El Clasico! meh I wouldn't call it that

The first Clasico of Clasico month is has come and gone and quite honestly I’m underwhelmed. Maybe it’s all the hype that was heaped upon this meeting, or the memories of the excitement and intensity of the previous Clasico(s) but this didn’t seem to have that classic feeling, you know what I mean.

The match wasn’t played like a Clasico should. Both teams lacked intensity and I feel the result was a fair one despite the penalty that should’ve been but wasn’t. The penalty came later on Villa by Albiol . I guess the ref realized that he’d made a mistake earlier on he was quick to point to the spot. And Real Madrid went down to ten men.

Although Barca dominated in possession I didn’t feel that the final score was unfair to them as Madrid had their fair share of chances but wasted opportunities that came from their good passages of play.

Madrid did not play every attackingly but they made plenty of chances and had either team been as sharp as we’re used to seeing we’d have witnessed more goals. It’s absolutely unbelievable to me that with all of the corners and free kicks that Madrid got around Barca’s penalty area, not a single goal was scored from them.

Ultimately no ground was gained or lost.

David Villa continued his goal drought. Obviously he’s eager to end his spell of poor form. He has been getting caught offside quite a bit lately, starting his runs to soon. Someone please gift that man a goal! A tap-in would work. It’d do wonders for his confidence.

Both Cristiano and Messi have now scored against teams/managers that they never had before, however, not in any spectacular fashion. Both goals came from penalties so it’s not really very impressive.

There was good news ahead of the meeting; Puyol’s return to action! After what felt like years with the Catalan captain out injured every Barca fan had to be happy to see his name on the feature list.

After being out with injury for so long though, it would be a gamble to have Puyol’s return to action to be in what was supposed to be a very intense match. Pep lost the bet and only time will tell if the stakes were too high for Barca to overcome. El Capitan is now a doubt for the Copa Del Rey final on Wednesday. His presence will be missed but we hope not too much.

Pep is hopeful that Puyol’s injury is not serious. "I think it is just a small strain which has happened because he has been out of action for so long, the state of the pitch and the tension of the game. I don't think it is serious and we will try to have him fit for future matches," said Guardiola.

Good news is Mascherano should make his return to the squad for Wednesday after serving his suspension.

That’s all for today I think. Let’s hope our mid-week Clasico is played with more intensity than the last one! Hey maybe this was just like a warm-up Clasico each team just doing their calentameintos. Building up to los Clasicos mas imporantes the CL clasicos!

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