#360view: Gung-ho start to Rafa Benitez's Real Madrid reign

Andy West 06:56 24/08/2015
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  • New start: Benitez.

    If his competitive managerial bow is anything to go by, Rafael Benitez’s reign at Real Madrid is going to be well worth watching. Clearly irked by his reputation as a defensive coach – something he has already argued against on more than one occasion this summer – Benitez sent his team into last night’s game at Sporting Gijon seemingly hell-bent on disproving that theory.

    Despite his pre-match assertion that the key to success would be finding a balance between defence and attack, Los Blancos adopted a remarkably attacking approach.

    Before the game, Benitez had already proved that he is not afraid of making big decisions as he selected summer signing Danilo and Raphael Varane in defence, leaving last season’s regular starters Dani Carvajal and Pepe on the bench.

    The role of Gareth Bale has sparked much debate, and it quickly became apparent that he, Isco, Cristiano Ronaldo and Jese Rodriguez had been granted significant freedom to regularly change positions.

    Although Bale nominally lined up just behind striker Jese, with Ronaldo on the left and Isco on the right, the positions of the front four were extremely flexible and their regular inter-changes caused Sporting’s defence plenty of problems.

    At times, it was like a genuine 4-2-4 formation – away from home, remember – with the front four pushed forward right to the edge of the Sporting penalty area. As you would expect with such high-class players, this approach created plenty of goalscoring opportunities.

    However, the downside of this gung-ho approach was that Madrid were also vulnerable defensively, with Marcelo in particular given very little support down the left as Bale and Ronaldo largely failed to track back.

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    Indeed, Sporting very nearly scored from that exact route when Marcelo was beaten by Sporting right-back Lora and his cross was thumped against the crossbar by Arnaldo Sanabria.

    Against better attacking teams, Madrid would be more severely punished for leaving such space and it is surely inconceivable that Benitez will be quite so adventurous in his team’s tougher assignments.

    In the second half, Benitez rang the changes and showed either that he is prepared to experiment or, perhaps more likely, that he is resigned to bowing to his club’s political hierarchy as he replaced Jese – not Isco or Bale – to introduce James, leaving his team without a genuine centre forward.

    That created a more definable shape, though, with James and Isco holding their respective positions on the left and right wings while Bale and Ronaldo ploughed through the middle.

    Then came a change to a clear 4-3-3, as Mateo Kovacic was introduced alongside his compatriot Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, with Bale now on the left of the front three, Ronaldo in the middle and James on the right.

    In reality, however, the final stages were less about team shape and more about hammering at the door in a desperate attempt to find some way past Sporting’s outstanding goalkeeper Ivan Cuellar, and there could be no faulting Madrid’s effort as they pushed hard until the final whistle.

    Benitez can justifiably feel that luck deserted him on his Los Blancos bow, but he will need it to turn quickly. And after aligning his team with three different formations over the course of the game, it’s clear he will not be short of ideas – the Tinkerman lives on.

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