MADRID - Champions Real Madrid travel to Racing Santander on Sunday with coach Bernd Schuster demanding a drastic improvement on the Spanish giants’ lacklustre start to the season.

Schuster was furious with his players for taking their foot off the gas in Wednesday’s 2-0 Champions League win over minnows BATE Borisov and also expressed his annoyance at Real leaking five goals in their opening two league matches.

"We are not happy about the number of goals we are conceding," admitted German defender Christoph Metzelder.

"We have problems with dead-ball situations and we have to improve on that but it is only the second weekend into the season.

"We have a lot of players who were at the European championships and had a short pre-season. I am sure we will improve."

Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola finally got his first competitive win since taking charge with a 3-1 Champions League triumph over Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday and now wants to break his duck in the league.

"I am very happy to have won. I can’t deny that it was an important win, and winning always helps," said Guardiola.

Barca have endure their worst start for 35 years with one point from six and lie 15th in the table going into Sunday’s match at bottom side Sporting Gijon.

Belarus winger Alexander Hleb is sidelined after sustaining an ankle injury against Racing last weekend but other than that Guardiola is spoilt for choice.

Meanwhile, Sunday will also see a fiercely-contested Seville derby with Real Betis entertaining city rivals Sevilla at the Manuel Ruiz de Lopera.

In recent years Betis have been in the shadow of neighbours Sevilla - who have won two Uefa Cups and challenged for the league title in the last three years - and Betis will be out for revenge after Sevilla did a league double over them in the last campaign.

Sevilla are unbeaten with four points from six but have looked uneasy in defence - conceding three goals in their narrow 4-3 win over Sporting Gijon - and coach Manolo Jimenez claims it is due to new players needing time to settle.

"I have a lot of faith in our defenders," said Jimenez.

"They have come from a different league and sometimes it takes time to adapt to the style of the Spanish strikers."

Atletico Madrid are brimming with confidence going into tomorrow’s home match with Recreativo Huelva after destroying PSV Eindhoven 3-0 in their Champions League group match.

It was Atletico’s first match in Europe’s flagship competition for 11 years and the capital side excelled with Argentine Kun Aguero bagging a brace.

"I hope we can carry on like this," said Aguero. "We want to go as far as we can in all competitions but the season has just started and we have to continue in this vain."

Atletico, who lost 2-1 at Valladolid last weekend, must do without Uruguayan striker Diego Forlan who pulled up injured in Eindhoven and is out for three weeks.

Spain’s other Champions League representatives Villarreal earned a creditable 0-0 draw at holders Manchester United on Wednesday but have a shortage of strikers for Sunday’s trip to Numancia.

Former Manchester United striker Giuseppe Rossi and Turkish forward Nihat, the club’s top-scorer with 18 goals last season, both played no part against United due to injury.

Numancia have already ruffled some feathers on their return to the top-flight defeating Barcelona 1-0 and scoring three times against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Somewhat surprisingly Espanyol are the only team with a 100 percent record after two matches and defend their perfect start tomorrow with a home match against Getafe.

"We deserve some credit because out of the 20 teams in the league we are the only one that has managed to win both matches," said striker Luis Garcia, who has scored in each of his team’s first two matches.

Espanyol are also the only team yet to concede a goal after successive 1-0 wins in their first two fixtures.

Madrid - Real Madrid midfielder Fernando Gago will be out of action for four weeks, the Spanish champions said Thursday. Gago tore the biceps femoral muscle in his left thigh in Wednesday's Champions League 2-0 win over BATE Borisov. He had to leave the field in the 35th minute, and was replaced by Mahamadou Diarra. Gago, 22, will miss Real's upcoming Spanish league matches against Racing Santander, Sporting Gijon, Betis and Espanyol, as well as the Champions League visit to Saint Petersburg to face Zenit.

 MADRID, Spain (AP) - Sergio Ramos and Ruud van Nistelrooy scored Wednesday to lead Real Madrid over 10-man BATE Borisov 2-0 in Group H of the Champions League.

Ramos scored in the 11th minute off a pass from Jose Maria "Guti" Gutierrez before Van Nistelrooy scored his 54th goal from 69 European Cup games in the 57th.

The Belarussians' task was made nearly impossible in the 63rd when defender Anri Khagush was sent off for a second yellow card.

Madrid, a record nine-time European champion, didn't allow BATE a shot on the goal in the second half but failed to increase the scoreline despite registering 26 shots. BATE goalkeeper Sergei Veremko stopped substitute Gonzalo Higuain and Rafael van der Vaart from close.

Madrid has three points alongside Juventus, which beat Zenit St. Petersburg 1-0 in the other Group H game.

Goran Pandev is refusing to get carried away despite Lazio’s excellent start to the season, which saw them win against Sampdoria this afternoon.

The Biancocelesti are the current league leaders in Serie A, with six points, and six goals from their first two matches.

Having thrashed Cagliari 4-1 on matchday one, Delio Rossi’s men were again on fine form this afternoon as they cruised to a 2-0 win over Sampdoria at the Stadio Olimpico.

“We hope that this will be another Lazio compared to the one of last year that disappointed our fans,” Pandev told Sky Sport Italia in reference to their 12th place finish last term.

“Now we look forward and we must still work harder to improve.”

Pandev has already forged a fine forward partnership with new Argentine signing Mauro Zarate, and the pair both grabbed a goal apiece against Samp today.

“Zarate and I? We did well thanks to the work of the whole team,” the Macedonian said modestly.

“I'm happy for him because he has worked so hard and he has fit into the team with ease, despite the difficulty of our league.

“Is this the year of Lazio? We hope so. We are first now but we must take things one game at a time.”

Lazio will be hoping to make it three wins out of three when they travel to San Siro next weekend to take on struggling Milan.
 

Ewan Macdonald argues that Real Madrid are destined for European failure along the lines of last season, unless one extremely important aspect of their squad is remedied in more than one way...

Well, you've clicked the teaser headline, and now the shocking truth can be revealed: Madrid's problems are in defence. And for my next revelation: the Pope's a Catholic.

OK, so it's hardly surprising that there are question marks over a back line that's shipped ten goals in four competitive games this season, having yet to keep a single clean sheet along the way.

But a look at the back line on paper suggests that this shouldn't be the case. Certainly it's not the world's strongest defence, but the names that comprise it - Pepe, Heinze, Metzelder, Sergio Ramos, and so on - are not the type who should be leaking goals to Numancia.

That's just it, though - that's on paper. The correct metaphor should be on cards, and this particular deck cannot help but be shuffled nearly every week.

Dealt A Losing Hand

It's true. Sergio Ramos didn't play this week, and nor did Gabriel Heinze. While this can't be held up as the reason why Madrid didn't keep a clean sheet, it does go some way to explaining why goals seem to come thick and fast past Iker Casillas.

The reason is that there is no fluency or confidence among the defenders because they lack the rapport required. Putting set-pieces aside - more on that at the end - there is not enough coordination between the centre-backs and full-backs, but there hardly can be when they barely know each others' styles.

It's clear to see why this is. If it's not Metzelder getting a season-ending injury, it's Cannavaro being out for a month, or Pepe for three weeks. Gabriel Heinze struggled with a knock at times in the last campaign. Right now Sergio Ramos is still smarting (due to international duty? We may never know.)

Here's what I'm talking about. Do you know when the last time Madrid fielded the same back four two league games in a row was? It was in February and March: 24 February's 1-0 loss to Getafe and the 1st of March's win at Recreativo saw Sergio Ramos, Fabio Cannavaro, Gabriel Heinze and Miguel Torres line up together. That's not even a first choice back four (and in any case Ramos was sent off in the second game), while on both occasions attacking changes to the defence were made towards the end of the game.

Be that down to injury or lack of energy, it's clear that it's a difficult thing for any back line to contend with.

Luck Of The Draw?

Of course, it's easy to cite injuries as a hard luck story. But here's the thing: all teams have injury crises, and it's not how well you complain about them that counts - it's how you deal with them.

In this sense Madrid are letting themselves down by failing to adjust to the people that they have available. (You could also say that Calderón and Mijatovic have failed Schuster by giving him a frail back line for a second season in a row, but that's another matter entirely.)

What Schuster and his men need to do, then, is figure out a system of defence that depends less on roles and more on individual personages. With this done, set pieces will be a matter of course and not a reason to panic, and there won't be glaring absences from the team.

It is difficult for any top-four team to do this, though: the "curse" of being a side that must attack is that full-backs take on massively important roles that may not match those of their lower league counterparts. In other words, when Sergio Ramos is out, Sergio Ramos' role is out: Michel Salgado may have kept himself remarkably fit, but he doesn't have the attacking prowess of his junior partner, try though he might.

A New Hand

So, what then? Schuster should not try to hammer this square peg into the round hole and instead allow his defence to play to something resembling their strengths. There is little point in pushing far forward a central pairing comprising Metzelder and Cannavaro - if a ball bobbles over the top of them and the likes of Villa get on the end of it, neither is getting back in time to prevent him from scoring, whereas Pepe just might. If Salgado is at right-back, don't have him play the killer cross - he can't do it as well as Ramos. And so on.

Above all... just get them onto the training pitch and work at set pieces. When Numancia's Romero rose at the far post to bobble that header goalwards for the opening goal, you could have parked the Madrid team plane between him and the nearest white shirt. For this there is no excuse. I am a firm believer in the idea that if you allow an uncontested header from a set piece into the box at any level of football above semi-professional then you are failing as a manager and as a team.

Still, these failings are far more easily remedied than a lack of talent, so it's not all bad by any means. What's more, there's hope for the more distant future. In Ezequiel Garay, Bernd Schuster (or his successor) has an ace up his sleeve for the new season. He may not be the only arrival, either.

Until then, though, Schuster needs to be more careful with his house of cards, lest it all blow down.

(Oh - and I promise that I'm finished with the card metaphor. Just so you know.)
 

As Real Madrid prepare for their first home game of the season tonight news has emerged that the club were offered Russian playmaker Andrei Arshavin this summer…

Summer is rarely a quiet time at Real Madrid and this one proved to be no exception. The club was rarely out of the headlines as it doggedly pursued the signing of Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.

However, now that the transfer window is closed and the rumours are over many pundits have said that Los Blancos wasted too much time on Ronaldo and other fanciful purchases. Indeed, with the season now underway Rafael Van Der Vaart is the only new acquisition to the squad, although in a report today it turns out that that could have been very different.

It is thought that Real Madrid were actually offered Zenit St Petersburg playmaker Andrei Arshavin but declined the transfer, presumably as they were too busy targeting other players. The news will anger bitter rivals Barcelona, who were keen to sign the Russian this summer but could not broker a deal with Zenit.

Also rumoured to be interested in the twenty seven year old were Tottenham Hotspur - who failed to negotiate a price with Zenit - as well as Inter Milan and Manchester City, although Real Madrid were the only ones thought to have been offered the player.

Arshavin made a name for himself over the past year, firstly with Zenit as they won the UEFA Cup, and then with Russia as they reached the semi-finals of the European Championships.

During his time in Russia the playmaker has made 217 appearances for Zenit and at the age of 27 it was thought that this summer would be the ideal time for him to move to a larger club.

As Real Madrid prepare for their first home match of the season against Numancia, young defender Marcelo found time this weekend to talk about the fixture, the upcoming season and his own personal goals…

Speaking to the official Real Madrid website the Brazilian full back said, “This season I want to play, to be consistent, to earn a spot in the team and to make history at the club. I am working hard to earn a place in the team.”

Indeed, the next call up for the fullback is likely to be this evening as his side take on newly promoted Numancia in the curtain raiser at the Bernabéu and he is weary of the challenge that awaits them.  

He said, “Every league fixture is hard and I’m sure Numancia won’t want to lose at the Bernabéu. They will want to pull off a surprise, like every other side that plays here. They’ll want to prove something and we have to avoid that.”

So far this season Real Madrid are yet to pick up any points in the league after losing 2-1 to Deportivo and fingers have been pointed at the fact the club’s only signing over the summer was Rafael Van Der Vaart. Marcelo denies that the strength of the squad is a problem though, and actually says the balance at the moment is perfect.

“I think the team is fine. As I’ve said before it has a great mix of youth and experience. That’s perfect in my book,” he assured.

Speaking about the loss at the Riazor the defender said he wasn’t quite sure how his side didn’t win the game.

“I don’t know how to explain it, we played well but the ball didn’t want to go in. The two goals we conceded came from mistakes of ours but that’s all in the past now, we must think about the future,” he concluded.

Since joining the club from Fluminense back in 2007 the flying fullback has made 30 appearances and has found himself a regular starter in many games under Bernd Schuster.

Palermo and their fiery chief Maurizio Zamparini are ready to fight Real Madrid for Coritiba star Keirrison de Souza Carneiro, according to Sportmediaset.

The 19-year-old Brazilian has raised a number of eyebrows at the Renzo Barbera.

The Rosanero have been following the prolific hit-man but they may have to fight a tough battle with Los Blancos to land their man.

Keirrison has scored 12 goals in 15 games for Coritiba and Palermo have eyed him as a replacement for Amauri, who joined Juventus this summer.

Sportmediaset claims the striker will stay on in Brazil until December and the Sicilian side are currently planning to make a move during the January transfer window.

Zamparini is ready to invest big bucks in Keirrison and he will need to in order to fend off interest from the Spanish champions, who are also interested.

The race is on to get in there first and Zampa is going to try and muscle his way ahead of Real chief Ramon Calderon.

The Rosanero have not managed to bring in an adequate replacement since Amauri’s departure and they only have Fabrizio Miccoli and Fabio Simplicio as the main threats up front.

That partnership doesn’t seem enough this term and Keirrison will be a welcome addition to the side as he is likely to help with their UEFA Cup push this term.

 

Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon has emerged as a surprise target for Real Madrid.

The Spanish champions are looking to strengthen their right side after selling Robinho to Manchester City and missing out on Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo.

And Lennon has appeared on a short list of targets for the Bernabeu club, according to Spanish newspaper As.

Real's first choice is said to be Argentina's Olympics international Angel di Maria. Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United have also tracked the 20-year-old but Benfica are reluctant to sell for less than his £24million buy-out clause.

Brazilian Nilmar, of Internacional, is another option, along with Boca Juniors; Rodrigo Palacio and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar of Ajax.

But Lennon is perhaps the most surprising name on the list.

The diminutive has struggled to sustain the promising start he had when becoming the youngest Premier League debutant with Leeds, as a 16-year-old five years ago.

But the 21-year-old has nine England caps and is a regular in the Tottenham side.