SAMI KHEDIRA

Video Ranking: 4 / 5

Former Spanish La Liga referee Raul Garcia de Loza has said that the opening goal scored by Sami Khedira in the latest El Clasico at the Camp Nou is not an offside goal. Sami Khedira managed to capitalise on the mistake by Barcelona captain Carlos Puyol to score the opening goal of the match, which also turned out to be the record goal for Real Madrid. It provided Real Madrid with the best opportunity to get three points from the match, as they continued to play on the counter-attack. Even though Barcelona equalised through Sanchez in the second half, Barcelona immediately lost the lead to a goal from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Many have been saying that the goal scored by Sami Khedira in the first quarter of the match was extremely important in providing Real Madrid with the impetus and belief in the remaining minutes. However, there has also been a controversy surrounding a goal because it appears on the replays that Sami Khedira is an offside position when Carlos Puyol receives the ball. Raul Garcia de Loza was the referee of the Spanish league matches for almost 10 years from 1984 to 1994. He has said that the goal scored by Sami Khedira is perfect.

“In the first goal there was no foul by Pepe, nor was Khedira offside. He was played on by Adriano. Barcelona’s goal is legit, just like Ronaldo’s. There were no mistakes in the key plays. Undiano Mallenco officiated well tonight, he made no errors for most part. In the second half, there was the odd card misjudgment, but not in the most important phases of play. It was a game of high tension but he kept it under control. He deserves a good mark for his performance,” said the former referee regarding the goal by Khedira.

Video Ranking: 5 / five

Real Madrid have broken the all-time Spanish record for the most of goals scored in a single season after German international Sami Khedira opened the scoring for Real Madrid against Barcelona at the Camp Nou.

Real Madrid could not have had a better way of breaking the record after the goal from the German international gave them a 1-0 lead in the El Clasico. This was mostly the biggest El Clasico for Real Madrid given that they were looking to maintain their advantage at the top of the table, which has been reduced to just four points by Barcelona.

Real Madrid have now scored 108 goals this season, which has now broken the record set by Real Madrid back in the 1989-90 season. Real Madrid then went on to win the match 2-1, which was only their first victory in the league El Clasico after more than three years. Now, they have a strong point advantage at the top of the table, which will be hard to eat into by Barcelona. Only four matches remain in the season for both clubs. Sami Khedira poked in the ball from close range after a defensive lapse from Barcelona captain Puyol.

José Mourinho has said ahead of the match that records do not mean a lot to him, but trophies are the ones that matter to him. Following the match, he spoke extremely satisfied about the fact that Real Madrid were not only able to maintain their advantage over Barcelona, but also increase the advantage as well.

Barcelona manager Guardiola said that it will almost be impossible for Barcelona to win the title this season. He also congratulated Real Madrid for an impressive season, which has led to the title going away from Barcelona for the first time in three seasons.

Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira has said that the absence of midfielder Xabi Alonso from the squad is not a problem for Real Madrid, as they have a number of players who can effectively replace him on the pitch. Xabi Alonso will be missing the second leg match against Cyprus side APOEL.

Real Madrid are the favourites to go past APOEL into the semifinals of the Champions League after they come into the match with a 3-0 advantage from the first leg. Still, Real Madrid are not complacent about qualifying for the Champions League, but Khedira insists that Alonso will not be missed in the centre of midfield.

The 30-year-old Spaniard picked up a booking in the first leg, which has ruled him out of this tie due to suspension. Alonso has so far made 42 appearances for Real Madrid this season, which shows his importance for the team. Hence, there has been a lot of speculation that APOEL will cause Real Madrid a lot of problems at the Santiago Bernabeu. Khedira, who is not especially known for his passing skills like Alonso, has said that the Spaniard will not be missed because Real Madrid have enough quality on the bench to replace him.

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Video clip Ranking: five / five

Real Madrid not only continued their dominance in the domestic league, but also in the domestic cup as well after entering into the quarter-finals following their 1-0 win over Malaga. Still, not everything was rosy for José Mourinho and Real Madrid, as influential midfielder Sami Khedira suffered an injury and had to be stretchered off.

Real Madrid will be facing Barcelona in the next round, which is something worth watching given that the two clubs have been the best in the league by far. Real Madrid were coming into the match with the lead to protect, which was achieved from the 3-2 win in the first leg.

Karim Benzema, who is looking like every bit of the player Real Madrid paid £ 35 million for two years ago, once again scored the goal that helped the Spanish club record a 1-0 win over Malaga. Real Madrid have been focusing on winning every competition this season and the 1-0 win looks like the perfect recipe for doing so. It will certainly in still a lot of fear within the other clubs in Spain given that they have only watched Real Madrid score a number of goals this season. However, they managed to show to the other clubs that they still have the capability to scrap for 1-0 win.

The gloss from the victory, however, was taken away from the side after the injury to Sami Khedira. Real Madrid need every player available in order to fight on all fronts, and the injury to Sami Khedira is something that José Mourinho would not have wanted at this stage of the season. However, José Mourinho confirmed after the match that the injury was not as serious as expected initially, while also confirming the fact that he expects Khedira to be back soon.

Video clip Score: one / five

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