Atlético set to test Madrid's title credentials
Friday, March 6, 2009
Article summary
Guti insists the race for the Spanish title is "still wide open" as Real Madrid CF meet neighbours Club Atlético de Madrid on Saturday, but Diego Forlán warns: "Barcelona were favourites last week – and we defeated them."
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Real Madrid CF midfielder Guti insists the Spanish title race is "still wide open" as Los Merengues take on city rivals Club Atlético de Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu on Saturday.
Title pursuit
Second-placed Madrid have cut FC Barcelona's lead to four points and Guti believes an eleventh straight Liga win for his team this weekend would put real pressure on their Catalan rivals, who face Athletic Club Bilbao on the same night. "Three weeks ago Barcelona were 12 points ahead of us and now the difference is four," the 32-year-old said. "The championship is still wide open, but we need to stay calm and remember it's Barcelona that hold the advantage. Maybe they are feeling nervous and don't have quite the same fluency as before. We still have an opportunity to be champions and we're going to continue fighting for a title that everyone said was already decided."
Killer instinct
Without the suspended Pepe, Madrid coach Juande Ramos must reorganise his defence ahead of the arrival of one of the Liga's most prolific partnerships: Diego Forlán and Sergio Agüero. Both scored twice in last weekend's 4-3 victory over Barcelona to raise their combined league total this season to 29 goals. Guti acknowledges the threat they pose. "Forlán is like a bullfighter inside the area," he said. "He's one of the best forwards in the league while Agüero clearly has immense quality and goalscoring ability. It's going to be a difficult game for both teams. Their win against Barcelona has given them a morale boost while the spirit among our players is very high. We're going into this game on a very good run and it's one we want to maintain."
Caution urged
Forlán accepts that the odds are against his fifth-placed team recording their first win at Madrid since 30 October 1999, yet points out that nobody expected Abel Resino's men to come from behind to beat Barcelona last Sunday. "Everyone thinks Madrid are favourites but that's normal because they are one of the best sides," Forlán said. "However, Barcelona were favourites last week and we beat them." That victory was only Atlético's second in 12 outings in all competitions since the turn of the year. For Forlán, it represented the turning of a corner. "That result lifted us and this league shows week after week that any team can beat another. This is a different game though and we'll have to be alert because if we make a single error, we'll be punished."