MADRID (AFP) - Real Madrid were given a Spanish Cup shock on Tuesday when third division minnows and unheralded city neighbours Alcorcon dished out a 4-0 drubbing to the nine-time European champions.
The tiny provincial side, with a miniscule annual budget of just 1.2 million euros - 300 times less than their esteemed visitors - added a notable footnote to their modest history in front of their home fans at the 3,000-capacity Estadio Municipal de Santo Domingo.
Real were undone by the club which was only founded in 1971 with an own goal by former Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa, Borja Perez's brace, and Ernesto Gomez.
Not pleasant viewing for Real president Florentino Perez and club director Jorge Valdano watching from the stands.
If they fail to overturn the lopsided scoreline in the second leg of this Last 32 tie it will by no means be the first time Real Madrid have bid a hasty farewell to the Copa del Rey.
The Spanish giants, who last collected the title way back in 1993, were kicked out of Spain's premier cup competition in 2008 by Third Division side Real Union, a loss that triggered the dismissal of coach Bernd Schuster.
Real's embarrassing defeat on Tuesday came despite the presence of Raul and Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini welcoming back injured strikers Karim Benzema and Ruud van Nistelrooy but Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentine forward Gonzalo Higuain, who also missed the club's 0-0 draw with Sporting Gijon last weekend, were still sidelined.
Frenchman Benzema was injured in both feet while Dutchman van Nistelrooy has been out for several weeks with a thigh muscle injury.
Pellegrini elected to rest several top players, including Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Xabi Alonso and Kaka, for the match.
Tuesday's reverse came after a bad seven days which started with Real losing to AC Milan in the Champions League and then the goalless draw at Gijon.
Alcorcon's achievement meanwhile knocked a sizeable dent in Pellegrini's pre-match assertion that Real's ambition was "to win every competition".
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Let me tell you what is going to happen. Since Money Does Not Buy Success, madrid will not win anything. The same thing that happened last season will happen this season. Madrid lost to Juventus home and away last season, they will lose to Milan home and away this season. The are going to finish second in the groups of the champions league. They lost 4-0 to Real Union last season in Spanish Cup, they lost 4-0 against Alcorcon this season. They are going to get out of the Spanish Cup in the first round, just like last season. There goes their dream of winning the treble. But it does not end there. Madrid will sack Pellegrini before the Barcelona match, just like they did to Scutcher last season. Barcelona will Beat madrid in Camp Nou. Then Barcelona will be like 20 points away from madrid in La Liga. And there goes madrid's hopes of winning the La Liga. So madrid is going to focus on champions league. They will meet a tough team in the first knockkkk outtt round and will lose home and away, and get out for the 6th year in row out of 16th round champions league, just like they did with Liverpool. So now madrid is out of Spanish Cup and Champions League. They have no choice but to continue fighting for La Liga. Barcelona on the other hand is fighting in all three competition, to win the treble, so they might lose a game or two in La Liga, and madrid might come close to Barcelona, like 10 points close in La Liga. Than madrid will get all hyped up for the clasico in bernabeu, than Barcelona will humiliate them again, another 2-6 for Barcelona. And the pain does not stop there. After Barcelona wins the Spanish Cup, and La Liga, they will go on winning the Champions League in bernabeu, and see Capitan Karisma Puyol lift the trophy in bernabeu, and that will hurt all madrid fans. Than the new coach will be fired again in the summer, and another 300 million euros will be spend, just to catch up to Barcelona. Than the cycle just keeps continuing.
All these bunch of perennial losers talking nonsense about the "Great Club of the 20th Century" should just shut up and stop being envious. Like it or not, Madrid is ahead of you, period!!
its not about money its about winning. lucky real madrid [men in white] thou they are not bright. this is not the couching staffs fault but the management
I think Alonso made a big mistake while Arbeloa made a good one to take along his OGs
ha ha wat a joke..wait for the excuses from the real followers,ronaldo and kaka wernt playing,but everyone else was deal with your lack of anything this year,you will end up third in liga no cups and out in the last 16 of champs league...."only the real followers or pretenders will thumb me down"
a lot of money make people tired 2 carry it... hahahahahahaahahahahahahahahhahahahahahaha
I guess that's the pressure when a lot of money is spent to make a champion team.
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