Wednesday December 10, 2008 Finished
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Juve edge Real to top group
Juventus grind out a 0-0 draw with BATE Borisov to head Group H ahead of Real Madrid, despite Real's 3-0 win against Zenit. More
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Live Commentary
Time:90'- Real Madrid
- Zenit St Petersburg
90'+2 And it's all over! A superb performance from Real Madrid in general and Arjen Robben in particular - and what a start for the former Spurs manager in charge of his new team for the first time. Congratulations to Ramos's Real - we'll see you next time.
90' Nice chance for the plucky Zenit, who to their great credit are still having a go at their hosts. Dominguez is the man who gets the chance to swing his foot, forcing a diving save from Dudek to push the ball round the right post.- 87' Metzelder runs down to the line inside the box before dragging the pass back for Robben, who fires beautifully and is well saved by Malafeev. Real could have won this 6-0, but give Zenit their due: they've been within a few inches of netting themselves.
84' Sirl gets a yellow card - considering the lesson in football he's been given by Robben this evening, you'd have forgiven him for lashing out long before now.- 79' Zenit's now-languid efforts lead to nice build up, and from the corner they win the new man, Tekke, gets on the end and HITS THE BAR!!! UNBELIEVABLE! Zenit might have had two in 10 minutes!
- 77' Madrid are knocking the ball about for fun now. It's all over as a contest, and with the effort of the night beginning to take its toll the players begin to look as if they wish the ref could just blow up 15 minutes early.
- 73' Fatih Tekke comes on for Zenit, replacing Pogrebnyak, who's never looked like troubling the scorers.
- 70' Zenit win a corner which Danny spins in nicely, but after the near-miss the Real defence are back on their mettle and deal well with the danger.
- 65' Zenit on the counter for once - and it's OFF THE BAR! A great chance for the Russians to claw one back, but realistically the only reason it fell to Pogrebnyak in the first place was that Real have taken their feet off the gas.
- 63' A yellow for Danny, who catches an arm in the face - which looked intentional - from Sergio Ramos and decides to retaliate with an out-and-out shoulder charge which sends his colleague flying to the floor. Good moves - for a WWE wrestler, that is.
61' Looks like the exodus of the Galacticos is beginning, as Raul is brought off by Ramos to be replaced by Saviola. Robben looks to be staying the distance then.- 59' Robben releases Higuain WHO IS FREE ON GOAL AND MUST SCORE... but the ball goes the wrong side of the post and finishes harmlessly in the side netting. This is beginning to resemble a pre-season friendly for a Real side in need of a confidence boost.
58' More good build up from Robberm and an incredible ball weaved through to Raul who controls - AND IT'S THREE TO REAL!!!!! THEY'RE RUNNING RIOT NOW!!!! Huge grins and high-fives all round, this is a rampant Real. Wonderful to see.- 54' Another chance for - you guessed it - Robben, who shoots into the side netting. The grin on his face says it all: he's having the time of his life out there. What a start this is for Ramos.
- 51' Sadly, for the sake of the spectacle, Ramos immediately celebrates by preparing to bring on another sub. You dread who it'll be: why risk someone playing as well as Robben is when the match is all but assured already? But it turns out to be Javi Garcia coming on for Guti. Zenit, meanwhile, replace Arshavin with Fayzulin.
- 50' GOOOOOAAAALLLL TO ROBBEN!!!!!! And nobody on the pitch could have deserved it more, the man has been incredible. He picks up a through ball at full pace, drags himself clear of Sirl and then flips a lob with the outside of his left foot which loops over the head of Malafeev and perfectly into the corner of the net. Utterly, utterly brilliant...
- 48' Robben touches the ball for the first time in the half, and forces a great save from Malafeev at full stretch. From the corner he has another crack only to see it cleared off the line.
46' They're back in play, and just the one change: Juande Ramos brings on Christoph Metzelder for Van der Vaart, who was Real's least-effective attacker in the first half.- 45'+2 And that's it for the first half - and for Juande Ramos's first 45 minutes as Real Madrid boss. His new charges have looked in impressive form - particularly the utterly awesome Robben.
- 45' Two extra minutes indicated, presumably for Malafeev's injury earlier.
- 44' Yet another chance for Real, with Gago running through onto the ball but spooning his pass badly out of the reach of Van der Vaart.
- 41' Zenit come up the other end on the break and force a corner, but to no avail. Real look as solid at the back as they do at the front, and Dudek takes the cross with confidence.
- 39' Robben keeps on coming, and after a couple of false starts - including one where he amusingly runs himself over the ball after some Maradona-esque dribbling - he finally gets back into position. It's another left-foot shot, straight at the keeper who can't hang on to it... but then the ball bounces safely to a defender.
- 36' Zenit fly up the other end and all of a sudden Danny and Zyryanov combine brilliantly with a one-two that looks to have given the latter a clear chance... but the final ball bobbles a bit, and he can't even make contact. A true missed opportunity.
- 35' Robben, back on the right again now, again makes Sirl look like a Scottish Highland League defender, cutting inside brilliantly and shooting on his left foot. He's on target, but it's a comfortable take at a comfortable height for Malafeev.
- 32' GREAT BREAKAWAY FROM ZENIT ON THE COUNTER -- IS ARSHAVIN THROUGH? But no, he is sternly tackled by Cannavaro, a true goal-saving effort there. Real breathe again, but it shows that the Russians have some teeth.
- 31' Great run down the left by Marcelo, and a brilliant final ball through to... oh, nobody at all. He was a couple of seconds too quick for the Real strikers there.
- 28' Another good chance there for Real - who are pummelling Zenit into the ground. This time it was Van der Vaart shooting, and only a deflection off the defender kept the ball off target. Has Ramos promised an extra glass of sangria to whoever registers most shots on goal tonight?
26' Looks like Raul caught the Zenit keeper, Malafeev, as he came through to score. The glove man stays down for a couple of minutes, but a bit of magic sponge and a shake of the head and he's back on his feet.- 25' GOAL!!!!! The relentless pressure was too much for Zenit, and after a goalmouth mix-up by the fumbling keeper - who mis-handles a cross from Robben - Raul manages to bundle the ball in the back of the net. 1-0 already, and Ramos's job is probably safe until half-time!!!
- 19' Real keep on coming, using all the tricks to keep the ball - fancy back-heel there, Guti - and forcing a corner. It's cleared easily, but Real look threatening.
- 17' Real have seemingly exhausted themselves with all that long-range shooting, and concede a soft corner - beautifully cut out by the defence, who once more release Robben. He's in terrifying form on this evidence, and had his cross for Higuain been a foot further up the striker would have had a free shot on goal.
- 15' The wild foot-swinging is becoming comical now: Higuain wings his foot once again, but barely glances it with the side of his shin. Chuckle.
- 13' Higuain with a half-chance from 30 yards.... BEAUTIFULLY STUCK AND A GREAT SAVE! The boys in white are shooting at any opportunity tonight - do they suspect Malafeev should be shaky between the Zenit posts or are they all trying to earn the headlines in tomorrow's papers with a screamer to mark the new era?
- 12' On the counter, Robben once again gets things going for Real, releasing Van der Vaart to unleash a powerful right foot shot. He connects well, but steers wide.
- 10' Penalty shout! Denisov tries to run onto a ball from Anyukov, and goes down in the box – suspiciously easily, it must be said, and the ref simply motions for him to stop being such a big girl's blouse. Or to get up. One of the two.
- 7' Madrid still look threatening, with Arjen Robben already terrorising Sirl down the right flank. He gets a ball over to Marcelo, who shoots over. Good stuff for Ramos's boys, and Dick Advocaat in the Zenit dug-out is looking very stressed and shouty already.
- 5' Zenit manage to break back, and Pogrebnyak has a chance. Well saved by Jersey Dudek, who's keeping for the Spanish side tonight.
- 2' Straight away Madrid are on the attack, a good build up from Guti on the right leading into a great chance for Higuain. Well blocked by the defence, but that could easily have been 1-0!!!
- 1' And they're away, Madrid playing in white and Zenit in blue.
- - Black suit, black tie, grim face... Ramos looks more like an undertaker than a football manager. And given Real's record with their managers, this match could already mark the beginning of his long, slow death as team coach.
- - Teams are in: Real Madrid: Dudek, Marcelo, Cannavaro, Sergio Ramos, Salgado, Gago, Van der Vaart, Guti, Robben, Higuain, Raul Subs: Casillas, Saviola, Drenthe, Metzelder, Javi Garcia, Bueno, Anton Zenit St Petersburg: Malafeev, Sirl, Krizanac, Lombaerts, Aniukov, Tymoschuk, Zyryanov, Denisov, Danny, Arshavin, Pogrebniak Subs: Contofalsky, Kim, Dominguez, Tekke, Hubocan, Shirokov, Faitzulin The referee is Jonas Eriksson (Sweden)
- - It might be a dead fixture - Zenit are already guaranteed the UEFA Cup spot and Real have only a slim chance of taking top spot in Group H - but all the eyes of Spain will be watching as Juande Ramos takes charge of Real for the first time.
- - Welcome to our LIVE coverage of Real Madrid against Zenit St Petersburg.
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Team Stats
Real Madrid Stats Zenit St Petersburg 52% Possession 0% 24 Shots 0 12 Shots on target 0 2 Saves 0 7 Corners 0 11 Fouls 0 3 Offsides 0 0 Yellow cards 0 0 Red cards 0 33 Tackles 0 394 Accurate passes 0 43 Bad passes 0 -
Player Stats
- G =
- Goals
- S =
- Shots
- SoT =
- Shot on Target
- F =
- Fouls
- FW =
- Fouls Won
- O =
- Offsides
- A =
- Assists
- AP =
- Accurate Passes
- BP =
- Bad Passes
- T =
- Tackles
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Real Madrid G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T 25 Jerzy Dudek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 2 0 4 Sergio Ramos 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 55 2 2 12 Marcelo Vieira da Silva Júnior 0 2 1 2 0 0 0 27 5 2 2 Míchel Salgado 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 42 2 2 5 Fabio Cannavaro 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 27 1 5 14 José Maria Guti 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 35 4 3 8 Fernando Gago 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 68 9 9 23 Rafael van der Vaart 0 3 1 1 1 0 0 15 5 1 7 Raúl González Blanco 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 18 4 4 20 Gonzalo Higuaín 0 5 1 0 1 0 0 31 5 1 11 Arjen Robben 1 8 6 3 2 1 1 29 1 0 15 Royston Drenthe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 28 Alberto Bueno 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 Javier Saviola 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 7 1 0 32 Jose Maria Anton Samper 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Iker Casillas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 24 Javi Garcia 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 17 2 3 21 Christoph Metzelder 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 0 1 -
Zenit St Petersburg G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
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Summary
- 90' Nice chance for the plucky Zenit, who to their great credit are still having a go at their hosts. Dominguez is the man who gets the chance to swing his foot, forcing a diving save from Dudek to push the ball round the right post.
- 87' Metzelder runs down to the line inside the box before dragging the pass back for Robben, who fires beautifully and is well saved by Malafeev. Real could have won this 6-0, but give Zenit their due: they've been within a few inches of netting themselves.
- 79' Zenit's now-languid efforts lead to nice build up, and from the corner they win the new man, Tekke, gets on the end and HITS THE BAR!!! UNBELIEVABLE! Zenit might have had two in 10 minutes!
- 65' Zenit on the counter for once - and it's OFF THE BAR! A great chance for the Russians to claw one back, but realistically the only reason it fell to Pogrebnyak in the first place was that Real have taken their feet off the gas.
- 59' Robben releases Higuain WHO IS FREE ON GOAL AND MUST SCORE... but the ball goes the wrong side of the post and finishes harmlessly in the side netting. This is beginning to resemble a pre-season friendly for a Real side in need of a confidence boost.
- 58' More good build up from Robberm and an incredible ball weaved through to Raul who controls - AND IT'S THREE TO REAL!!!!! THEY'RE RUNNING RIOT NOW!!!! Huge grins and high-fives all round, this is a rampant Real. Wonderful to see.
- 50' GOOOOOAAAALLLL TO ROBBEN!!!!!! And nobody on the pitch could have deserved it more, the man has been incredible. He picks up a through ball at full pace, drags himself clear of Sirl and then flips a lob with the outside of his left foot which loops over the head of Malafeev and perfectly into the corner of the net. Utterly, utterly brilliant...
- 48' Robben touches the ball for the first time in the half, and forces a great save from Malafeev at full stretch. From the corner he has another crack only to see it cleared off the line.
- 39' Robben keeps on coming, and after a couple of false starts - including one where he amusingly runs himself over the ball after some Maradona-esque dribbling - he finally gets back into position. It's another left-foot shot, straight at the keeper who can't hang on to it... but then the ball bounces safely to a defender.
- 36' Zenit fly up the other end and all of a sudden Danny and Zyryanov combine brilliantly with a one-two that looks to have given the latter a clear chance... but the final ball bobbles a bit, and he can't even make contact. A true missed opportunity.
- 35' Robben, back on the right again now, again makes Sirl look like a Scottish Highland League defender, cutting inside brilliantly and shooting on his left foot. He's on target, but it's a comfortable take at a comfortable height for Malafeev.
- 32' GREAT BREAKAWAY FROM ZENIT ON THE COUNTER -- IS ARSHAVIN THROUGH? But no, he is sternly tackled by Cannavaro, a true goal-saving effort there. Real breathe again, but it shows that the Russians have some teeth.
- 25' GOAL!!!!! The relentless pressure was too much for Zenit, and after a goalmouth mix-up by the fumbling keeper - who mis-handles a cross from Robben - Raul manages to bundle the ball in the back of the net. 1-0 already, and Ramos's job is probably safe until half-time!!!
- 13' Higuain with a half-chance from 30 yards.... BEAUTIFULLY STUCK AND A GREAT SAVE! The boys in white are shooting at any opportunity tonight - do they suspect Malafeev should be shaky between the Zenit posts or are they all trying to earn the headlines in tomorrow's papers with a screamer to mark the new era?
- 12' On the counter, Robben once again gets things going for Real, releasing Van der Vaart to unleash a powerful right foot shot. He connects well, but steers wide.
- 2' Straight away Madrid are on the attack, a good build up from Guti on the right leading into a great chance for Higuain. Well blocked by the defence, but that could easily have been 1-0!!!
Team lineup & ratings
Real MadridManager: Juande Ramos
Captain: González Raúl
Zenit St PetersburgManager: Dick Advocaat
Captain: Anatoly Timoschuk
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Lineup
Live Team Line-Up
- Real Madrid
Manager: Juande Ramos
Captain: González Raúl
Starting line-up
- J. Dudek
- M. Salgado
- S. Ramos
- F. Cannavaro
- .. Marcelo
- J. Guti
- R. van der Vaart
- F. Gago
- A. Robben
- G. Higuaín
- G. Raúl ×2
Subs
- 21. C. Metzelder
46′ - 1. I. Casillas
- 9. J. Saviola 61′
- 24. F. Javi García 52′
- A. Bueno
- 15. R. Drenthe
- C. Antón
Injured
- 16. G. Heinze
- 6. M. Diarra
- 17. R. van Nistelrooy
- 10. W. Sneijder
- 3. .. Pepe
- 18. R. De la Red
- 22. M. Torres
- Zenit St Petersburg
Manager: Dick Advocaat
Captain: Anatoly Timoschuk
Starting line-up
- V. Malafeev
- A. Anyukov
- N. Lomberts
- I. Krizanac
- Sirl
- A. Timoschuk
- O. Denisov
- K. Zyrianov
- .. Danny
- A. Arshavin
- P. Pogrebniak
Subs
- F. Tekke 73′
- A. Dominguez 76′
- K. Contofalski
- R. Shirokov
- Kim Don Chzin
- V. Fayzulin 46′
- T. Gubocian
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