Press Recap: Madrid's Win Against Sevilla & Looking Ahead To Manchester United

But what press there has been is unfailingly positive. Mourinho managed to rest many key starters and Ronaldo had a beautiful hat-trick. With so many goals so early on (Ronaldo managed his hat-trick within the first hour before coming off to rapturous applause) the winger is the focus of most of the attention. That he is a former Manchester United player heading "home" to meet his old team only adds to the interest the press has taken in what has become routine for Ronaldo.

It is, after all, his 20^th hat-trick for Real Madrid. And with 17 of those in the league, rather than in easier domestic cup competitions, the winger has arguably been in the form of his life for nearly 4 straight years for Real Madrid. Consistency, thy name is Ronaldo.

Or more prosaically: CR7 Lays Down Gauntlet To United - to quote Marca's headline after the match.

Meanwhile, The Daily Mail has former Real Madrid (and United) striker Ruud van Nistelrooy insisting that the game essentially comes down to the two forwards: fellow Dutchman Robin van Persie and former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo.

With Manchester in mind, Sergio Ramos has spoken with Sid Lowe for the Observer. It's worth a look, but the highlights have him hoping for a physical battle with Wayne Rooney and worrying about van Persie and Chicharito "who comes on for half an hour and scores two or three every time and it's not a coincidence."

He continues:

I was pleased to get United. They are in the Premier League what Madrid are in Spain perhaps: the values, the history. What they have always represented, the philosophy they transmit, the ideals they inculcated their players with, are similar.

Few games have the repercussion of this match. And I'd rather play them than a team that's not as big but comes along and surprises you. Besides, I like English football.

Meanwhile, Xabi Alonso has spoken with the BBC in a piece entitled: Mourinho Is Still Special

You see that Jose has something different.

The way that he communicates with the players, it's different. The way he empathises with the players as well is different.

That is why you want to be behind him, why you want to play and fight for him on the pitch. The players, we do believe in him.

There has been mischief afoot this week with TV3 - a Catalan station - producing a video showing Madrid's tackling and comparing the players with wild animals. The magic of a lawsuit from the club has produced an apology from the station who have admitted it was "ill advised" and in "bad taste."

On a more humorous note, we end with something rather more harmless - from two sources. The first is Barcelona president Sandro Rosell, who told the press that there is one Real Madrid player he has admired "for some years" though "I won't say who" since it would cause "a circus."

Faint hope! Marca isn't one to pass up a circus. With hundreds of pages of Madrid-based tittle-tattle to fill up every week they have held a poll to decide who it could be and have written up the affair. Discerning fans believe it to be Mesut Özil, a known transfer target for Barcelona in 09-10 (Rosell in particular wanted him) before the playmaker came to Madrid. Sergio Ramos came second in the polling.