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Real Madrid defender Pepe has apologised to fans for the performance the team put in on Sunday night as they went down to a 4-2 defeat away at Real Sociedad.

The Portugal defender said the defeat was hard to take, especially having been leading 2-0 and cruising in the first half hour. Talking to the club’s official website, the 31-year-old said the only way to overcome a loss like that is to work hard and make sure it doesn’t happen again.

“We began the game well, but at 0-2 up we let the intensity drop. They came at us and we didn’t keep our heads, or sacrifice ourselves enough, to get through it. The whole team is to blame. We’re sorry to the fans, this is hard for us to take, it hurts,” Pepe commented.

Being critical of his and the team’s performance, he admitted there was not enough fighting spirit in the team and that needs to be improved, particularly with the start of the Champions League and another clash with Atletico just around the corner after the international break.

“We just can’t let a 0-2 lead slip like that. We all have to roll up our sleeves and fight. We knew this was a difficult place to come, we knew they’d keep going to the end, and they got their reward. A lot of people are going to find it hard to sleep tonight because of us, and that’s not right. The club’s motto is to fight to the very end, and tonight we failed the shirt,” he commented.

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Real Madrid have signed Manchester United forward Javier Hernandez on a season-long loan, it has been confirmed.

The striker, known as Chicarito, will provide back up to Karim Benzema at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Mexican has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford all summer having had limited playing time last season. He was strongly rumoured to be attracting the interest of Italian champions Juventus and La Liga outfit Valencia, but has opted for a switch to the Spanish capital and the 10-time winners of the Champions League.

Henandez becomes the fourth Mexican to don the famous white shirt for Real Madrid.

A statement on the official club website confirmed his arrival after he passed a medical this morning.

It read: “Real Madrid and Manchester United have reached an agreement for the loan of the player Javier Hernandez Chicharito, who will be attached to the club for the current season. Real Madrid retains an option to purchase the player.”

He will give a press conference later on this afternoon at the stadium.

A statement by Manchester United also confirmed the player’s departure, and added that Los Blancos have the option to buy him at the end of the campaign.

 

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Carlo Ancelotti has said he is responsible for Real Madrid’s shock defeat to Real Sociedad and has vowed to find a system that will work for the team.

Los Blancos had taken a 2-0 lead inside the opening 10 minutes at Anoeta and were looking comfortable. But they let that slip through a number of defensive errors, and ended up being routed 4-2.

Speaking after the game, the Italian manager said it was like watching two different games. The opening 30 minutes, he said, were brilliant, but the next hour was terrible. And he added that a lack of concentration played a part in the mistakes – something that he would have to get his team to work on.

“There were two matches. The first 30 minutes were very good, with quality, pace and focus. The rest was very bad. It is difficult to explain what happened. We conceded corners, free-kicks… We’re very sorry, I don’t like the team to play like that for an hour,” Ancelotti said.

And the boss told journalists he was to blame for the heavy defeat. “It is a defeat that I don’t like at all. Sometimes you can have a bad match but a team like Real Madrid, when they are winning 2-0, have to keep concentrating and maintain their attitude to win the match. We didn’t do that, I am responsible and we’ll do something to change,” he commented.

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There is plenty of analysis going on in the Madrid press this morning following Los Blancos’ 4-2 defeat at Real Sociedad last night.

Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale had given Carlo Ancelotti’s side a dream start, putting them two up inside the first 10 minutes. But their failure to deal with crosses and dead balls was their undoing and the hosts hit back to claim a memorable win.

That inability to defend set-piece situations is heavily criticised by both Marca and AS this morning, who say they team just switched off time and time again, allowing Real Sociedad the freedom of the penalty area to do what they liked. There is also criticism of the style of play in the opening matches, with the main media outlets agreeing that Madrid are too slow going forward and are looking very sluggish at the moment.

Away from the game, it is transfer deadline day today and Los Blancos are expecting to sign a least one forward. A loan deal for Manchester United’s Javier Hernandez is looking likely as Ancelotti looks for backup for Karim Benzema. The deal could include an option to buy at the end of the season for a fee of around 20 million euros.

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Real Madrid blew a two goal lead at Anoeta, going down to a 4-2 defeat to Real Sociedad in just their second league fixture of the season.

Los Blancos, without the missing Cristiano Ronaldo, built a healthy lead in the opening 10 minutes of the game in San Sebastian, but failed to deal with the aerial threat by La Real as the hosts completed a memorable comeback.

Sergio Ramos gave the visitors the lead early on, taking advantage of some slack marking to head his side infront. Bale, taking the star man role in the absence of Ronaldo, doubled Los Blancos’ lead shortly afterwards, skipping past Elustondo before slotting home at the near post.

It was all looking rosy for the 10-time European Cup winners, and indeed Karim Benzema, Ramos and Marcelo all had chances to put the game beyond any doubt.

But a failure to deal with crosses proved to be Real’s undoing. Ten minutes before the break, one time Madrid target Inigo Martinez rose highest to meet a corner and put his side back in the game.

With Anoeta starting to believe, Sociedad had Madrid on the back foot. Five minutes later, the home side was level, with David Zurutuza meeting Alberto de la Bella’s and sending a bullet of a header past Iker Casillas from 12 yards.

After the interval, Carlo Ancelotti’s side had more chances to move ahead once again. But they were to pay for their profligacy in front of goal when Sociedad went up the other end just after the hour mark to take the lead. Sergio Canales and Prieto combined well and Zurutuza once again met a cross to grab his second of the game.

Things went from bad to worse for Carlo Ancelotti’s side as Carlos Vela turned it into a rout. The Mexican found time and space in the area while Los Blancos’ were appealing for handball, and hie calmly finished past Casillas.

Ancelotti may need to think about whether he needs reinforcements to help his side in front of goal and defender better too. If he decides that’s the case, he has just 24 hours to find those players.

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Real Sociedad Real Madrid match preview

Real Madrid visit San Sebastian this evening to take on Real Sociedad at Anoeta.

It’s been a big week for Los Blancos, who will play their first game since the departures of Angel di Maria and Xabi Alonso – two players who formed a key part of the team that brought so much success last years in in recent years.

But manager Carlo Ancelotti still has plenty of options at his disposal, even if he still wants to dip into the transfer market before it closes on Wednesday. The major doubt is Cristiano Ronaldo, who could sit out the game as Los Blancos and Portugal give him a two-week break from football to recover properly from his various niggles.

James Rodriguez and Toni Kroos should start in midfield for Los Blancos, while Isco could step in should Ronaldo not play.

Real will be looking to take off from where they left off against Real Sociedad. Last season in the two league fixtures against them the European Champions netted nine times. And the hosts come into today’s game on the back of a 3-1 aggregate defeat to Russian outfit Krasnodar in the Europa League.

Alfred Finnbogason, Ion Ansotegi and Jon Gaztanaga could all be missing for the home side, but Carlos Vela is expected to be fit.

Possible Line-Ups:
Real Sociedad: Zubikarai, Carlos Martinez, Yuri, Inigo Martinez, Xabi Prieto, Granero, Elustondo, Vela, Bergara, Agirretxe, Canales

Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa; Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric; Bale, James, Isco; Benzema

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The Collins Column

In the space of seven days Real Madrid have lost two key members of the side that won the Champions League just three months ago on that glorious evening in Lisbon.

Angel di Maria, man of the match against Atletico de Madrid in the final, completed a 75-million-euro move to Manchester United. That departure upset many Madridistas, who felt that despite the arrival of the World Cup’s top-scorer James Rodriguez, Los Blancos would be losing some spark and creativity in midfield. Furthermore, as well as his trickery and ability to get past defenders, di Maria is also a grafter and put in a shift in midfield every time he played for Real.

That news earlier this week was followed by confirmation of Xabi Alonso’s surprising switch to Bayern Munich on Friday. The 32-year-old signed a two-year deal with Pep Guardiola’s side after the Bavarian outfit agreed to pay Madrid 10 million euros.

While he’s certainly in the twilight of his career, I’m of the opinion that Alonso’s departure will hurt Madrid more than di Maria’s, and has automatically strengthened one of their main rivals for the Champions League trophy.

Alonso offered so much on and off the field, and while Toni Kroos is a wonderful player, he’s not the same and Madrid could pay the price for the loss of the defensive stability Alonso offered.

The former Real Sociedad and Liverpool man remains one of the most accomplished holding midfielders in world football. His positional awareness and work in the middle of the park allowed players such as Luka Modric and Angel di Maria to push forward and help out in attack last season.

Carlo Ancelotti was well aware of Alonso’s importance in the team in his first season in charge at the Bernabeu. The midfielder missed the early part of the season with a groin injury, and Madrid looked vulnerable in defence, while tactically, Ancelotti didn’t know his best formation. As soon as the Basque midfielder returned in November, Ancelotti made the switch to 4-3-3 and the rest is history, as Los Blancos went on to win the Copa del Rey and European Cup.

Not only will Alonso’s defensive duties be missed, so too will his passing. While the spotlight often falls on the more glamorous players such as Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, in four out of his five seasons at the club, Alonso completed more passes than any other Real Madrid player – says stats expert OptaJose on Twitter.

On top of that, Alonso was a leader, and indeed one of the most experienced outfield players at the club. While Sergio Ramos and Pepe are also leaders on the field, they are prone to losing their heads at times. Whatever the situation, when others would fall apart around him, Alonso was always a calming figure on the pitch, encouraging his team mates to play their natural game.

I can’t help feel that Florentino Perez has a lot to answer for the two major departures this summer. The club president always feels the need to sign a global superstar every summer. While the arrivals of Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez will undoubtedly strengthen the squad and offer something new, sometimes there is no harm in keeping already established players onside. Alonso and di Maria had both earned the respect and affection of the their team mates and fans alike, but perhaps they felt their importance in the side was not recognised by Perez, who signed two superstars to ultimately replace them in the team.

I just hope Madrid don’t live to regret the sale should they be matched up with Bayern in the latter stages of the Champions League this season.

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Real Madrid will be happy overall with the draw for the Champions League group as they avoided some of the big guns in the other pots including the likes of Dortmund, Manchester City, Roma and Monaco.

Instead, they have been drawn with Liverpool, Basle and newcomers to the competition Ludogorets of Bulgaria. The Reds, five time winners of the Champions League, will provide the glamour ties in the group, while Carlo Ancelotti and his players should in theory not have too much difficulty with the others.

Realmadridnews.com looks at the three other teams in Group B along with Real Madrid.

LiverpoolManager: Brendan Rodgers
Qualified: Runners-up in the Premier League

Liverpool have long been considered one of the biggest teams in Europe and have big pedigree in this competition having won it five times – the last time that famous comeback against AC Milan in 2005 when they won on penalties having been 3-0 at half-time.

This season marks a return for The Reds to the competition after a four-year absence. In 2009-10 they actually knocked Madrid out, beating Los Blancos 4-0 at Anfield.

It’s been a busy summer for Liverpool, who finished runners-up in the Premier League last season. Star striker Luis Suarez was sold to Barcelona for 85 million euros, but Brendan Rodgers has spent big on a host of new players including Mario Balotelli, Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Rickie Lambert.

Anfield will, as ever, be a fortress, with the fans creating that famous atmosphere under the floodlights and singing the famous song You’ll Never Walk Alone.

FC Basel
Manager: Paolo Sousa
Qualified: Champions of Swiss League

Swiss side Basle have beaten some big names in the past so this could be a potential banana skin for Los Blancos. They narrowly missed out on reaching the last 16 last season, and beat Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea home and away. They’ve also beaten the likes of Manchester United in the past too.

The club is famous for its youth system, and has produced the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri, Alexander Frei, Fabian Frei and Ivan Rakitic. Mohamad Salah left for Stamford Bridge, but star striker and captain Marco Streller remains at the club. There is also plenty of European experience in the likes of Fabian Frei, Philipp Degen and former Real Madrid defender Walter Samuel.

Having said that, Carlo Ancelotti and his players will expect to take six points off Basle with the squad they have at their disposal.

PFC Ludogorets Razgrad
Manager: Georgi Dermendzhiev
Qualified: Runners-up in Bulgarian League

Real Madrid will be heading into something of the unknown when they take on Bulgarian outfit Ludogorets. They qualified in extraordinary circumstances this week, with defender Cosmin Moti taking his place in goal for the penalty shoot out against Steau Bucharest in the qualifiers after the keeper was sent-off and they had already made three subs. He saved two penalties and scored one himself.

Ludogorets play at the intimate 8,000-seater Ludogorets Arena. The Real players won’t have played in those sort of surroundings since their youth days when they were making their break through in football.

Former Celta winger Dani Abalo and Brayan Angulo, of Granada and Deportivo are possibly the only two vaguely familiar faces in the squad. Having lost to Valencia in the Europa League and indeed to Basel, Real should see them off easily.

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Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has said he has no regrets about playing through the pain for the club last season.

The 29-year-old suffered tendonitis problems in his knee and also a hamstring problems towards the end of the campaign, but still played a key part in helping Los Blancos win the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.

In an interview with Marca, the forward admitted he may have pushed himself to hard but he has no regrets, even though he paid for it at the World Cup as he and Portugal under-performed. He added that he owes everything to Real Madrid, who pay his wages and look after him.

“I wasn’t fully fit and I pushed it, but it went well for me at club-level. Things were more complicated with Portugal. Things can’t always turn out ok. I’ve learned from what happened with my injury, but I don’t regret doing it because I got to play for Real Madrid- who pay me and give me everything- and Portugal, which is my homeland,” he told the Madrid-based sports paper.
He went on to say that despite the injury issues, 2013-14 was a dream season for him personally and for the club.
He stated: “In terms of individual and team honours but if you look at the last six or seven years, I’ve played at more or less the same level. I’m obviously thrilled because this year I had the most individual and team success, it was a dream year.”

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Xabi Alonso has said his decision to leave Real Madrid for Bayern Munich has been the hardest he’s ever had to make.

The 32-year-old leaves the Santiago Bernabeu after five years in the Spanish capital in which time he helped the club win La Liga, two Copas del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup, the European Super Cup, and most importantly, the Champions League – the club’s coveted 10th European Cup.

Speaking at a press conference shortly after his 10-million-euro switch to the German champions was announced, Alonso said it was not an easy decision, but that he wanted a new challenge and to be honest with Madridistas and club boss Carlo Ancelotti.

“I wanted to be honest with myself and Real Madrid. You need to know when to say goodbye and this was the best time. I will always be part of the Madrid family,” he told journalists gathered at the press room in the stadium.

He denied reports his decision to quit the Spanish giants was because of the arrival of Toni Kroos. Rather, having won the Champions League, he said he felt he had achieved what he wanted to at the club, and felt he needed to test himself in a new environment.

“Madrid have made a great signing. The two of us would have played a lot. This is not a tantrum. This decision has been well thought out and evaluated. It was quite a recent interest (from Bayern), in the last two weeks. After winning La Decima I felt that I needed to make a fresh start,” Alonso revealed.

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