Real Madrid manager could devise special plan to stop Barcelona maestro | OneFootball

As Xabi Alonso prepares fr his first Clasico as a Real Madrid manager, he faces several tactical questions and has a massive task in devising solutions.

Breaking Barcelona’s defence and creating threats, after all, is easier said than done despite all the talk of the Catalans’ defensive fragility. 

The primary reason why Real Madrid will not have it easy tomorrow is that Barcelona are the kings of the style of play Xabi Alonso vouches for, and going head to head with them for a possession-dominant game is far from simple. 

The midfield, on that front, will be a key battle to win for Alonso, and AS relay that he may have a special plan in place to win that battle.

The Pedri factor

While Barcelona have multiple key profiles in midfield who can transform the game, Pedri Gonzalez perhaps stands out as the single-most important presence on that front. The Canary Islander, after all, has been a standout performer for the Catalans for a long time now.

So far this season, Pedri is the player in La Liga with the most passes to his name at 747, and concurrently also boasts the most recoveries at 62. He is the one who dictates Barcelona’s play, and controlling him will be key if Real Madrid is to win the midfield battle.

Not many teams have managed to suffocate Pedri in the past, and PSG and Sevilla were perhaps the two who succeeded on that front to some extent in recent weeks.

Stopping Pedri will be key for Real Madrid. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The question for Xabi Alonso to answer, thus, is whether or not he should place a man-marker on Pedri tomorrow.

If the manager opts to do so, two names stand out as candidates to do that dirty work. Federico Valverde, given his work rate, would be the natural option, with Aurelie Tchouameni being another candidate should the former start at right-back.

Concurrently, however, placing a marker on the player may be counterproductive for the Real Madrid manager as it will indicate that Real Madrid have come out looking to chase the ball and not to dominate.

Further, it will leave spaces on the field by dragging defenders towards the player and help Barcelona build-up more easily.

Hansi Flick and Co., needless to say, foresee the chance that Pedri will be man-marked and will work on plans of their own to capitalise on such a situation. Alonso’s decision, thus, will weigh heavily on the result.