Victory

WHEN THE SOLUTION TO THE WEAKNESS BECOMES THE WEAKNESS TOO ENSAYOL0 /REAL MADRID 2

2 games. 2 victories. 2 UN-convincing victories. La Liga League Leaders nonetheless.

It is true though that some consideration must be placed on the fact that the BBC isn't fit. Ronaldo clearly isn't at his best yet. Despite missing Euro 2016, Benzema isn't 100% either and now, Bale has joined the party in the infirmary too. 

So which narrative would we like to pursue? That we should be alarmed  and filled with skepticism over the mostly-meh football (especially in the light of seeing Barca butcher Celtic 7-0)? Or should we trot out the age-old "Great teams can win without playing well" (especially in light of the fact that our BBC isn't fit)? I stand somewhere in the middle.

The Benefits of Great Squad Depth

Last Wednesday's Champions League groups stage match vs. Sporting Lisbon was a great display of our squad depth. I really enjoy watching the impact that subs can make on a game. It was something which we lost for a while (for some years), but this season's team has enough strength and have enough hungry players sitting on the bench, whether they are of star  / semi-star quality (James, Isco, Morata) or just young players eager to make a splash (Vasquez, Kovacic, Asensio). Our current squad depth currently allows us to sleep the night before a match knowing a first choice player is injured, suspended or is being rested. 

Last night's match was no different. With no Ronaldo and Bale, we had seen enough of Asensio and Vasquez to believe that achieving victory was possible even in a match away from home. To top it all off, last night was also a game where Zidane decided to reward James' Sporting Lisbon performance with a starting berth at the expense of Toni Kroos.

When the Solution to the Weakness becomes the Weakness too.

                                        Casemiro: An Asset and a Liability at the same time