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Six consecutive wins, six consecutive clean sheets, a four-point disadvantage cut in La Liga and a solid performance in the Copa del Rey. No one can argue that the year 2014 has brought nothing but good news to Real Madrid, but we need to extend this evolution as much as possible, and tomorrow's game against Granada is a really good chance to do so.
The ball will start rolling at 16:00 CET in Santiago Bernabéu, and at that very moment, we will be leading the league table, sharing the position with FC Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid, and we could even overtake them if we beat Granada tomorrow. For the first time this season, we have an opportunity to be the lonely leaders, and we must definitely take it, to keep our winning streak and put some pressure on Barça and Atlético. Bearing in mind that, for different reasons, both of our rivals are not going through their best moments, it is the right time to remind them that we are here, that we will fight until the end of the season and that they will have to do their best if they want to get the league, because this is Real Madrid and we are not going to make it easy for them.
Granada, our opponent tomorrow, is not one of the strongest teams in La Liga, but it would not be wise to look down on them. Their coach, Lucas Alcaraz, has found a 4-3-3 system that enables him to put all his talented men on the field without losing the balance. With a good goalkeeper like Roberto and two really hard-working fullbacks, Nyom and Angulo, the centerbacks may be their weakest defensive spots. The three men in the middle, Iturra, Recio and the penalized Fran Rico, provide a great physical and tactical display, together with a good control of the ball possession, setting the mood for Piti, Brahimi and El Arabi to take the offensive responsibilites. When they need to defend, and possibly during the whole game tomorrow, Piti and Brahimi are used to moving one step backwards to form a really solid 4-5-1 with very little space between the lines.
With all the players available, except for Varane and Khedira, it will be a specially important game for Cristiano Ronaldo, who will offer his recent Ballon d'Or to the fans in Santiago Bernabéu and, therefore, will be highly motivated to display a good performance in front of them and help the team sleep, at least for one night, in the leadership.
