The Real deal

Carlo Ancelotti assured that we would see a different Real Madrid against Málaga, and his team proved him right. Not just in terms of how the players looked - there are figures to back up this affirmation.

On practically all fronts, Real improved with respect to the team's average in the league. It shot on goal more, it was more aggressive, more intense, and had more possession.

Ancelotti knows that the best attack starts with a good defence. Against Málaga we saw a much keener, eager Real. At last here was a Real side that tackled more and got the ball back from Bernd Schuster's men. 81 successful tackles in all, compared to the average of 65 that the team has so far this season.

This improvement in tackling has meant that Real enjoyed more possession of the ball, which was also above its average (67% instead of 62.48%). This is something that Ancelotti's teams have always had. The manager said on his arrival at the Bernabéu that the team needed to display some spectacular football in line with its history. And possession is one of the best indicators of just that.

Real has developed its game, as Ancelotti wants. For instance, the team gave more good passes than in previous games - 580 in the Málaga game against the average of 506. The idea of putting Illarra on next to Khedira also worked in every way, both in creating moves as well as getting the ball back off the opponent.