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La Liga Focus - Forlan-floored Barca anxiously await Real-bound Canales
Saturday 20 February 2010
When the final whistle blew at the Vicente Calderón, Barcelona’s unbeaten run in La Liga came to an abrupt end. But long before that, another record had disappeared.
Diego Forlán’s opener in the ninth minute was the first time that the Catalans had fallen behind in any league match this season. Impressive as it may be, it mattered little as a spirited Atlético side took advantage of their opponent’s defensive woes to condemn Barca to their first league defeat since May 2009, when the newly-crowned champions lost two consecutive matches whilst preparing to meet Manchester United in Rome. Look back further and the last time Pep Guardiola’s team lost a ‘competitive’ league game was March 1, 2009, against one Atlético Madrid. This was again preceded by another loss, against Espanyol in a dramatic Catalan derby at the Camp Nou, suggesting Barca’s losses, however scarce they may be, seem to come in twos.
If they were looking for a match to break the habit, Saturday’s tie with Racing Santander under the familiar glow of the Camp Nou would most certainly fit the bill. Their opponents have struggled for form this season and, despite a recent resurgence which has seen them win five of their last 10 league matches, find themselves hovering just five points above safety in 14th place. Their last outing, a home tie with fellow strugglers Malaga, ended in an embarrassing 3-0 defeat. To add to the visitor’s woes, they will be without Pedro Munitis, Gonzalo Colsa and Mohammed Tchité after all three picked up suspensions against Malaga. Barcelona themselves are struggling with selection after Xavi and Seydou Keita picked up injuries in the defeat to Atlético to add to a steadily-growing injury lists, but the champions welcome back Gerard Piqué and Rafael Márquez after suspension.
Racing’s teenage sensation Sergio Canales, who agreed a six-year contract with Real Madrid last week, will be available to play at the Camp Nou on Saturday. The 19-year-old may be lining up in the green and white of Santander, but the 98 000 home fans will struggle to see anything but Blanco as he takes part in what will undoubtedly be the first of many tense encounters in the Catalan capital. His recent run of form, which has included two exquisite finishes against Sevilla and a wonder-strike against Osasuna in the Copa del Rey, has catapulted him into the upper echelons of European football, but many have questioned whether the Bernabéu is the right place for the youngster.
The deal will see the midfielder loaned back to Racing for at least another season, and if he continues to develop into the player many believe he will, then a chance at the Bernabéu is most certainly deserved. But what ‘chance’ he will get amid los Galácticos of Real Madrid remains to be seen. The side already boasts the services of Xabi Alonso, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaká, Guti, Rafael van der Vaart, Lassana Diarra, Fernando Gago and Esteban Granero in midfield. The likes of Granero, Gago and Guti may not have long-term futures in the Spanish capital, but cementing an attacking-midfield role ahead of Ronaldo and Kaká will be an almost impossible task unless the youngster can surpass all expectations and become one of the world’s finest players. In addition to this, at least two transfer periods will have passed by the time Canales joins the club. Should Florentino Pérez’s chequebook again come into use, Canales may find himself fighting for a place in the team with Franck Ribéry, David Silva or even Juan Mata.
Many have argued that Barcelona, a club famed for its development of young talent, would have been the more suitable destination for the player, while Chelsea and Manchester City were also rumoured to have been tracking him. But his father Angel Canales claimed that Real were always his son’s top priority: “The decision was Sergio's and he thinks that Real offer the best option in a sporting sense.” The consequences of Canales’ move to Real Madrid remain to be seen, but his meteoric rise to fame has ensured that the eyes of Europe will be following this explosive teenager as the search for world football’s ‘next big thing’ finally starts to show some results.
 Sergio Canales profile
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