its detractors, and what the purists may have you have believe is remarkably successful in top level football.

In club football, pragmatic sides like Chelsea, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, and Corinthians have experienced unheard of success using more defensive tactics. Chelsea under the stewardship of Mourinho won 2 league titles, 2 league cups, 1 FA cup, 1 community shield, and reached 2 Champions League semi-finals. One of those they lost to a controversial Luis Garcia goal where no one can defintively say if the ball crossed the line, the other he lost on penalties. Avram Grant used similar tactics to nearly win 3 trophies, though he lost the league on the final day, lost the league cup final to Spurs, but he was within a John Terry slip away from winning the Champions League. Hiddink used similar tactics to win another FA cup final, and were it not for some of the most atrocious refeering perfomances in recent memory would have beaten mighty treble-winning Barca to go to the Champions League final. Ancelotti used a more attacking style in his 2 years in charge, and Villas-Boas did the same in his few months as Chelsea boss. However when Di Matteo took over, he returned to a much more defensive style and the results were immediate. They went on to win the FA cup, and knock out Napoli, Benfica, and Barcelona to reach the Champions League final. The tactics he set in Munich was plain and simple, defend heroically and hold on to penalties. They did just that and a beat a superb Bayern team in a dramatic penalty shootout to win the Champions League. Rafa Benitez the next year used similar tactics to win the Europa League, Chelsea’s 10^th major trophies in 10 years. The spine of this team was their defense Cech, Terry, Carvalho, Cahill, Ivanovic, Ashley Cole, Gallas, etc. They also had a hard working midfield, Lampard, Essien, Ramires, Makelele, etc. Used some creative players, Hazard, Robben, Joe Cole, Mata, etc. With one lethal striker, Drogba, with decent backups at every position. They were the most consistent European with the exception of Barca in the last decade in Europe. They have made to the semi-finals of the Champions League 7 times since 2004 more than any other club except Barca who made it the same number of semi-final appearances. They also reached 3 European finals, winning two of them and if were not for some inordinate amount of bad luck might have reached 2 more finals and possibly won another Champions League. Their incredible success is seen as lesser to the likes of Bayern, Man United who have won the same exact number of Champions Leagues in the last decade as Chelsea did because of their style of football. They should be praised as their pragmatism gets the most out of the squad that Mourinho built, and others worked on. Mourinho is now back in charge and the pragmatism and the results keep rolling on, and maybe another Champions League title could be on the horizon.

Inter with a very similar approach won domestically and continentally from 2004-2010. With Mancini and Mourinho at the helm Inter won 5 Serie A titles, 4 Coppa Italia titles, 3 Super cups, 1 Champions League, 1 Fifa Club World Cup title. Their success culminated in a treble in 2010, with the best defensive perfomance I have ever seen by a team against Barca in the Camp Nou. They defended heroically, intelligently against the more stylistic Barca, with 10 men for 80 minutes due to the nicest bit of playacting by Oscar winning actor Sergio Busquests to get Thiago Motta sent off. It was unbelivable to watch the game, I was felt Inter were remarkably comfortable and were never going to allow the 2 goals, they ended up losing 1-0. In the first leg, Inter completely tore Barca apart and easily won 3-1, if not Milito’s wayward finishing in the first half that scoreline could have been even worse. Xavi bitched after the match that the better team lost, but a team is required to defend too, and Inter were infintely superior in that regard to that Barca team. Their spine of the treble winning side was Julio Cesar, Maicon, Lucio, Samuel, Chivu, Zanetti, Stankovic, Pandev, Eto’o, Snijder, Milito with a good bench that included Motta, Balotelli, Materazzi, etc. They may have not lit the world on fire, but they had control of games in big matches especially under Mourinho. They never panicked and were probably the most intelligent footballing team I ever witnessed, and they were a team of fighters. Selling Zlatan was the key move, as it removed the reliance of his brilliance to win games, and Mourinho managed to install his team ethos in Inter Milan. As Barca soon found out an unhappy Ibra caused many headaches, and by the end of the semi-final Pep was so desperate Pique was playing as Barca’s center-forward. Inter freed of the enigmatic Swede’s presence and bolstered by the additions of Milito, Sneijder, Motta, Lucio, and Pandev begin to gel as a team and win. Their victory over Bayern in the 2010 Champions League final was a triumph for pragmatism and balance over helter-skelter attack. They shut down Robben who was Bayern’s best player that season, and Sneijder shined assisting Millito on his first goal, and Milito finished the job with a terrific second which I’m sure Van Buyten still gets nightmares about. That Bayern team couldn’t defend and were lucky to even reach the final, as a generous linsemen gave a Klose goal against Fioretina that was 5 miles offside, Man United contrived to throw away their Quarter-final after blitizing them 3-0 in the first half of the second leg, Lyon was the worst of the semi-finalists and got destroyed over two legs. Inter with the pragmatic side, playing in a weak Serie A, won the Champions League beating the champions of England (Chelsea), Spain (Barca), Germany (Bayern) who were all attacking sides. They were more pleasing on the eye than Inter, yet they weren’t as balanced nor could defend as well so they each fell by the wayside as the pragmatic cattenacio side won the treble. (yes even Chelsea, they scored over 100 league goals that season)

Atletico Madrid before Simeone were an inconsistent side, to say the least. Since 1996 when they won the domestic double, until his arrival, they only won a Europa League and Uefa super cup in 15 years. He changed the culture, to make Atletico play with more fight, aggression, balance, and resillience. They lied 15^th place when he took over, by the end of the campaign they finished 5^th one point before 4^th place Malaga and won another Europa League titie beating a much more entertaining and the favorite in the final Athletic Bilbao side 3-0. The next season they finished 3^rd their highest position since 1996, and won the Copa Del Rey beating arch-rivals Real Madrid 2-1. This was Atletico’s first victory over their hated rivals since 1999, and it buried the demons of all their previous failures. The final itself was very dodgy, a lot of fouls, winding-up, diving, Madrid were incredibly unlucky as they hit the bar 3 times and Cortouis had a heroic game to stop Madrid. They won it their way, it may have been ugly, it may have pissed off a neutral fan, but they beat the more talented city rivals at their own backyard and it gave them a drive that fueled them. The next season they won the League which many considered an impossible task at the start of the season, but through their grit, timely 1 goal victories, and  big game performances (they were unbeaten against the big two in the league) they won the league for the first time in 18 years. They had little depth compared to Barca, and Madrid but their intensity, grit, gamesmanship, and balance got them over the line. They also got to the Champions League final eliminating Milan, Barca, and Chelsea en route. With their typical prowess from set-pieces they held a 1-0 lead over Real Madrid into added time. In a cruel twist of fate Sergio Ramos headed in a Luka Modric corner to level the scores at 1, and well they ran out of steam and promptly lost 4-1 in extra-time. This takes nothing away from Simeone’s acheievements as they are a remarkable, and in my opinion comparable to Brian Clough’s accomplishments with Nottingham Forest. Simeone with his pragmatism changed the culture of the club to become winners at any fucking cost. They are like gnats on the opponents, they hound you to submission, arguably the most fiery competitive side I’ve seen. They have won 5 trophies since he arrived, 1 league, 1 copa, 1 supercopa, 1 europa league, 1 uefa super cup, and reached a champions league final. All this with less talented teams and miniscule budget compared to Real and Barca. The spine of Cortouis, Juanfran, Godin, Miranda, Filipe Luis, Tiago, Gabi, Koke, Villa, Turan, Costa was talented but team was greater than the sum of its parts. The back five was arguarbly Europe’s best, the midfield was solid but nothing more, Villa was inconsitent, but Costa was a monster and carried this team offensively. They had no real depth, I guess Diego, Adrian, but that was about it. Their style though certainly not eye-catching delivered the most sucessful era in Atletico’s history when Real and Barca never had more financial muscle. This was the pragmatist, defensive’s triumph over the individual stars.

Corinthians’ rise as a pragmatist was under the tutelage of Mano Menses as he took over after their shock relegation in 2007. With a more defensive style they won Serie B, got to 2 straight Copa do Brasil finals winning one in 2009, won a state title in 2009, and got back to respectability. As Mano left to become Brazil manager in 2010, Tite took over and became even more pragmatic, which initially had bad results including a humiliating qualifying loss to Tolima in the Libertadores, the first time a Brazilian team was knocked out that early. However the defensive tactics began to work, as 1 goal victories began to pile up, Corinthians only needed a draw on the final matchday to rivals Palmerias to win the Brasilerao. The game finshed in a draw and Corinthians were champions of Brazil. The next year they went on win their first ever Copa Libertadores knocking out a much more stylistic Santos which included Neymar, Ganso in the semi-finals, and beating Boca Juniors 3-1 on aggregate in the final. They then reached the Fifa World Club Cup final where they played Chelsea in the final. Remarkably they were much more defensive than Chelsea, as Cassio made heroic saves, the defense played brilliantly, and on a counter Guerrero scored the winner with a header. Corinthians won 1-0 to become world champions and beat a much more talented Chelsea team. The next year they won the state title again, and a recopa sulamericana, though they finished 10^th domestically, and lost in a controversial match to Boca Juniors in the Round of 16 of the Libertadores. Tite did leave the club after the season, and their successful run did end in 2013 as they won no titles since. However this great run produced one of the solid, durable, results-oriented side in Brazilian football. Tite especially was maniacal to not lose games, he wanted results at any costs, which meant this team played horrible football. Now maybe not “shit on a stick” bad as Valdano once quipped but it wasn’t enthralling, even Corinthians fans complained about this style especially when it didn’t work. However, winning 2 state titles, 1 copa do Brasil, 1 Brasilerao, 1 serie B, 1 Copa Libertadores, 1 recopa sulamericana, 1 Fifa Club World Cup made these years the most successful era in the club’s history after what could have been a near-disastrous relegation. The stars of this team were Cassio their beast of a keeper, Chicao their center back leader, Paulinho midfield dynamo, Emerson sheik enigmatic star, Guerrero the goal poacher. Their tactics were usually a 4-2-3-1 with a defensive shape, counter-attack, goals off opponents errors, and take advantage of set pieces. Despite the entertainment of Santos, Atletico Minero, and Internacional the three other recent Brazilian teams to win  the Libertadores they were all humilated in the Club World Cup. Santos were destroyed by Barca 4-0 in the final and Barca hardly got out of first gear, and the other two were comprehensively outplayed by African opposition. Corinthians may have been defensive but their style won, and proved to be immensly effective to win the trophies they wanted to win, and they are the only South American side to stop a European side from being world champions since 2006. Defensive, pragmatism defeats stylistic teams who make mistakes and Corinthians is the finest example of that model in club football.

Pragmatism shouldn’t be a dirty word, but in football it often is. Aesthetics  are ovevalued in football. Look at Arsenal, they are so hell-bent on being stylish that they are stuck in the same spot every year. Leciester won the PL with defensive football, Portugal won the Euros, and Real Madrid won the Undecima playing more defensive. It’s effective and the football purists should understand that defending, tactics, are as important as attacking.

Real-Bayern: The great European rivalry

Gernany vs. Spain

Bavaria vs. Madrid

Two of the biggest clubs in the world face off in the Champions League, once again reigniting the best rivalry in the Champions League. That is a statement built on the history of these two teams and the epic matches that occurred between both teams. Since 1976, these two teams have met 10 times before this tie. Real and Bayern won 5 ties apiece, so this one is for the lead in this giant tie. I will now go over some of the most epic games in the series’s history.

1975-76 European Cup Semi-final

Bayern seeking their 3rd straight European Cup title faced off against a strong Real side seeking to reach their first European Cup final in a decade. Eeal were in great form and would go to win the league that year. Bayern that year were having a dire domestic season finishing mid-table. However behind an inspired Gerd Muller who scored all 3 goals in the tie, Bayern advanced 3-1 on aggregate. Bayern went on to capture their 3rd straight European Cup defeating Saint-Ettiene in the final 1-0.

 

1986-87 European Cup Semi-final

Real led by the great Emilio Butrageno and Hugo Sanchez faced off against a loaded Bayern team with Lothar Matthaus. This should have been a classic European games, but Bayern took care of Real 4-1 at home with 2 goals by Mattthaus. (This game was best known for Juanito’s stamp on Matthaus.)B Real won the second leg 1-0 but Bayern advanced to the final where they would lose to underdogs FC Porto 2-1.

1987-88 European Cup Quarter-dinals

A rematch of the 1987 semi-final, this time this tie lived up to the billing. Real’s Quinta del Buitre at their peak vs, the machine-like Bayern. Bayern raced to a 3-0 lead in a remarkable  6 minute span. Real scored through Butrageno in the 84th minute, and Sanchez scored a key 89th goal to the cut the deficit to 3-2. Real Madrid in the Bernabeu inspired by Michel who scored the second goal as Real won 2-0 to advance to the semi-finals. Real despite their great team would end up losing to PSV in the semi-finals on the away goals rule.

1999-2000 Champions League Semi-final

Bayern who was in the midst of a great season, winning the Bundesliga easily. Led by Effenberg, Kahn, Elber Bayern were favorites to win the tie. Especially as Real Madrid were in the midst of a terrible domestic season, eventually finishing 5th in La Liga. Oliver Kahn even said that Real would struggle to defend Bayern’s attack. He had every right to think that way, Bayern had won 4-1 at home, and 4-2 at the Bernabeu in the group stage. However Real behind Anelka and Morientes won the first leg 2-0. Stunned Bayern looked for a response in Munich, they scored twice however Nicolas Anelka’s header stunned the Bavarians. Bayern won 2-1 but Real advanced to the CL final where they on to thump Valencia 3-0 en route to their 8th Champions League.

2000-01 Champions League Semi-final

Real buoyed by the signings Luis Figo and Makelele won the La Liga with ease and were favorites to win the CL. Especially as Bayern were considered chokers as they blew the 1999 CL final and lost the 2000 semi-final to Madrid. However inspired by striker Giovani Elber Bayern defeated Real twice 1-0 and 2-1 en route to another CL final. Bayern went on to claim their 4th Champions League defeating Valencia on penalties.

2001-02 Champions League Quarter-finals

A rematch between the two giants happened again in 2002. Bayern won the 1st leg 2-1 in Munich. However behind goals by Zidane and Guti Real won 2-0 to overturn the deficit and advance to the semi-finals. Real went on to defeat Barca in the semis and beat Bayer Leverkusen to win their 9th Champions League.

2011-12 Champiosns League Semi-finals

Bayern led by Arjen Robben the ex-Real Madrid star faced off against Real Madrid led by   Cristiano Ronaldo. Real and Bayern didn’t win the CL since 2002 and 2001 respectively. This was a massive game. Bayern won 2-1 at home, with Mario Gomez scoring a dramatic 89th minute winner. Real behind their home fans were fully expecting a comeback. Ronaldo scored twice within the first 15 minutes as Real raced to a 2-0 lead. However a rash challenge by Pepe gifted Bayern a penalty, Robben scored and the tie was level on aggregate. The game went to penalties. Neuer saved from Kaka, Ronaldo’s penalites, Bayern converted 2 of the next 4. Then Ramos skied his penalty, Schweinstieger stepped up and scored. Bayern were off to the final, yet they contrived to lose a home final to Chelsea on penalties. (Ironically Schweinstieger missed the crucial penalty in  the final.)

2013-14 Champions League Semi-final

The last time both teams faced off. Real were massive underdogs in this tie even though they had Bale, Benzema, and Ronaldo at their peak. Bayern led by Arjen Robben, Manzudic, Ribery, were favorites as they were current European Champions. They were also managed by Pep Guardiola who had a great results against Real, eliminating them in the semi-final of the CL in 2011. Real hadn’t reached a Champions League final in 12 years and had lost the last 3 years in the CL semi-finals. Bayern won the Bundesliga with a record points haul, while Real finished 3rd in La Liga their lowest league finish since 2004. Real won the first leg 1-0, behind a goal by Benzema. In the second leg in Munich, Real destroyed Bayern Munich 4-0 behind a brace from Ramos and Ronaldo to reach the CL final for the first time since 2002. Real went on to win the Decima defeating Atleitco Madrid in the final 4-1.

These are some of the most epic ties in CL history. Bayern won 2 CL’s after eliminating Real. Real won 3 CL after eliminating Bayern. These two teams had some of their memorable games against each other. There’s no doubt that this is the true European classic.

Real and Bayern are both league leaders. They both have won the CL recently, Bayern won it in 2013, Real are current Champions League holders. Both have great strikeforces, Bayern had Robben, Ribery, and Lewandowski, Real have the trio of BBC (Bale, Benzema, and Cristiano Ronaldo) Both have great managers who were legendary players (Zidane for Real, Ancelotti for Bayern) Both have signed players from each team. (Kroos is an ex-Bayern player, Alonso is an ex-Madrid player) This tie has great potential to be a memorable two games. May the best team win!

 

Saint’s shadow: The legacy of Iker Casillas looms large over Keylor Navas

When Iker Casillas left Real Madrid in 2015, many fans breathed a sigh of relief as the controversy that surrounded him since 2013 would now finally go away. There was a semse pf joy by some sectors of the fan base as he underperformed for years according to them. Keylor Navas was the unlikely successor to the throne. Bought after his great 2014 FIFA World Cup Navas saw little time in his first season at the club, being a backup to Casillas. Of course that wasn’t the plan to have Navas be the starter in 2015/16.

On August 31, 2015 David De Gea’s deal with Manchester United was just about done. He was SUPPOSED to be the perfect replacement for Casillas. Young, Spanish, tall, was the best player for a struggling Man United over the past 2 seasons. However a faulty fax machine stopped this transfer from happening, a crying Keylor Navas was no longer going to be sent to Manchester. He would stay in Madrid and flourish.

In 2015-16 Navas had a fantastic season, making remarkable saves and ended up being Real’s most consistent player. His performances at Celta, at Atletico, at Barca, at Las Palmas were vital to Real’s title challenge. His penalty save against Griezmann in the Atleti game early on in the season was important, as when the scenario repeated itself in the CL final Greizmann hit the post and Real became European Champions after a PK shootout. Navas was the key player for Real’s remarkable CL triumph, he helped Real only allow 6 goals in the CL which was tied for a tournament record. The anti-Casillas crowd were vindicated, Navas delivered a stunning season and the team won the CL. Navas seemed to win the job for good.

However in 3016-17 season Navas has been floundering. An injury that ruled out him for the first 2 months of the season certainly didn’t help him. However this doesn’t explain so many of his errors. The 1st Dortmund goal in the first 2-2 draw in Germany, the 2nd goal against Legia Warsaw in the 3-3 draw, the 2nd goal against the Kashima Antlers in the 4-2 win the CwC final, the Napoli goal  in the first leg of the CL tie, the 2nd goal against Valencia, and his mistake for Betis’s first goal in the 2-1 win against the side from Seville. All 6 of these errors were basic that backup Kiko Casilla could have made. In fact Casilla has played better than Navas this season. There’s no goalkeeper in La Liga who’s made more mistakes than Navas. He has been booed by the Bernabeu crowd. Navas now feels the pressure that Iker Casillas felt for many years at the club.

Casillas was a victim of the Mourinho era’s last controversy, Mourinho dropped him for Adan citing that he was better than Casillas. (Casillas mind you didn’t make NEARLY the number of mistakes that Navas did this season.) Adan got sent off and Mou was forced to play Casillas in the next few games until he was injured against Valencia. Diego Lopez replaced Casillas and played very well until the end of the season. But a trophyless campaign cost Mou his job and some of the fans turned against Casillas. They called him “Tupor” (Mole) as the rumors spread that he and Ramos had a meeting with Perez to get Mou fired. Yet only Casillas was the scapegoat, Ramos avoided criticism for the most part. His form certainly dropped from his best, but the criticism Casillas faced was unfair. In 2013-2014 he was the starter for Real in the Copa Del Rey and the Cl victories. His performance against Dortmund in Germany was pivotal to rescuing Real from elimination, he made 3 great saves to help Real advance in the Semi-Finals, Yet he’s remembered for his error against Atletico in the CL final, a final in which Real won 4-1 and Ramos saved Madrid in the 93rd minute. Ramos became the hero, Casillas the scapegoat. After 2014-2015 where Casillas had a solid season, yet he was criticized throughout for not being rhe best. In one of the most surreal press conferences ever Iker Casillas alone cried and said a tearful goodbye to the club in 2015. Real Madrid used him as a scapegoat, they didn’t honor his achievements. He left with a cloud, with a decent part of the fanbase thinking he was a traitor. Yet he still had a better season than Navas at this moment.

Keylor Navas;s struggles have to do in part of the pressure that Real brings to its players. Iker Casillas was the best goalkeeper in the world for 4-5 year period and was one of the 10 best goalkeepers for about a decade. He was supremely consistent, playing with defenders like Pavon, Helguera, an aging Cannavaro, Woodgate, Raul Albiol, Merzelder, Heinze, Drenthe, hardly the most inspiring defenders ever seen. Yet in so many games he was Real’s best player, so many seasons he was Real’s best player. (2002-03, 2006-07, 2007-08, 2009-2010 he might have been Real’s best player in all 4 of these seasons) Navas had one great season, but is having a year that he should be benched for Casilla. Even Iker Casillas was benched for Cesar in 2002 when he had terrible form, Casillas was benched for Dudek in 2008 when he made several mistakes against Sevilla. In 2002 Casillas came off the bench in the CL final and made 3 great saves to be hero in the final. After he was benched in 2008, Casillas had a brilliant performance as he kept Real in the game against Pep’s Barca making 8 saves including a saved penalty. (Barca still won 2-0) Benching him might actually be what Navas needs, Casillas has set the bar so high that it’s hard to live up to. Navas is a great goalkeeper but the shadow of Casillas looms over him. If he continues playing poorly he will be replaced by De Gea or Cortuois.

Navas can recover, he has the talent and the mentality to. However the next few months will be pivotal as for him. He could replicate the heroics of Casillas in 2002 being the hero of Real lifting a major trophy. Or he could be the scapegoat like Casillas in 2015, the sacrificial lamb after a lost season. Defensively he has help, Ramos, Nacho, Pepe, Carvajal, Marcelo, Casemiro. He can the turn this around, but the shadow of Casillas hangs over Navas and over Real Madrid. Casillas is having a fantastic season at Porto, setting a clean sheet record and making world-class saves. There’s no doubt that those who love Casillas feel a sense of vindication for Casillas’s sucess. Navas must rise to the occasion and perform or else face the same fate his predecessor faced 2 years ago.