As a Toon fan, nothing compares to standing amongst 52000 fellow fans in SJP (not at the moment though arguably), but sometimes it takes a new environment, a new stadium and watching another team live to appreciate what we don’t have and no doubt the game left me with quite a few questions? Enter Real Madrid V Dynamo Kiev in the Bernabẽu.

Comparing Madrid’s performance and our usual standard of play (the West Ham game being the exception), for a few brief moments, Madrid´s defence shows canny resemblance to our lot including a missed full lunge by Cannavaro at the halfway line allowing Milevskiy a free run towards goal, but that’s where any commonalities end. In attack Madrid was breathtaking, free flow football at its best.

After straining my neck watching the endless ball played into the clouds of SJP, it was more than refreshing to see football being played as how it should be, on the deck. Madrid played with two defensive midfielders in Diarra and Emerson, but the four of Reyes, Raul, Guti and RVN were constantly on the move and ensured that the Kiev defenders will need some paracetamols after the game.

Arguably Emre is better than Guti as the link man between defence and attack, Duff should be equal to Reyes and Zoggy at his best is better than the present Raul, all which begs the question, why can’t we play like Madrid??? By the way, Madrid´s opposition was not just sitting back in awe, they were chasing the ball like dogs after a bone, so the usual argument that the pace of the La Liga is much slower than the Premiership does not apply.

Its not the personnel, that’s lacking, its the tactical discipline and commitment that “we will not hoof the ball unless absolutely necessary” mentality. When a player does occasionally play an aimless air ball as they call it here, fellow players look on with the “what the hell are you thinking of” look. Why can’t we have our players stop tolerating the same nonsense when Bramble and co indulge in their favourite pastimes??? With the exception of the defence which still needs a bit of sorting out, this Madrid team has all the trademarks of Capello.

Fabio Capello is no doubt not only a man of experience but also tactical mastermind, the sort of manager you need to do well (are you listening Freddy?!!) Watching just one game will not be enough to appreciate his entire breadth and game plan and tactics. But two areas stick out.

First Reyes and Raul were constantly changing positions on the flank ensuring that the Kiev could not play man marking. Raul is never a winger and a combo of Duff and Zoggy on paper is better than the Marid´s duo. Question, why can´t our wingers do this??? I’m not talking just once or twice but as long as the two players were on the field.

Second it was a master stroke to introduce Beckham for Reyes after 45 minutes as the two are very different players. The former with his accurate crossing from deep (yes still very effective for those rejoicing in Beckham being unjustly dropped by McClaren), and the latter dribbling whenever he gets the ball. It was also noticeable that Beckham dropped to help the defence and hassled opposition players a lot more than Reyes, hence providing more steel to Madrid in the second half, not that they needed it much as Madrid was coasting 3-0 by that time, but one can still see the merit in Capello´s idea and no doubt, it will be useful against a better team.

In Duff and Solano, we have two players who resemble Reyes and Beckham, a dribbler and a deep crosser. Why does Roeder not see the things that Capello do??? Its not even rocket science, its basic stuff that shows the manager is a thinking man and is trying to win things tactically. I honestly can’t remember the last time Roeder came out with a move that made me think…”hmm that’s a good idea”.

And what about the fans, the so called Madridistas? They were really vocal throughout the game. I can honestly say that there wasn’t any period of the game when the stadium went silent which unfortunately is quite common these days in SJP. The supporters were doing what is expected of them, supporting the team throughout the 90 minutes.

Even in the first 20 minutes when the score remained at 0-0, there was no restlessness creeping in, it was like they knew that Madrid would win the game and that confidence was passed on to the players. Now obviously it has not escaped me that Dynamo Kiev is no Liverpool or Man United, our opponents on Sunday. But I’m not asking us to beat those sort of teams, there is no excuse however for not beating teams like Fulham and Everton at home.

It would be easy to just say well Madrid is a world class team and we are just not on the same level. Well, yes and no. Our midfield is better than theirs, they didn’t have a Figo or a Zidane playing for them. Our players barring our defence and perhaps a certain Ruud Van Nistelroy are technically on the same level. We need to take a hard long look at ourselves in all aspects and make progress one step at a time.

I do not expect Newcastle to become a Madrid overnight, but I do want to see progress and I believe it is not beyond us. Getting rid of Souness (even if belatedly) was the last time we moved in the right direction, since then, things have remained stagnant at best.

The next immediate step would be for the players to put in 100% effort against Man United, for Roeder to show some glimpse of tactical ingenuity and for us to come out with a credible performance regardless of the result on Sunday. Oh and a stop to those useless hoofs up the field would be welcomed too. Having supported the team for so long, I have my doubts. But like all other Toon fans, here’s hoping.

Sunny from Madrid